Pros: The same strengths as before--torquey engines, athletic handling, exquisite balance--plus a bit more edge.
Cons: Some technology is complex for complexity's sake. Don't expect a bargain price, either.
The Bottom Line: BMW has taken everything that was right with the last 3-Series, and turned all the screws down a bit tighter. Consider the 3's case for best-in-class renewed.
After the resounding success of the popular previous-generation 3-Series, BMW's engineers must have felt like a rock band after the best gig of their lives:
"Aw, man, you guys were awesome! It just doesn't get any better than that. Nope. Never. Oh, by the way, can't wait for your next show."
Talk about a tough act to follow. I drove several examples of the outgoing 3-Series--once on an autocross course--and found that, despite the glowing press hyperbole, the car was not overrated. In fact, it was every bit as lovely as the fawning reviews had led me to believe.
Naturally, after such a knockout performance, I was eager to see what BMW would do for an encore. I got my chance while attending BMW's Ultimate Drive event, which allowed attendees to drive the new 3-Series on a comprehensive mix of city streets, twisty back roads, and busy freeways. Does the new 3 pick up the beat where the old one left off? Here's what I found out.
Performance
When redesigning an icon, there's always one surefire way to quiet the critics: add more power. So, for 2006, BMW has substantially increased the 3-Series' engine output. They've also increased displacement, in the 325i's case--it's now equipped with a 215-horsepower 3.0-liter Six. The 330i uses a more highly-tuned version of same powerplant, with its power upped to 255 horses.
Eager to experience the new 3 in its sportiest available state, I drove the 330i first. My immediate impression was that, while this engine's tech specs may have changed significantly, its character has not. It's still a remarkably broad-shouldered powerplant, surging from idle to redline with flawless linearity and an unruffled demeanor. Is it fast? Yes. Does it feel fast? Well, yes, but less so--the engine's refined sense of isolation puts a damper on the visceral thrills. Flatten the 330i's throttle, and the speedo starts rolling up big numbers just as you've begun to enjoy yourself. Entertainment at responsible speeds simply isn't an option.
In my book, that's a downside, and it was for this reason that I actually preferred driving the 325i. I enjoyed being able to stretch the 325i's engine a little more, urging the tach needle higher and occasionally kissing the redline between shifts. That's not to say the 325i needs to be worked hard--it conveys the same feeling of subdued swiftness as the 330i. It's just a bit sweeter, and slightly less aloof.
Of course, automotive aloofness is not without perks--and in this case, the payoff is an impressive level of refinement. Neither of the 3's engines is as vibrationless as that of a Lexus, but they're close--you'll feel only a subtle tingle as the tach needle rises. On the downside, however, I was a bit disappointed by the new 3's less-than-musical engine note. It's kind of a hoarse, mechanical hum--closer in character to the Infiniti G35 than anything else. Noise levels are admirably low, but in all honesty, I'd prefer something more tuneful.
Fuel economy remains about the same as before--both engines achieve 20/30 MPG with the six-speed manual transmission, and only fractionally less with the automatic. Both figures are slightly better than average for the class.
Transmission/Clutch
While I've never considered the 3-Series to be overrated as a whole, I do think that BMW's manual transmissions garner more than their fair share of praise. Professional reviewers often use words like "crisp," "connected," and "silky" to characterize 3-Series shifters, but I find that, in fact, "notchy," "oily," and "rubbery" are more accurate descriptors.
The best shifter in this class, hands down, is the optional short-throw unit in the Subaru Legacy 2.5 GT. By comparison, the new 3-Series' shift lever feels long of throw and wobbly of feel as it slips from gear to gear. Clutch feel trails the class best, too. The 3's highly-insulated pedal feels somewhat wooden underfoot, so even though take-up is quite progressive, clean launches are a bit of a guessing game at first.
Does this mean you should opt for the six-speed automatic? No. I'm picking nits for the sake of dispelling a myth--the 3's manual is class-average at worst. But should you decide to go with the optional automatic, you'll find it a very good one. I'm admittedly biased against slushboxes, but the automatic 325i I drove exhibited smooth and perceptive shifts, with a well-judged stack of ratios. The "manumatic" gate was more responsive than most, too, though it's still not quick enough for purists.
Steering/Handling
In the months leading up to the new 3's release, there were a flurry of dire predictions going around in the automotive press: the 3's styling would be "Bangle-ized," electronic interventions would run rampant, and--most frighteningly--its magic chassis balance would be lost. The presence of Active Steering, in particular, led many to expect the new 3 to be well and truly screwed-up.
Well, to settle that debate, the Active Steering doesn't screw up the driving experience. The 330i that I drove was equipped with this feature, and while its quickness at parking-lot speeds took me off-guard at first, it felt great after a little familiarity. Still, having said that, I'll admit to preferring the non-Active steering in the 325i overall. Its weighting is meaty and firm--"heavy," if you like to park with your pinkie--and resistance is crisp, with not a millimeter of play in the wheel. Feed in some angle, and the car re-creates the motions of your hands with an accuracy that's almost uncanny. It's plenty quick in standard form, too--quite possibly the best steering I've experienced to date.
So, what was it about the Active Steering that led me to prefer the 325i's lesser system? Well, actually, I'm not sure that the technology had anything to do with it. The Active-steered 330i I drove was also equipped with the Sport Package, which includes wider tires and a thickly-stuffed steering-wheel rim. The former seemed to follow seams and grooves in the pavement, while the latter prevented me from feeling the road with my fingertips. Could the Active system have been exacerbating these weaknesses? Sure, but there were too many variables for me to say that with certainty.
"Certainty." I'll dwell on that word for a bit, because it's something the 3-Series' chassis inspires in spades. I pushed both the 325i and 330i quite hard on some empty secondary roads, and found the experience almost spookily effortless--it was little more than a simple "point and shoot" exercise. Corners are taken in single, fluid movements of the wrists, and the 3 homes in on apexes like a laser beam. Tire grip seems unlimited at first, but when it does begin to fade, it does so with gentle linearity. Plus, as in most BMWs, the 3's suspension works with such subtlety that any body motion--and there isn't much--borders on imperceptibility. As for chassis balance, I may have countered under- or oversteer at some point--if I did, I don't remember it. It's just that intuitive.
In fact, while wheeling the 3-Series back onto Sacramento's surface streets, I noticed one slightly unnerving side effect of all this dynamic excellence: The 3 moves so confidently, and with such well-damped refinement, that it's easy to forget that there's 3,500 pounds of machinery around you. The steering starts to seem like a mouse cursor ("of course it aims the car exactly where I point it!"), you take the Herculean grip for granted, and the eerie lack of body lean fades from your consciousness. The technical perfection runs so deep in this car, it's possible to forget that you're even driving a car at all.
Ride
I'm not much of a stickler for ride quality, so for me, most of the 3-Series' chassis magic is manifested in its handling. Still, if you're picky about comfort, you'll likely be amazed by the 3's suspension. While other cars' ride/handling tradeoffs can be measured in terms of percentage--50/50, 60/40 or whatever--the 3's seems to add up to over 100%.
Even for someone who easily overlooks a car's ride characteristics--me, specifically--the 3's damping feels sublime. The suspension moves with a firm, controlled discipline, yet body motions are subtle enough to escape notice, even over midcorner bumps. Similarly, while you're always aware of the road's texture, it's only on a near-subsonscious level--it's like a sports-car's ride with the "mute" button on.
It doesn't hurt that the 3's chassis could have inspired the old "carved-from-billet" cliche. This thing feels rock-solid, and that's a trait I'm very picky about. You'd probably pop an airbag before you set up tremors in this structure.
Interior
What's a smooth ride without a comfortable cabin to enjoy it from? The answer is irrelevant here, because BMW has done an excellent job of updating the 3's cabin to better compete with its Japanese rivals. Previous-generation 3-Series sedans confronted the driver with a typically Teutonic high-rise dashboard--it didn't bother me personally, but apparently made many buyers long for an airy-feeling Acura. This time around, BMW has conceded and lowered the cowl to an average height. It's still clearly Teutonic, but with a lighter, more open view of the road ahead.
Instead, that Teutonic flavor is now derived mostly from the look of the instrument panel. At first glance, it appears stern and angular in the German idiom--but in fact, there's nary a right angle in the entire cabin. Subtle arcs and trapezoidal edges abound, and unless you order iDrive--which I wouldn't recommend, for reasons I'll expound on later--the dashboard forms a single crisp, creased ribbon beneath the driver's sightlines. This kind of styling is right up my aesthetic alley--it's interesting, but not to the point that it distracts from the business of driving.
I also liked the feel of the 3's materials, but depending on your frame of reference, you may not agree. Unlike a Lexus or Mercedes, both of which do their darndest to convince you that you're in a posh parlor room, this BMW wants you to know you're in a machine. As a result, some of the surfaces--particularly those of the dash and door panels--are somewhat hard and unyielding to the touch. What they aren't is cheap. All the materials are knobbly-grained, grippy to the touch, and precise in their fits and finishes. If you get off on the German-severity bit, you'll love it.
That's form covered. As far as function goes, the 3's interior should elicit even more appreciation. It's sized to hit the sweet spot between spaciousness and intimacy--there's enough leg-, head-, and elbowroom so you'll never feel cramped, but the fit of the cabin is still driver's-car snug. Control relationships are ideal, too--you reach out, not up or down, to the wheel and pedals. The Sport Package's puffy seats provide better lateral support than the flattish standard units, but both are comfortable on winding roads.
So, what's not to like in the 3's cabin? Two words: tech overkill. The automotive press has harped on this subject at length, and while I'd like to say that those professional reviewers are a bunch of old farts who wouldn't know iDrive from an iPod, they're not. Well, maybe they are, but their criticism is nonetheless legitimate. For example, why must 3-Series drivers both insert a key and press a gimmicky "Start/Stop" button to fire up their cars? The button only makes sense if it means you don't have to fumble with your keys. And who told BMW that we needed to change the way we use our turn signals? The new 3, like other recent BMWs, has a "smart" signal stalk that snaps back to center immediately after it's flicked. If it doesn't "catch" and stop blinking after a turn, you must flick the lever the opposite way to cancel it (but not too far, or you'll start indicating the other direction!). Need to change lanes? In a straight line, flicking the lever will give you three blinks. If you need more, you'll have to hold it down yourself, in addition to performing whatever contortions are necessary to find your break in traffic.
As for iDrive, it's an essentially good idea that's been implemented way too soon. Between climate, audio, and navigation systems, today's vehicles contain too many secondary interfaces--and with too little integration--to control them all via one button/wheel. If effective voice command or touch-screen technology were thrown into the mix, iDrive would make sense--and in another decade or so, it'll probably get there. Until then, save your $2,000.
Practicality
Being a compact rear-drive sedan, the 3-Series isn't packaged for optimal rear-seat or trunk space. Nevertheless, the new 3 could easily pull daily-driver duty for a family of four. The rear seat isn't nearly as voluminous as that of a Camry or Impala, but there's plenty of room for two adult occupants, and they'll sit on a seat that's nicely elevated for excellent thigh support. There's even a fair amount of cabin storage, with good-sized console cubbies and map pockets in the doors. Big Gulp aficionados will be disappointed, however, as there are only two flimsy cup holders that pop out of the dash.
As far as trunk space goes, the 3-Series is neither remarkably stingy nor remarkably generous. The bulky suspension towers create a somewhat pinched load floor, but overall volume is decent at 12.0 cubic feet--about the same as a Honda Civic--and the low-cut trunkline makes for easy access. The only obnoxious bit is that split-folding rear seatbacks are a $475 option, one that you'll want if you'll ever carry bulky loads. Come on, BMW. This feature is standard even on $10,000 Chevy Aveos, so there's no excuse for its omission other than corporate arrogance.
Reliability
I'm not really qualified to comment in this department, as a day of pleasure cruising taught me nothing about the new 3's long-term reliability. However, the leading consumer publication has issued the 3-Series an "Average" reliability rating, most likely due to the consistent track record of the previous generation. Fair enough--and if that prediction holds out, it'll be good news for BMW fans, given the low number defects in today's average new car.
Still, I can't help wondering if that magazine's blessing may be shortsighted. The new 3 has adopted a lot of new technology absent in the previous model, and BMW's two other recent designs--the 5-Series and 7-Series--are both rated "Much Worse Than Average" by the same publication. Their foremost failings? Electronics and power accessories. Not a good sign...
Overall
Judging by the "Letters" sections of the few automotive magazines I read, It seemed there were lots of people out there--many of whom owned less-capable 3-Series rivals--who disliked the previous 3-Series for its apparent inability to put a foot wrong. Well, those same people are just going to hate the new 3-Series. Its flaws are few--and almost exclusively related to interior gadgetry--while its dynamic behavior is as close to "perfect" as anything I've driven.
Don't get me wrong, though--I understand the impulse to react negatively to such a machine. When one vehicle is so clearly superior to its rivals, it takes all the fun out of playing the "what-new-car-will-I-get" game. So, in the current crop of sports sedans, isn't there a diamond in the rough that isn't quite so... um... in the rough?
Of course there is. This segment is awash in excellent vehicles. But I find that the choice becomes harder when I try to pick one that would take a 325i Sport's place in my garage. Subaru Legacy? Much grittier in its tactile sensations. Infiniti G35? Mildly unintuitive to handle. Acura TSX? A bit sterile. Jaguar X-Type? Excuse the Earl Grey snorting out of my nose, but ah-ha... ahem... no.
The 3-Series may be the perrenial overdog in this class--heck, last year's model still was, even before it was redesigned--but the truth is, no other car in this class can approach the 3-Series' exquisite balance and dead-serious sense of focus. Other cars may beat the 3-Series in parts--the G35 for its engine, the Legacy for its shifter, or the TSX for its price tag--but none feels so well-integrated as a sum of these parts. So, for once, I have an easy answer for those seeking the best car in its class: the new 3-Series rocks.
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
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