BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe review

The old BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe was a slightly awkward-looking device, with a kicked-up tail, squinting rear lights and a bluff front that made it look a little like an afterthought in BMW’s range. The latest model is a much sleeker device, much like the BMW 1 Series it’s based on, and while the fundamentals are similar to the old car, we think it’s become much more appealing in its latest iteration.

The range is small, with just two petrol versions on offer, and one trim level on each. Those engines pretty much rule it out for company users but private buyers will find plenty to like, not least because the Gran Coupe is competitively priced, usefully undercutting equivalent models from Audi and Mercedes-Benz.

That’s despite the BMW being better to drive than its rivals too. The old rear-wheel drive handling has gone of course, but BMW knows better than to release something dynamically inept onto the market, and both the 220 and M235 are enjoyable, if not quite class-leading cars to drive – dedicated hot hatchbacks like the Honda Civic Type R and even the Volkswagen Golf GTI are still more entertaining.

A fantastic cabin design with usable, if occasionally complicated infotainment completes the Gran Coupe’s list of talents, and if you’re prepared to put up with a smaller boot aperture than the hatchback 1 Series, there’s more luggage space than in the smaller car too. And it’s frugal, both on paper and in the real world. The 2 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t break any new ground; it’s just a solid all-rounder that drives well, with a badge that still holds plenty of appeal.

The 220 M Sport Gran Coupé is the one to buy. BMW’s current pages put it front and centre, and the numbers back that up. It has 170hp, 280Nm, front-wheel drive, a seven-speed automatic gearbox and official economy of up to 53.3mpg. Those figures make it plenty quick enough for the role, and the three-cylinder engine’s lower weight helps preserve the slightly more agile, adjustable feel.

The M235 xDrive Gran Coupé makes a harder-edged statement. It gets 300hp, 400Nm, all-wheel drive and a 4.9-second 0-62mph time, which is hot-hatch-fast. It is also much more expensive to buy and run, and it is debatable whether it is actually the more satisfying car. The M235 is the one you buy because you want the pace and the badge kudos. The 220 is the one you buy because it is the better all-rounder.

The current BMW 2 Series Gran Coupé range starts from £36,570 in the UK. That price keeps it competitive with premium-badged alternatives, and the 2 Series Gran Coupe still makes good sense as the more stylish sibling to the 1 Series hatch. The bigger issue is whether you want the saloon shape enough to accept the smaller boot opening and weaker practicality versus the 1 Series.

Closest in spirit to the 2 Series Gran Coupe is the Mercedes-Benz CLA. There’s a new one of those on the way in the next year or so but the current one is surely one of the better-looking small four-doors on the road even in its basic form, with a smooth look that apes the larger Mercedes-Benz CLS which went out of production in 2023. A CLA45 model comfortably tops the M235 for performance – more equal is the CLA35.

Audi offers an A3 Saloon still, and like the Merc it has both a model that matches the 2GC range-topper, in the S3 Saloon, and one that eclipses it, with the mad five-cylinder RS3 Saloon – though also like the Merc, you can have it in more sensible flavours too. Talking of sensible, while it’s not a saloon, the Honda Civic remains one of our favourite cars of this size. It may not have a premium badge, but it certainly has a premium feel. The Mazda 3 is another Japanese challenger which punches above its weight for quality, and it’s available as a saloon too – though there’s no sporty version if that’s your bag.

Ahead of the B-pillar the 2 Series Gran Coupe is essentially identical to the 1 Series, and as already mentioned, we’ve very few gripes about the front cabin. Looks great, feels great, and seems to accommodate most body shapes. Good stuff.

While it isn’t objectively much bigger in the rear - most of the 2GC’s extra length is behind the rear axle - it does somehow feel a little more accommodating in the second row. This five-foot-eight-inch tester can quite happily sit behind himself, with adequate foot room, a good six inches of knee room with the scalloped front seat backs, and around three inches of headroom. Do the maths based on how tall you and your offspring are though and you might start to run out of space fairly quickly.

The 430-litre boot is 50 litres larger than that of the 1 Series, and identical to that of its predecessor. It drops to 360 litres for the 220 thanks to the battery for the mild hybrid system occupying some underfloor space. Like the old car, the Gran Coupe is still a traditional saloon despite the roofline implying a hatchback, so actual boot access isn’t quite as good as in the 1 Series. 40/20/40 split folding seats at least give you some adaptability.

The BMW 2 Series Gran Coupé is 4,546mm long, 1,800mm wide and 1,445mm tall, with a 2,670mm wheelbase and a width of 2,070mm including mirrors. In practical terms, that puts it firmly in premium compact-car territory and explains why it feels usefully substantial without becoming awkward in town.

This generation of 2 Series Gran Coupe has moved further away from the physical controls you’d find in previous small BMWs. Ordinarily, this would be cause for alarm, but BMW’s done a better job than most at making things intuitive.

There are still some physical buttons left. Most have migrated to the console between the seats (it’s where you’ll find the hazard light switch, driving mode button, and a volume knob, along with more significant controls like the gear selector and the parking brake). You do get little wheels and joysticks to control the direction of the air vents though, even if heat, airflow and other air conditioning functions are now touchscreen-only.

The infotainment is quick, clear, and fairly easy to navigate with brief glances and a finger prod in vaguely the right area of the screen. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are of course standard, you can use your phone as a digital key, and BMW is adding apps to the system all the time - YouTube is a recent addition.

Driving mode selection through first a button press and then screen tapping is a bit clunky though and requires eyes off the road for longer than we’d like. Disabling lane keep and speed warnings requires a similar process, though you’re more likely to do this at a standstill each time you turn on the car, so it’s less of an issue.

BMW’s own trim descriptions highlight M Alcantara/Veganza upholstery and illuminated aluminium decorative panels, and those details matter because they give the 2 Series Gran Coupé a more expensive feel than a lot of compact premium cars manage.

The 220 M Sport Gran Coupé uses a 1.5-litre three-cylinder turbo petrol engine with 48-volt mild-hybrid assistance. BMW quotes 170hp and 280Nm for the total system, with front-wheel drive, a seven-speed automatic gearbox and a 0-62mph time of 7.9 seconds. Official combined economy is up to 53.3mpg and CO2 emissions start at 121g/km.

The M235 xDrive Gran Coupé uses a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo petrol engine with all-wheel drive. BMW quotes 300hp, 400Nm and a 0-62mph time of 4.9 seconds, with official economy of up to 37.7mpg and CO2 emissions as low as 170g/km. Those are serious numbers for a compact four-door, though it does not feel quite as effervescent as some of its closest performance-oriented rivals.

The 2 Series Gran Coupe’s similarity to the 1 Series carries over to how it drives, which is no great revelation. You’d need to drive the two back to back to discern any differences, but in isolation, it’s just as good to drive as its shorter counterpart was when we tested it last year.

We’ll get to the engines in a second, but this is clearly a car slightly more biased towards the sporty end of this class. The steering is relatively light at town speeds, and bumping the car into Dynamic adds reassuring weight for country roads. There’s not much of what we’d describe as steering feedback, but precision and consistency are present and correct.

It might be a saloon but the 2 Series Gran Coupe retains the 1 Series’ hot hatch sensibilities, so it tackles quick changes of direction and tight corners with ability to spare - only on wet or greasy roads, or with poorly misjudged speed, is the front end likely to wash out. Grip feels even at both ends, letting you play around with different cornering lines as you accelerate or lift off the throttle, if not to the extent of rear-wheel drive BMWs, while the M235’s all-wheel drive means you’re never short of traction exiting a turn. At 1,525kg to the M235’s 1,650kg though, the 220 feels lighter on its feet.

The fairly sporty setup doesn’t seem to result in a hard ride. There are certainly softer cars, but if you’re buying a BMW you probably expect a certain degree of firmness, and even in the M235 the suspension seems to round off the corners of the gnarliest bumps. Poor surfaces don’t set the dashboard quivering either – it feels like a well-built car, though our Spanish test roads were pretty smooth, so we’ll reserve final judgement for the UK.

Our one real reservation is the brakes. They work perfectly well, but the pedal is never less than spongy, without the reassuring firmness that a relatively high-performance car like the M235 in particular needs. The feel isn’t any better in a car with the Dynamic pack and its upgraded brakes either.

The current BMW 2 Series Gran Coupé scored four stars in Euro NCAP testing in November 2025. Euro NCAP’s report notes some weaker chest-protection scores in certain tests, though it also records good side-impact protection and a broad suite of assistance systems. That four-star result is the key independent safety headline for this generation.

No plug-in or EV will immediately rule out this new car for business users, as BiK rates are expensive. It’s a better buy for private buyers, with relatively low fuel costs, acceptable VED, and insurance shouldn’t be extortionate either.

Even if you opt for the sportier M235 Gran Coupe, you’re unlikely to suffer huge fuel bills, since combined economy of up to 37.7mpg isn’t bad for a car of its performance. Still, the 220 is the real fuel-sipper of the duo, with an official 53.3mpg figure.

On our test around Barcelona, on a mix of motorway, city streets and twisting mountain roads, our 220 test car returned just under 48mpg, which is pretty impressive real-world economy. With a 49-litre fuel tank, you can expect to get a fairly easy 450 miles between top-ups, or 500-plus if you’re prepared to test your luck with the fuel gauge. We didn’t record MPG figures for the M235, but that too should be capable of getting close to its official numbers if you’re not too lead-footed.

New BMWs come with a three-year unlimited-mileage warranty, and BMW also offers Service Inclusive packages for petrol, diesel and PHEV models for up to the vehicle’s fifth birthday or 62,000 miles.

The 2 Series Gran Coupe starts from insurance group 23 for a regular 220 M Sport. Full insurance group details haven’t yet been confirmed but we’d expect the range to top out in the mid-30 insurance group range, which is where the outgoing M235i Gran Coupe stopped. The equivalent 1 Series models sit in groups 26-29 depending on specification.

The exact VED bill depends on the final emissions figure and list price of the specific model you buy. BMW’s official current data shows CO2 emissions as low as 121g/km for the 220 and as low as 170g/km for the M235. BMW’s model-range page also shows the Gran Coupé range starting from £36,570, which means the 220 sits below the expensive-car threshold, while pricier versions can bring different tax implications depending on specification.