BMW has done as it always does and released a couple of base model versions some way into the model cycle of one of its cars. So, here are the poor man's 1 Series Coupés: the 118d and the 120i.

Obviously we use the word 'poor' very loosely, because these two still aren't cheap. The 118d starts at £20,500, but you'll be looking at nearer to £25,000 once you've added the M Sport kit and satnav, while the 120i starts at £21,115.

They're still the most cost-effective ways of getting your 1 Series Coupé kicks though, and both offer reasonable running costs - in particular the 118d, unsurprisingly. It's capable of 62.8mpg and emits 119g/km of CO₂, squeezing it into the £35 VED band. That still gets you a 0-62mph sprint time of nine seconds though, thanks to its meaty 221lb.ft of torque. The 120i is, as you'd expect, a bit faster and a bit less frugal: 153g/km of CO₂, 42.8mpg and 7.8-seconds to 62mph.

Mark Nichol - 16 Aug 2009