Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
It’s certainly more understated from a styling perspective, albeit busier than a regular 3 Series. Its front lower fascia looks more aggressive thanks to the M Aerodynamics package that comes standard in 340i guise. Even the stunning machine-finished 19-inch twinned five-spoke alloys with grey-painted pockets are standard, although the M Sport brakes with
Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
BMW continues balancing sport and luxury inside, my particular example finished in sharp looking camel brown leather upholstery with classy ivory piping and contrast stitching. The detailing on the seats is beautiful, with mostly solid full grain leather surrounding strips of embossed diamond-patterned hides for a nicely textured look. The unique leather treatment fills the door inserts too, complementing
Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
Along with the beautiful two-tone motif, BMW added dark grey-finished hardwood inlays across the instrument panel, each door panel, and atop the lower centre console, these trimmed with beautiful strips of satin-silver aluminum. Yet more aluminum dresses up the three-spoke M Sport steering wheel, the detailing around the shifter, the shifter itself, and elsewhere. Additionally, the roof pillars and roofliner are trimmed out in a black woven fabric for a sportier feeling cockpit than the usual beige.
Along
Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
As with all BMWs the 3’s switchgear is excellent, from the minimalist dials on the steering wheel spokes and simple layout of the HVAC controls on the centre stack to the rotating iDrive controller atop the lower console, not to mention the power window switches on each door and
Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
The newest primary gauge package is a wonderful mix of analog dials and digital background, the dials seeming to float within the high-resolution colour LCD TFT screen behind. There’s no noticeable change to the dash top infotainment display, its graphics still superb and resolution as crystal clear as anything in its class, while the iDrive system is easier to use than it’s ever been and as fully featured.
That sport steering wheel I mentioned a moment ago is wonderful; with ultra-slim spokes yet a thick, meaty rim that includes thumb spats for getting a good grip at the
Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
For instance, the 3’s standard auto start/stop will shut the engine down at stoplights and then immediately bring it back to life as you remove your foot from the
Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
It really does drive brilliantly. The new engine still displaces 3.0 litres yet BMW, in its infinite wisdom, chose to rechristen it 340i rather than maintain the 335i designation that (for the time being) goes down in BMW lore, a strange move that will only make sense when you get behind the wheel. The all-new engine’s output is
Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
It certainly doesn’t feel any heavier through corners, the updated 3 providing its usual compliant ride with even more entertaining handling than the outgoing model. There’s an effortlessness to the way it goes about managing circuitous roadways that’s almost underwhelming, with a need to exceed posted speeds in order to get the adrenaline going. I remember how much fun I had in my old E30 325, even at moderate speeds, that car nowhere near the luxury machine this new
Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
Still, I can’t help but wonder how much more enjoyable this compact would be if it weighed half a ton less. Right now the 340i xDrive is only 138 kilos (304 lbs) lighter than a full-size Jaguar XJ AWD luxury sedan, although it weighs 17 kg (37 lbs) less than a similarly powered Audi S4.
Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
Still, the way the 340i xDrive takes to the road silences my complaint, hightailing it to 100km/h in a mere 4.9 seconds with xDrive and 5.1 with rear-drive. While not quite as quick as the new car I liked last year’s 335i, although it felt a bit numb compared to 3s past. Not so with the 340i. BMW reworked the electric power steering for quicker response and better feel, while xDrive seems a bit more rear-wheel biased than the previous version. BMW recalibrated the eight-speed auto with wider spaced ratios as well, while the no-cost optional six-speed manual gets downshift rev matching for the first time. That you can even get the 3 with a manual anymore says a lot about BMW’s respect for this model’s
Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
My 340i xDrive tester starts at $54,650 plus freight and dealer fees, which is $2,600 more than base price for the rear-drive 340i. Its Mineral Grey Metallic paint added $895, while that the M Performance package noted earlier added $1,900 onto the bottom line, along with variable sport steering and an adaptive M sport suspension to go along with the aforementioned upgraded brakes. The biggest expense was $6,500 paid out for the awkwardly named Premium Package Enhanced package that added proximity sensing keyless access, high-beam assist, auto-dimming side mirrors, speed limit info, BMW’s driving assistant, a head-up display
Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
All of this was added to a four-door sedan that comes standard with full LED headlamps, LED taillights, pushbutton ignition, an auto-dimming rearview mirror, a powered glass sunroof, a heatable leather-wrapped multifunction sport steering wheel, heatable front seats, leather upholstery, a centre through-load system allowing
Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
It’s missing ventilated front seats, a panoramic sunroof and some other features offered with competitors, something BMW may want to address because for the first time ever its arch nemesis, the Mercedes’ C-Class stole the show with 9,992 sales through 2015, meaning that the 3 is no longer the bestselling premium compact in Canada. Last year its sales fell 4.9 percent from 10,086 units to 9,590, representing its worst results since 2005, and that’s after plummeting more than 19 percent the year before. In comparison C-Class sales were up more than 31 percent, although the year prior was pretty dismal. Of course, we need to factor in that there’s no longer a 3 Series Coupe or Convertible while Mercedes also sells a two-door coupe under the C-Class banner, and that the 4 Series Gran Coupe is probably cannibalizing some sales from the 3 (it would be my choice of the two), the 4 responsible for 4,942 sales last year and 3,469 the year before. The new 3 Series should help boost the model’s numbers, although its visual refresh was so microscopically nominal
Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
Word will soon get out about the new car’s enhanced dynamics, and believe me the 340i is well worth the price of admission. Dressed up like my tester, while coming close to being as accommodating as a 5 Series front to rear, its $65k price tag is justified, especially when factoring in the 3 Series’ higher than average resale value. Its worthy competitors are no longer merely biting at its heals, however, with the C now glancing backwards in its rearview mirror, so therefore only time will tell if this new 3 is what’s needed to win back the class-leading sales crown and bragging rights that go with it.
So far BMW is off to a good start with 507 3 Series sales in January 2016 compared to just 394 C-Class deliveries for M-B… it appears the race is once again on. My money is on BMW for the win.
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