BMW 1 Series Driving Experiences

Designed under the guidance of their then Design Director, Chris Bangle, the BMW 1 Series was first unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show in 2002, with its global launch following in the autumn of 2004.

It was the successor of their 3 Series Compact, making it the smallest and most inexpensive vehicle in their fleet, and differed from other hatchbacks on the market, as it operates on a rear wheel drive, with 50/50 weighting ratio.

Running on a 1.6 litre engine, with 130 bhp, this model isn’t as concerned with speed trials or hot laps as some of the other cars we offer on TrackDays. Which is why the BMW 1 Series is the perfect model for our First Drive packages we have available for our Junior drivers aged 12 - 16.

On First Drive, they’ll take to the wheel of a dual-controlled BMW 1 Series, with guidance from an expert instructor to give them their first taste of driving a car in conditions that are as close to real life road conditions as they can expect, helping to give them a head start for when they start driving lessons when they turn 17, making it an ideal present to celebrate their birthday or passing their exams.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the 1 Series is one of BMW’s best selling models in their fleet. A report they published in 2008 revealed that the 1 Series accounted for a fifth of all their sales in that year.

When launched for the international market in 2005, BMW ran a memorable TV advertising campaign for the 1 Series, starring the Muppets’ very own Kermit the Frog, as he drove figure eights in a 1 Series around a desert!