IT’S a case of Prada rather than pistols at dawn for the latest performance hatch showdown, as BMW takes the high (and more refined) road with the turbo-powered M135i, offering quite startling power and impressive dynamics.

Not surprisingly, there’s a hefty price to pay for this rollickingly good fun runabout, especially compared with some of the more accomplished similarly sized competition, but we agree that the M135i is in a class of its own.