Author Topic: New BMW 3 Series Sedan officially released (Read 6482 times)

ovr50 · « **on:** October 14, 2011, 12:30:09 pm »

The new 3 Series Sedan - to my eye looks good and BMW not departing much from the proven success of the 3 Series:

http://www.f30post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=592598

Flinter · « **Reply #1 on:** October 14, 2011, 01:22:44 pm »

Quote from: ovr50 on October 14, 2011, 12:30:09 pm

The new 3 Series Sedan - to my eye looks good and BMW not departing much from the proven success of the 3 Series:

http://www.f30post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=592598

Agreed, I see a lot similarities with the Z4 in the front end styling.

vdk · « **Reply #2 on:** October 14, 2011, 01:27:49 pm »

The red one is sexy. They should've worked on the back end a little more, it's very plain I find.

tpl · « **Reply #3 on:** October 14, 2011, 01:35:16 pm »

No DCT then. pity. 6mt or 8spd which I presume is a conventional slushbox. I like the looks a lot. I definitely like that nice plain instrument panel

ovr50 · « **Reply #4 on:** October 14, 2011, 01:45:01 pm »

From Edmunds Inside Line:

http://www.insideline.com/bmw/3-series/2012/2012-bmw-3-series-sedan-arrives-in-us-in-february.html

tpl - "8spd which I presume is a conventional slushbox".

Hardly a "slushbox" as in the sense of the old autos..! I have the new 8 spd electronic auto in my X3 and I can tell you it's a great tranny. The extra speeeds help keep the revs in the proper range and the shifts are quick and without the old auto tranny "jerkiness". Particularly in Sport mode, the quickness is unreal, and a good match to the turboed N55, which will be in the new 335i. Go drive a new BMW with the 8 speed, you will be impressed.

tpl · « **Reply #5 on:** October 14, 2011, 01:58:50 pm »

Ovr. If it has a fluid coupling aka a torque converter then to me it is a slushbox. I cannot argue about its goodness...as slushboxes go.

As BMW have a DCT that fits the 3 series I wonder why they would not put it in the new cars. As the DCT has enough capacity for an M3 it should be reliable in any lesser 3-er even the diesels.

1TSX · « **Reply #6 on:** October 14, 2011, 02:00:37 pm »

I like it. It looks very elegant yet aggressive! Rear end reminds me of the 5 series, whereas the front looks like the Z4.

5 Wheel Drive · « **Reply #7 on:** October 14, 2011, 02:06:07 pm »

Nice I like. It's not a huge departure, I didn't expect it to be. A little more aggressive from the front. A nice update to the dash as well.

ovr50 · « **Reply #8 on:** October 14, 2011, 02:11:01 pm »

Quote from: tpl on October 14, 2011, 01:58:50 pm

Ovr. If it has a fluid coupling aka a torque converter then to me it is a slushbox. I cannot argue about its goodness...as slushboxes go. As BMW have a DCT that fits the 3 series I wonder why they would not put it in the new cars. As the DCT has enough capacity for an M3 it should be reliable in any lesser 3-er even the diesels.

True, the DCT handles the V8 in the M3. I have no idea why not used in the new 3 Seies, cost perhaps?

sailor723 · « **Reply #9 on:** October 14, 2011, 02:34:47 pm »

I like the exterior. I find very evolutionary with nice updates. I'm not as sure about the dash and the (I assume) pop-up display.

mmret · « **Reply #10 on:** October 14, 2011, 02:41:28 pm »

Looks nice. Definitely less shocking than the E90 was when it showed up.

I think the front is still a little too squinty but overall good.

328i looks like a pretty nice setup. 245hp and mid 6 fuel econ (though that is in the Euro cycle...)

Jaeger · « **Reply #11 on:** October 14, 2011, 02:56:06 pm »

Looks really good overall, though I find the countenance of the front end a touch too squinty-eyed.

Looking forward to hearing more about the turbo 4.

Jaeger

tpl · « **Reply #12 on:** October 14, 2011, 03:22:49 pm »

Quote from: ovr50 on October 14, 2011, 02:11:01 pm

Quote from: tpl on October 14, 2011, 01:58:50 pm
Ovr. If it has a fluid coupling aka a torque converter then to me it is a slushbox. I cannot argue about its goodness...as slushboxes go. As BMW have a DCT that fits the 3 series I wonder why they would not put it in the new cars. As the DCT has enough capacity for an M3 it should be reliable in any lesser 3-er even the diesels.

True, the DCT handles the V8 in the M3. I have no idea why not used in the new 3 Seies, cost perhaps?

Cost indeed in the lesser models but a loaded 335... I wonder... do any of the xdrive cars have the DCT? If not there may be a fit problem there with the extra piece of transfer case and BMW might rather not have to make a change to the floorpan at this point so that the forthcoming x-drives cars are easy to make on the same

For me a 4 cyl turbo 328 with DCT could well be irresistible.

quadzilla · « **Reply #13 on:** October 14, 2011, 03:38:32 pm »

Quote from: tpl on October 14, 2011, 03:22:49 pm

Quote from: ovr50 on October 14, 2011, 02:11:01 pm
Quote from: tpl on October 14, 2011, 01:58:50 pm
Ovr. If it has a fluid coupling aka a torque converter then to me it is a slushbox. I cannot argue about its goodness...as slushboxes go. As BMW have a DCT that fits the 3 series I wonder why they would not put it in the new cars. As the DCT has enough capacity for an M3 it should be reliable in any lesser 3-er even the diesels.

True, the DCT handles the V8 in the M3. I have no idea why not used in the new 3 Seies, cost perhaps?
Cost indeed in the lesser models but a loaded 335... I wonder... do any of the xdrive cars have the DCT? If not there may be a fit problem there with the extra piece of transfer case and BMW might rather not have to make a change to the floorpan at this point so that the forthcoming x-drives cars are easy to make on the same

For me a 4 cyl turbo 328 with DCT could well be irresistible.

I think you can get the DCT in the 135, no idea why they don't offer it in other models.

Force · « **Reply #14 on:** October 14, 2011, 05:00:45 pm »

Quote from: ovr50 on October 14, 2011, 02:11:01 pm

Quote from: tpl on October 14, 2011, 01:58:50 pm
Ovr. If it has a fluid coupling aka a torque converter then to me it is a slushbox. I cannot argue about its goodness...as slushboxes go. As BMW have a DCT that fits the 3 series I wonder why they would not put it in the new cars. As the DCT has enough capacity for an M3 it should be reliable in any lesser 3-er even the diesels.

True, the DCT handles the V8 in the M3. I have no idea why not used in the new 3 Seies, cost perhaps?

I'm willing to bet it's consumer perception. Your average 3-series buyer knows next to nothing about cars and bought the vehicle for the badge on the nose. That's fine, but this type of buyer is used to conventional transmissions. Ford is getting a ton of complaints from Fiesta and Focus buyers about transmission problems that are simply normal conditions of a DCT.

I'm willing to bet that if BMW put a DCT in the regular 3-series, they'd get complaints. To the uninformed, different can be perceived as "wrong" or "broken."

tpl · « **Reply #15 on:** October 14, 2011, 05:19:41 pm »

Ok I have the answer! BMW should introduce a new brand called the Trabant or something. Same cars but only available in puke yellow, vomit green or

brown with ugly wheels. Give them a really nauseating new car smell. This sub brand could have the 1,3 and M cars but optioned for enthusiasts. 6MT or DCT only, no power seats, aggressive throttle tip-in, tight steering racks, no run flats, cheap stereo...you know what I mean. Sell them out of scruffy dealerships that used to sell Ladas.

The smell could be fixed at PDI and the fake ugly paint ( vinyl decal stuff) stripped off.

Julie · « **Reply #16 on:** October 14, 2011, 07:35:22 pm »

Ovr, you beat me to it!

And here's the new M-Sport: http://www.f30post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=598186

Sales should begin next summer, with a very short production run of 2012 (if any for consumers; might only be for the Olympics and press cars), and then onto the 2013 model year.

Looking forward to the reveal of the coupe. I doubt it will be right away though. Coupe sales will begin one year later.

Flinter · « **Reply #17 on:** October 14, 2011, 07:51:54 pm »

For those interested in reading a little more on the N20 turbo 4 cylinder being offered n the new 3 series, the folks over at Insideline have been doing some testing on a Z4 with the same engine.

Driving impressions - N20 engine in the Z4
http://www.insideline.com/bmw/z4/2012/2012-bmw-z4-sdrive28i-first-drive.html

Dyno Run - N20 engine in the Z4
http://blogs.insideline.com/straightline/2011/10/dyno-tested-2012-bmw-z4-sdrive28i.html

The 4 cylinder looks like a very nice engine. Too bad it doesn't make the sweet noises of the previous N52 straight 6. Here's a dyno run from a 128i for comparison:
http://youtu.be/4yi9K9Hahy0

Here is the dyno results of the N20 equipt Z4 compared to a 2010 VW GTI

Julie · « **Reply #18 on:** October 14, 2011, 08:36:35 pm »

Real life photos of M-Sport. Man..... I like!

EDIT: Color is the M-Sport exclusive Estoril Blue

ovr50 · « **Reply #19 on:** October 14, 2011, 10:05:32 pm »

That blue MSport is very cool.

The one thing some of the BMW forums posters had noted and didn't particularly like was that the F30 hood opens back of the badge, and doesn't include the entire front to the kidney grills, ie. there is a noticable hood line in the front. Might be less prominant in the "real", rather than in photos. Not a real biggie.