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The really great thing
I think BMW has judged the M135i perfectly. Its supposed to be positioned between a regular Series car and 'M' hooligan and that looks like its been very well judged. I would guess from the video that neither car is driven at 10/10 but would also assume that its only at 10/10ths that the real differences between the 2 cars will show up i.e on limit handling. At that point, superior brakes, suspension and M diff. will definitely favour the M3.
However, press a little button and the M135i can back off the racer to become a highly competent M/way and back road cruiser. The M on the other hand can never relax and always remains fully primed for action, with all that infers for comfort and economy.
I also believe that the M135i may feel quite a bit faster than the M in everyday use, due to the huge dollops of torque available from 2k upwards. Below 5k my Z4M felt 'unspectacular' and it always took the driver stirring the gearbox pot to get it up and flying. In the M135i this is absolutely not necessary and from 2k on its always ready for action.
All in all, I think BMW has done a superb job on the M135i. An M-diff option would be the icing on the cake but that would likely make the M3 a much harder sell.
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