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The car almost did a controlled skid when I maneuvered quickly — OK, maybe a tad too quickly ­— on the country highway to double back to the little roadside drive-in advertising fresh fried chicken livers. “We’re going to die,” my traveling companion said nonchalantly. Was she referring to the artery-clogging, down-home dish Mr. Chicken Livers fancies on Louisiana...




The car almost did a controlled skid when I maneuvered quickly — OK, maybe a tad too quickly ­— on the country highway to double back to the little roadside drive-in advertising fresh fried chicken livers.



Photo by James Gaffney/The Times-Picayune

“We’re going to die,” my traveling companion said nonchalantly.



Was she referring to the artery-clogging, down-home dish Mr. Chicken Livers fancies on Louisiana daytrips, or his sudden, “performance-oriented” driving?



If it was the latter, the companion had no cause for concern because our adroit automobile — a 2010 BMW 135i convertible, to be precise — handled like a champ and its aluminum double-pivot suspension left the suitably impressed driver thinking this road-savvy prince of rides could do no wrong.



As for the chicken livers, there was no doubt in my mind after lunch that I had executed not one but two good maneuvers that day.



Time to hit the road.



Cabana-on-wheels

From the outset we need to set one thing straight: the BMW 1-series, the German automaker’s entry-entry level lineup, is no weakling cousin to the next-level-up 3-series. If anything it’s the extremely well turned out junior executive version of the slightly larger (and only slightly better appointed) 3-series, which was the entry-level BMW until 2008 when the 1-series began rolling off the assembly line.

Photo by James Gaffney/The Times-Picayune

In an era when some entry-level cars stopped being fun to drive several solar systems ago, BMW seems to go out of its way to lure new drivers to its brand with exciting, unflinchingly sexy models boasting mighty, full-throttle engines that always seem this close to giving you whiplash.



Or earning you a speeding ticket.



For starters the 135i has the same 3.0-liter, DOHC inline six-cylinder, gladiator-like engine with six-speed manual transmission as that found in the 335i — and that’s saying a lot. Especially since this twin-turbocharged, air-to-air inter-cooling engine can unleash 300 teeth-baring horses and 300 pound-feet of torque at the blink of an eye.



Yes, this little monkey is fast.



And this road-ripping engine is precisely what makes both the 135i and 335i absolutely incredible ­— and incredibly fun — to drive. A pleasant chime (is that a D-major chord?) reminds when you’re seatbelt isn’t fastened and when you’re running low on gas. None of those loud, video game-ish warning beeps from this Côte d’Azur cabana-on-wheels.



Did we mention the 135i convertible has a power-folding cloth top that can be retracted at speeds up to 25 miles an hour?



Road paladin

Inside there’s nearly the identical Spartan console, mix and appointment of high quality burl walnut trim, leather and heavy-duty charcoal-colored materials as that found in the 335i cabin. If the seat leather seems a wee bit less supple than the 335i, that’s because it is.



Unlike the 335i, the second-row seatbacks don’t flip down to create a flat storage area and backseat legroom is virtually non-existent if the driver and front passenger are tall and need to have their seats all the way back.



The 60/40 split-folding rear seat is standard.

Photo by James Gaffney/The Times-Picayune

No, you’re delicate sensibilities are not deceiving you: the driver and front-passenger seat adjustments are manual, not power. Elsewhere, the lone A/C adapter is buried near the inside bottom of the center armrest console.



Still, if you can live with such inhumanities, you’ll find with the 135i you’re getting nearly everything the 335i has to offer but for approximately $10,000 le

Tags: BMW, is-featured

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'1' Love: Is BMW's entry-level 135i convertible the prince of rides? was originally published by New Orleans Auto Reviews: BMW. Read the full story by clicking here.