In addition to being BMW’s best-selling Series – 115,428 examples were sold in the U.S. during calendar 2002 – the 3 Series is for many the “definitive BMW.” Though from a price standpoint it is BMW’s most accessible line, this Series embodies all the core BMW values: performance, handling, quality, practicality, and character.
The Series consists of Sedans, Sport Wagons, Coupes and Convertibles in two sets, all powered by inline 6-cylinder engines characterized as “smoother than satin” by Car and Driver (January ‘03), “silken” by Road & Track (July ’02), “turbine-smooth” by AutoWeek (July 1, ’02) or “smooth, torquey” by Motor Trend (August ’02): the 2.5-liter 325 models and the 3.0-liter 330 models.
For their ’02 model year, the Sedans and Sports Wagons got a discreet stylistic and
technological freshening; now the Coupes and Convertibles begin the ’04 model year early with their own round of freshening. The changes include:
• A new 6-speed manual transmission for the 330Ci models
• Rain-sensing windshield wipers and automatic headlight control as standard equipment
• New front-end design, with –
• lighting units that sweep upward as they wrap around to the sides
• wider grilles and modified hood contours
• more prominently flared wheel openings
• a side character line that now begins aft of the wheel openings and incorporates the side
turn-signal “repeater” as its starting point.
• Xenon headlights (low and high beams) now offered either alone or in combination with new Adaptive feature, which “steers” the headlights into roadway curves
• New front and rear bumper contours
• New taillights, incorporating BMW’s innovative Adaptive Brakelights
• New wheel designs, both standard and optional
• New exterior colors
• A newly configured climate -control panel.
New 6-speed transmission for all 330 models
Also as of March ’03, a new 6-speed manual transmission is standard in all 330 models,
including the 330i and 330xi (all-wheel-drive) Sedans that continue as 2003 models. Weighing no more than the 5-speed it replaces, this “gearbox” – the ZF Type H – incorporates refinements that add driving pleasure (and BMW’s are already known for excellent manual transmissions):
• New, even more effective synchronization of shifting
• Sportier shift action, via 10-mm (0.4-in.) shorter shift “throws” from neutral to each gear.
Compared to the previous 5-speed (which continues in the 325 models), the 6-speed’s ratios for 1st through 5th gears are approximately the same; 6th gear provides an 0.85:1 overdrive for quieter, more relaxed and potentially more fuel-efficient cruising. This transmission, with the additional feature of a shorter shift lever, appears in the new Performance Package for the 330i Sedan. Already introduced to the media, this Package also entered production at the beginning of March.
New features for safer, more convenient driving
Three new standard features of the ’04 Coupes and Convertibles contribute to safer, more
convenient driving. Of these, the most innovative is BMW’s adaptive brakelights, which first appeared on the 7 Series in ’02 and has since been adopted for the Z4 roadster and X5 Series; BMW will continue to incorporate this feature into new models in the future.
Each taillight unit’s tail- and brakelight segment consists of clusters of LEDs. In normal braking, the central cluster illuminates more brightly. Under heavy braking or anytime the ABS goes into action, additional LED clusters, in- and outboard of the main one, illuminate to enlarge the total brakelight area. Following drivers are thus alerted automatically to sharp braking by the BMW driver, potentially lessening the likelihood of a rear-ender.
Text and photos courtesy of BMW AG
