The Ultimat'3'

BMW has the motto of producing cars which are the ULTIMATE DRIVING MACHINES and they have always lived upto this motto. Can the new 3 series live up to the mark?

The previous generation 3 series was a cracker of a car in terms of looks and driving dynamics. But BMW has always been designing cars which look much ahead of time. Though BMW cars are STRIKING to look at they are not good looking. Because the cars look different, we choose to think that they are good looking. It is the same the case with the new 3 series. Its design has been a controversial one and there only 2 views about it- one of those people who like it and one of those who don't and still think previous gen 3 series is better looking. I choose to be amongst the latter ones. The thing around which all this controversy are the headlamps which merge into the signature double kidney grill. 

Otherwise the car looks very elegant with very strong lines which define the character of this car. The rear looks very similar to the 5 series the only difference being the single exhaust pipe instead of 2 in 5 series. The exhaust was also better in the previous gen 3.

The car has grown in length which is quite prominent and a very welcome change with more than enough space for everyone in the car and this one being the benchmark in terms of interior space.

The 3 series is available in 3 models with same diesel engine or 2 petrol versions with 2 engine options. I drove the diesel version. The price of the diesel cars start at Rs 38lac and Rs 42lac both on road indore. The cheaper version is called just the 320d while the costlier one comes in 2 trims, one the sport and luxury.

The diesel engine that comes with the cars is the same 2litre turbocharged diesel that comes with the 1 series but here it produces 184bhp while the 1 series has to make do with 143 bhp. The torque is also increased from 320nm to 380nm. So the car is no slouch and with the awesome ZF eight speed gearbox this car makes mincemeat of most of the competition. The speed climbs the speedo like a squirrel climbs a tree and if you find an open straight of road, it is not long before you are going at speeds in excess of 160kmph and you wouldn't know that until you look at the speedo. The engine in itself is masterpiece and anyone can tell that just by looking at the specific output of this engine. This type of output is petrol territory but somehow BMW have managed to do it in a diesel. Okay! So it has high specific output, but when you make high specific output diesel engines it has its share of drawbacks like enormous after-runs and turbolag but kudos to the engineers who have tuned this engine have escaped all of this. So you have an engine which has output figures of that of a petrol, which revvs as fast as a petrol, produces torque like it made for a truck and is more efficient than petrol. This is where it shows how passionate people at BMW are to make their cars perform no matter whatever fuel is used.

The car has very good sound deadning but you can still hear engine noise at low speeds. Not that the engine note is bad! The steering though is and is quite heavy at slow speeds and takes time getting used to but if you want to avoid gym you can just go round the city strolling in the car at 10kmph, that would be quiet a workout! 

I drove the costlier 320d in the sport trim. The interiors in this car are sporty and come with a single tone dashboard with a red line going through the center. The seats come in 2 different configurations in sportline while the luxury line comes with dual tone dashboard and beige seats!

The Ride.

I drove the sport line and it had an absolutely, spine shatteringly, jaw breaking ride. The suspension even after being softened for Indian roads is still too hard and is absolutely undrivable. Though hard suspension calls for better stability in corners but i don't want to take corners with a broken back! The luxury line which has a softer suspension setup has got it absolutely spot on! The car handles almost as well without breaking your back.

Another issue with the car is that it is big and it feels that when you drive it so you have to be VERY careful when you drive it, you don't want to total an car this expensive and especially when it is not yours! This reduces your confidence when you drive this car enthusiastically, which in turn reduces the amount of fun you can have with this car and of what it is capable of delivering.

Overall the car is very nice and with the amounts of luxury, performance and space it delivers, makes it far more desirable than the competition. The 3 series is much more exclusive than the competition and when you own one you would like to save its use for special occasions only. That is quiet strange coming from me but it is a fact. The car pampers you and makes you feel like you are the king of the road. This car is just a better place to be in than other cars. The car is undoubtedly the segment leader until next year when the all new mercedes c-class comes to india.
With the new 3 series BMW have done a wonderful job and yes it has not just lived up to the mark, it has overshot it!
Ultimate driving machine it is!