bmw 1 series concept tii
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| bmw concept 1 series tii '07 |
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| bmw concept 1 series tii '07 gt5 |
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| bmw concept 1 series tii '07 gt5 |
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| bmw concept 1 series tii '07 p |
We knew this wouldn't take long. The 1 Series coupe has been nicknamed "The new 2002tii" since the world got its first look at it a few months ago. So BMW has gone with the flow, and trotted out a sportified version of it at Tokyo. It must have been a last minute addition to the company's Tokyo plan, as there is neither a word nor a photo about it in BMW's show press kit. But the formula is so obvious, so right, that it needs little explanation. As the fuel-injected tii was the sporty version of the 1968-1976 2002 model, so is the tii the sportiest interpretation (so far...) of the new new 1 Series. It wears aggressive body armor, including a naturally finished carbon fiber hood. The ride height is low, the rolling stock all business, and the interior boasts aggressive sport seats. There was no talk of powertrain or performace, as this is at this point just a design study. But the twin-turbo, 305 horse 135i Coupe is a serious enough place to start. Give it the M treatment, and a 350-375 horsepower, lightweight kick boxer shouldn't be hard to make happen. Using the tii badge would be a breakaway from the usual M moniker, but a smart one in this case. BMW global design director Adrian van Hooydonk offered an interesting comment. "Think of the 1 Series like the Star Wars trilogy. In order to understand everything about the first movie, you have to see the third one. When you think of the 1 Series, consider this tii concept as the third movie." We hope this one arrives in theaters, er, dealers, someday soon. - Matt Stone
bmw 1 series concept tii
