BMW introduced its 1-series convertible to North America this afternoon, rolling out the drop-top amidst a fanfare of lights, smoke, and spinning martial arts dancers.

The company will bring the 1-series convertible in 135i trim to the land of the free and the home of the brave starting this spring. Much to the glee of true driving enthusiasts and boulevardiers from coast to coast.

(Click on the jump to read more including BMW’s very long official press release.)

With everybody and their German mother calling the new 1 a reincarnation of the legendary 2002, we can’t wait for our turn behind the wheel for some top-optional motoring.

Enjoy our large live gallery of 1-series Convertible images, and then tell us what you think of the car in comments.

A new Dimension of
Open-Air Motoring Pleasure:
The new BMW 1 Series
Convertible.

Whenever the objective is to combine thrilling pleasure at the wheel with
a wonderful experience of sunshine and the wind rushing by, the new
BMW 1 Series Convertible immediately becomes the star of the show.
Indeed, this open two-seater extends the typical experience of driving
a BMW Convertible into a new dimension.
The new BMW 1 Series Convertible making its world debut at the
2008 NAIAS in Detroit combines sporting elegance in design with the
outstanding agility of the world’s only compact car with rear-wheel drive.
Two powerful and efficient straight-six engines are available from the start
in introducing this new model into the US market. Particularly the top-of-therange
BMW 135i Convertible sets new standards in sports driving pleasure,
featuring a 3.0-litre straight-six with Twin Turbo and direct gasoline injection
and standing out clearly from the other models by the slightly modified
M Aerodynamics Package featured as standard.
The BMW 1 Series Convertible is a four-seater boasting electrohydraulic
operation of the soft roof opening and closing – if required also at low speeds
while driving – in just 22 seconds. As the first premium convertible in the
compact segment, this unique car opens up the door to the unparalleled
experience of driving a BMW Convertible, at the same time bearing out the
brand values so characteristic of a BMW in a particularly youthful and
aesthetic manner.
In its looks and appearance, the BMW 1 Series Convertible stands for modern
elegance all the way, the low shoulder-line running parallel to the road and
the dynamic lines of the soft top serving to make the car look very lean and
slender. The driver, the front passenger, and the passengers at the rear all
experience a feeling of openness characteristic of a BMW Convertible thanks
to the low waistline, thus enjoying an even more intense thrill of motoring in
the open air than a compact convertible is otherwise able to offer.
Exterior design: clearly a BMW at very first sight.
Benefiting from its compact dimensions, the new BMW 1 Series Convertible
is truly impressive not through its size, but rather through its self-confident,
positive design. The entire silhouette of the car with its long, frameless doors
is a visual expression of rear-wheel drive quite unique in this segment.
BMW
Media
Information
1/2008
Page 39
The tense, muscular, concave/convex surfaces merge harmoniously with
the equally muscular wheel arches, giving the car a firm and athletic look also
from the side. The shoulder line very low for a car in this segment, finally,
stretches the entire vehicle and conveys all the elegance so typical of
a BMW Convertible.
A striking feature of the new BMW 1 Series Convertible is the flared shoulder
line running parallel to the road. Extending from the engine compartment
lid past the A-pillar all the way to the rear lid, the shoulder line visibly connects
the front and rear of the car with one another, forming a surface surrounding
the complete interior. Looking at the new BMW 1 Series Convertible
from a somewhat higher point, you even get the impression from the clearly
accentuated shoulder line of a boat deck.
Optical effect of the soft top highlighting the contours of the rear end.
The rear view of the new BMW 1 Series Convertible is influenced largely
by the optical effect of the soft top. As long as the roof is open, the horizontal
lines on the body develop their full effect and impact. With the roof disappearing
completely into the passenger compartment, the BMW 1 Series Convertible,
seen from behind, offers a particularly low, sporting and elegant look.
Once the driver closes the soft top, on the other hand, the contours growing
wider towards the bottom of the car reveal all their features and highlights.
The rear lid merges at the end into a discrete contour lip complete with the
integrated third brake light. This aerodynamic feature quite literally chiselled
into the car emphasises the short and snug design of the rear end and high
speeds ensures additional downforce on the rear axle.
In the L-shaped rear lights the reversing light and the direction indicators are
combined with one another to form a white strip. The rear light clusters also
comprise light bars made up of LED light units. Given this structure of the light
sources so typical of the brand, the new BMW 1 Series Convertible stands
out clearly also in the dark as a genuine BMW all the way.
Exclusive roof material with integrated gloss thread.
As a genuine premium car, the new BMW 1 Series Convertible offers a
number of surprising features in its design. The soft top, for example, is a
vailable as an option not “only