Call it blasphemy, but BMW has finally thrown in the towel and is introducing the brand’s first front-wheel drive vehicle. There’s good reason to BMW’s madness though: the 2 Series Active Sport Tourer wants to achieve “particularly high levels of versatility and functionality in the premium compact class”. In other words, BMW is doing that Mercedes-Benz did with the B-Class. Done and dusted.

At a passing glance, it does share the Mercedes-Benz’s MPV-ish silhouette though BMW’s trademark design cues are all present—the double kidney grille, the twin circular headlights, the short overhangs, the rear-wheel drive…oh, wait. Scratch the last one. Still, you can’t deny the 2 Series Active Sport Tourer does sport a luggage space that can expand up to 1,510 liters considering the length is a mere 4,342 mm (wheelbase 2,670 mm). Plus, the rear seats can be folded in a 40/20/40 split. Drivers will also enjoy a semi-elevated driving position.


Underneath, the BMW 2 Series Active Sport Tourer gets a choice of 3 (!) or 4 cylinder engines equipped with BMW’s TwinPower Turbo engine. Power ranges from 136 horsepower from the 1.5-liter 3-cylinder up to 231 horsepower in the BMW 225i Active Tourer. A diesel, of course, is available and that’s the 218d Active Sport Tourer with 150 horses and 330 Nm of torque. Thankfully, the suspension is independent on all four corners (take that, Mercedes!).

Increasing the insanity quotient even further, BMW can kit up your BMW 2 Series Active Tourer with the M Sport Package fitting your front-driven family van/hatchback with an aero kit, sport suspension, and alloy wheels in either 17 or 18-inches in diameter.


Of course, BMW has announced that an all-wheel drive version xDrive) will be made available later in the year. And rumor has it, this 2 Series Active Sport Tourer will spawn the all-new X1 which is slated to debut within the year.