BMW M135 v Mercedes-AMG A35 – which is the best £50k hot hatch?

There was a universal sigh of disappointment when the BMW 1-series switched to front-wheel drive in 2019 for its F40 generation. No longer was it a uniquely tail-driven hatch with a longitudinal engine, and with it came the death of the six-cylinder M140i – not a perfect hot hatch by any means, but one with a uniquely appealing hot-rod character and huge tuning potential; a tempting alternative to cookie-cutter four-pot rivals. For the F40, BMW promised that the hot version – the four-cylinder, four-wheel-drive M135i xDrive – was better to drive and lighter than its predecessor, but only the latter was true. The 1-series had lost its USP, and most of its charisma.

That was then, and BMW hasn’t given up on trying to create a genuinely exciting hot hatch from those Mini underpinnings, launching a facelifted M135 (sans the ‘i’, with a new F70 model designation) with fettled suspension and a stiffer structure last year. The changes weren’t transformative, the M135 being brisk and capable but still quite bland on all fronts, but the new M Dynamic Pack – introduced with the updated model and now available in the UK – might just be the ticket. For an extra £3000 on top of the £45,525 base price you get a smattering of performance upgrades, including 19-inch lightweight wheels, an M-specific track-tuned chassis, a drilled compound braking system and M Sport seats. Oh, and the option of Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres. When was the last time you saw a hatchback on Cup 2s? It was probably a Renault Sport of some sort. The M135 would do very well to channel that kind of focus, if it can.

Being just shy of £50k pushes the Dynamic Pack M135 into the territory of some serious rivals, including Mercedes’ cheapest AMG, the £47,610 A35. The current generation of fast A-classes is much more convincing than the last, with the A45 S being one of the most capable, powerful (and expensive) hot hatches of all. In today’s world of megahatches you wouldn’t look twice at the lesser A35’s numbers, but it still has the makings of a formidable performance offering. Like the BMW it’s powered by a 2-litre four-pot engine with circa 300bhp, it’s four-wheel drive, paddles-only, and can crack 62mph in under five seconds. The last time we had this pair together was when we ranked every hot hatch on sale early last year, and the Mercedes placed ninth out of 18 runners – pipping Volkswagen’s Golf R, and soundly beating the 13th-placed M135i. Its big brother aside, the A35 was the highest-placed five-door four-wheel-drive contender. With its updates and new dynamic pack, can the M135 close the gap?

I start in the BMW and it immediately feels keen, and really quite lively. You sit high in those sports seats and the wheel rim is too fat in typical M style, but there’s a pointiness that’s reminiscent of a hot Mini, the nose responding to small twitches of the wheel and the whole car feeling firm and tense. Its reactions have been cranked right up to imbue it with a sense of sportiness and agility, but it feels a little unnatural somehow. There’s little to no sense of connection to the front tyres to go with that sharpness either, the wheel being lifeless in Comfort mode and heavier but still lacking feel in Sport. The M135 has no problem carrying speed, however – it’s a warm, dry day and the Cup 2s are finding stacks of grip, enough to live with the pointy front end when hustling into corners and through direction changes.

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In many ways the M135 doesn’t really drive like a BMW, and certainly not like a usual M product. That extends to the engine: the B48 four-pot is never going to have the character and smoothness of a six, but even by four-cylinder standards it’s uninspiring. It puts out 296bhp but does so with very little enthusiasm, the strong mid-range giving way to a flat top end, accompanied by a bassy synthesised note coming through the speakers. After a while I find a way to turn off the fake sounds in the infotainment system, but that replaces the boom with a nasty mechanical thrash as the motor strains at higher revs. It’s better left on after all – at least then the noise is tolerable under load, and if you concentrate there are subtle whooshes and whistles from the turbo that add some semblance of character. Overall the M135 is a strange mix, not short on feisty hot-hatch DNA in some areas, but sorely lacking it in others.

In terms of appearance, neither it nor the Mercedes is especially outgoing. Parked side by side they look like they’re from a company car shortlist, the BMW showing no signs of its potential bar a deep rear bumper with quad tailpipes (I thought those were reserved for proper M cars?), and the Mercedes looking very much like a standard A-class, aside from a slightly incongruous bolt‑on rear wing.

The BMW’s updated cabin is smart and modern, with a dual display panel bolted to a redesigned dash. Sadly the new layout means very few physical buttons, but the climate controls are at least a permanent fixture at the bottom of the central touchscreen. There are chintzy details here and there, like the M stripes on the dash and spangly infotainment graphics (the instruments aren’t especially clear), but by and large it looks and feels premium.

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Settle into the A35 and it’s comparatively low-slung and less upright. Quite complicated too. If you count the pair of round drive mode displays on the wheel there are four screens in your field of view, plus haptic controls on the two-pronged horizontal spokes that make navigating the UI fiddly. Material quality doesn’t feel up to the level of the BMW’s either, with too much shiny black plastic. There’s a lot to take in, but once it’s familiar it’s nice to have the drive modes at your fingertips via those wheel-mounted satellite screens, allowing you to toggle through the presets – Slippery, Comfort, Sport, Sport+ and Individual – and customise the dampers, gearbox, stability control and more without delving into the main touchscreen.

In Comfort the A35 immediately feels more grown-up than the BMW, calmer and less tetchy. It’s a stark change of pace and a more reserved character to begin with, but it makes for a more intuitive drive. The steering, for instance, is slower than the BMW’s, but within a few miles you appreciate its more natural rate of response and weight build up, allowing you to place the car more accurately. You also sense the AMG has a lower, wider stance, contributing to the feeling of stability. It’s still far from the finely honed excellence of a Civic Type R, but there’s a sophistication to the A35 that makes it satisfying to thread along. The illusion breaks on really bumpy roads, where it feels busy, thumping over imperfections and struggling to find a flow, but show it a smooth surface and it’s cohesive – more so than the occasionally bouncy BMW.

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But where are the AMG fireworks? Twisting the drive mode switch to Sport+ (preferably with the dampers left in Comfort) injects a healthy dose of energy into the driving experience. The 302bhp engine livens up in terms of sound and response, being keener to rev, with more snap to its responses than the BMW’s four-pot, helped too by its seven-speed DCT providing quicker shifts than the BMW’s.

The character of the drivetrain is more befitting of a hot hatch, but in terms of its dynamics, the A35 doesn’t entirely behave like one. You don’t three-wheel into corners and easily manipulate it with weight transfer, instead you lean into its stability and poise to make progress from point to point. Do so and it’s a seriously quick car, with what feels like an edge over the BMW in a straight line, and neater, less edgy handling. 

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The M135 has a stronger front end and higher peak grip, but the A35 is more precise when you edge up to the limit, and gathers itself up more tidily when you breach it. At road speeds neither car can be driven on the throttle like some four-wheel-drive hatches (say an Audi RS3), but the Mercedes corners with a neutral stance with a well-timed lift, and the BMW can be downright lairy if you back off the power on turn-in. Its rear end is as loose as that of any hot hatch I’ve driven, and you need fast hands to catch it.

In an ideal world you’d want some of the M135’s playfulness and adjustability combined with the A35’s perkier engine and more polished dynamics. But taken as they are, the A35 is the more rounded, rewarding hot hatch of the pair. With the M Dynamic Pack there are flickers of a genuinely exciting car in the M135, but they’re masked by a dull engine and a poor sense of connection – in other words, the fundamental limitations of its platform. The A35 fares better but it’s still not the most vibrant or thrilling hot hatch. If you absolutely need four-wheel drive then it’s worth considering, but if not, get a Civic Type R and don’t look back.