The rear-wheel-drive BMW 1 Series enters its fifth year on the market with a few visual changes, as well as a new higher-performance version from BMW's M division, dubbed the 1 Series M. Above the entry-level 128i is the 135i, whose compact dimensions and two-door layout give it few genuine competitors. The car comes as a coupe or convertible; shoppers might cross-shop the 135i with the Nissan 370Z, Infiniti G37 coupe or top-end versions of Detroit's muscle cars.

The 128i is covered separately in Cars.com's Research section.