BMW 3 Series 2005 Review

Many aspire to taking on the 3 Series, and beating it. It's a game we've seen played out over and over again. Car maker after car maker has attempted to out-design, out-tech, out-luxury or out-specify the Bavarian brand's best-seller, although no-one except Mercedes-Benz dares out-price it. And not one of them has managed to create a car with the same beguiling blend of visual appeal and driving satisfaction.

It seems the only thing with the slightest chance of doing the job is ... a brand-new 3 Series.

So does the new, fifth-generation car, codename E90, beat the E46 fourth-generation 3 Series? It's a question that will be answered in the next few hours.

The journey begins as we take our allotted car, a grey 330i with six-speed automatic, from among the row of 50 new 3 Series models parked with incredible precision beside one of the chunks of modern architecture that forms the CAC (Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias, or, in English, the City of Arts and Sciences) precinct in Valencia. From the city, which is roughly midway down Spain's Mediterranean coast, we're heading southwest and inland to the Circuito Albacete.

Seeing the car in three dimensions for the first time confirms the impression created by photographs. The new 3 Series is a more restrained design than its large relatives, the 5 Series and 7 Series. There's nothing wrong with the way BMW's designers handle sedan proportions, no matter what size the car. If the new model has a basic fault, it is that from some angles its rump can appear rather perfunctorily abbreviated. Where the E90 contrasts sharply with other, earlier BMW sedans is the relative conservatism with which detail has been handled. The new 3 Series' shape isn't slashed to bits by eye-jarring lines where panels join, or overdone, melodramatic lamp clusters.

The horizontal character line through the doorhandles might be a little too emphatic for design-sensitive souls, but in comparison to the horror that is the bootlid shutline of the 7 Series, this is hardly a glaring fault.

In the metal, dimensional expansion is every bit as apparent as stylistic conservatism. The E90 is a larger car than the previous 3 Series. Wheelbase and length are both stretched quite substantially (35mm and 49mm respectively), but width is where the greatest growth (78mm) has occurred. Height is little changed (up 6mm). The broader and longer body weighs around 30kg less than the old model's, but increases in equipment mean complete cars weigh only a little less or the same as their equivalents in the old 3 Series range. This is admirable engineering, especially as BMW didn't resort to fancy, high-priced materials. The E90 body is all steel. Advances both in steel-making and steel-stamping technologies made it all possible.

The body engineers may have been given what they needed to work with, but the team working on the car's interior doesn't seem to have been allotted a fair share of the materials budget. There are highly visible places inside the E90 where the plastics do not appear to be any better than in, say, a Daewoo. The two pop-out cupholders in the instrument panel, carried over from the 5 Series, are a prime example. As well as - or maybe as a consequence of - being made from mediocre plastic, they don't operate smoothly or, once out, impress with their sturdiness. This jars. There's a distinct discrepancy between the elegance and excellence of BMW's drivetrain and chassis engineering and the quality of work apparent inside the car.

Like the 5 Series and 1 Series, the 3 Series' interior isn't over-endowed with places to stash stuff. BMW's current interior design direction seems to favour uncluttered appearance over dreary utility.

If the furnishings of the 3 Series' cabin aren't stunning, at least the E90 brings a welcome improvement in spaciousness compared with the E46. It's not so apparent in the front seats, but in the rear the legroom is positively generous by the standard of previous 3 Series sedans. Headroom is fine for those up to 180cm or so. Passengers taller than this, depending on their bodily proportions, may find headroom marginal. For the truly tall, the 3 Series' rear seat is likely to prove too tight for comfort.

It's only a few hundred metres from the CAC to the freeway entrance. Soon we're mixing it in the morning rush hour snarls around the autovia junctions. But leaving Valencia behind, the traffic thins and there are occasional opportunities to give the 330i wide-open throttle. Not for long, though. The E90 is the first model to get the first-born of BMW's new family of in-line sixes. The 330i packs the 3.0-litre version, as its designation accurately indicates. It's an engine that's not short of power, or talking points.

The most remarkable thing about the engine is its block. In a mass-production first, it's made from aluminium and magnesium. A core incorporating the six cylinders and crankshaft bearings is first cast in aluminium. Then much lighter magnesium is cast around the core to complete the block. Compared with the previous-generation in-line sixes, BMW claims a weight saving of 10kg with this technology.

As well, the new six incorporates technologies seen earlier in BMW's four-cylinder and V8 engines. Most importantly, it has Valvetronic, which controls both valve lift and duration, and allows the conventional, restrictive throttle butterfly to be dispensed with. The engine also has BMW's variable valve timing system, known as Vanos, on both its inlet and exhaust cams.

And it's an absolute honey of an engine. It spins with impressive eagerness to the 7000rpm redline, produces a very vigorous 190kW at 6650rpm, sounds wonderful from 4000rpm up, and has the torque to deliver deliciously crisp throttle response from below 2000rpm. One of the best sixes in the world? Yep, no question.

The six-speed automatic is every bit as excellent as the engine. It's snappily responsive to throttle pressure, and when the going gets tight demonstrates an almost uncanny knack of picking the right ratio at exactly the right time, especially when the shifter is nudged sideways from D into Sport mode. It's so good that it practically makes the pseudo-manual mode practically redundant.

This isn't the only delight we discover on the wonderful road that winds through the spectacular gorges near Alcala del Jucar. The E90 has the grip, balance and responsiveness that are the 3 Series' handling hallmarks.

Here, among the hairpins, the car's optional Active Steering is an advantage. Earlier, on the fast, gentle curves of the motorway, the variable-ratio system could be felt fidgeting away when held just off centre. In tight turns, in contrast, Active Steering's ability to significantly reduce the amount of wheel shuffling required is welcome. For those who will spend a lot of time hurrying up and down mountain passes, it's certainly worth having. For everyone else, it's not so clear. Although this is a second-generation version of the technology - Active Steering was introduced first in the 5 Series - it's not perfect. At very low speeds, below 10km/h or so, it feels too sharp, over-reactive. This can make it hard to be smooth and accurate when, say, driving out of a crowded car-parking station.

Low-speed comfort may also be an issue. Bumps and potholes were very, very scarce on the excellent Spanish roads chosen by BMW for the E90 drive program. There was the occasional hint of terseness to the 330i's ride quality as we picked our way through the beautiful sun-baked villages. Was it the car's tyres? Or was it an inherent characteristic of the car's standard (not sports) suspension? The first seems the safer bet.

Every E90 3 Series made for every market in the world will be equipped with run-flat rubber (no spare is provided). In the case of the 330i it's Pirelli's 225/45R17 Euforias. Like other run-flats, these rely on specific rims, specially developed, heat-resistant rubber compounds and stiffer sidewall construction in order to keep on turning without air inside. It's the sidewalls that can have an influence on ride.

Whether the run-flats can deliver decent ride comfort on Australia's blighted roads is something we'll have to wait until June, when the 330i - and the four-cylinder 320i, too - go on sale. Obtaining replacement tyres should not be a problem, just so long as E90 drivers do not stray too far from civilisation. According to Pirelli Tyres Australia, shipments of the Euforia in sizes to suit the new 3 Series will reach Australia months in advance of the car. They will be available through major tyre retailers.

While the Pirelli Euforias are scheduled to hit the docks in March, it won't be until May that BMW Australia announces new 3 Series prices. "Minimal price increases," is the official promise. This means a 330i, like the one seen here, is likely to be priced at around $95,000. While many may aspire, few will be able to afford.

While it was very nice to encounter the E90 range for the first time in 330i form, the car that really counts will be the humble, four-cylinder 320i. The question is whether it, too, is a car worthy of aspiration. Stay tuned...

BMW 330i
www.bmw.com.au
Body steel, 4 doors, 5 seats
Drivetrain front engine
(north-south), rear drive
Engine 2996cc inline 6, dohc, 24v
Power 190kW @ 6600rpm
Torque 300Nm @ 2500-4000rpm
Transmission 6-speed manual
(6-speed automatic optional)
Size l/w/h 4520/1817/1421mm
Wheelbase 2760mm
0-100km/h 6.3sec (claimed)
Price $95,000 (estimated)
On sale June 2005