BMW 3 Series Sedan

In the Malaysian car market, the new BMW 3-Series sedan comes standard with leather ‘Vernasca’ black upholstery, coupled with aluminium rhombic anthracite M trim across the dashboard and door panels. The all-black dark theme for the interior reflects the sporty intentions that the new 3-Series previews from its tweaked sportier exterior design.

The new cabin layout of the BMW 3-Series sedan feels much more technically advanced, with an all-new curved frameless display screen behind the three-spoke multi-functional steering wheel. With full-TFT screens for the instrument console and touchscreen infotainment system, this digital cockpit is home to the new My BMW App, reversing assistant, BMW Intelligent Personal Assistant, and seamless wireless smartphone connectivity options.

The centre console of the dashboard of the new BMW 3-Series sedan too has also been revised with more angular-looking AC vents, a control panel for the automatic climate control, and a new lower centre panel, which gets a new iDrive controller and a slew of buttons, including the engine start-stop button and electronic parking brake.

The BMW 3-Series sedan has been updated with a facelift recently, which has made the sedan look flashier and more expensive, despite its entry-level positioning. With all these design updates, the new BMW 3-Series sedan looks closer to the larger and more powerful 5-Series sedan in terms of visual appeal.

The front profile of the BMW 3-Series sedan has revised all-LED headlamps with LED projectors and dual inverted L-shaped daytime running LEDs. The double kidney grille has been mildly revised too, which continues to have vertical double slats within it, while the front bumper now has a large hexagonal air dam spread across its middle, along with new L-shaped air curtains on the corners.

The side profile of the BMW 3-Series sedan remains more or less unchanged as compared to the pre-facelift version, though it still looks sleek and sporty, with the long wheelbase, lowered stance, and 18-inch alloy wheels giving it a poised stance. The flowing contour of the roof line and a sharp crease running across the door panels make the new 3-Series look athletic.

At the back, the new BMW 3-Series sedan now has a more distinctive bumper, which has vertical reflectors and broad tailpipe trims finished in a theme of chrome, along with a large diffuser between the tailpipes. The tail lamps too, have become sleeker in the process of update, with them now getting fresher-looking LED inserts. 

The BMW 3-Series sedan has M Sport suspension on offer, which features slightly stiffer springs and a sportily tuned suspension setup for a more dynamic driving experience. The electrically assisted steering has a nice heft to it, which keeps it on track at higher speeds with commendable feedback. Also on offer are three drive modes – comfort, sport and eco pro, for a personalized driving experience.

All three variants of the BMW 3-Series sedan are well-distinguished in terms of the powertrain options they have on offer. The range-starting 320i sedan gets a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine, that develops 185 PS of power and 300 Nm of torque while claiming 235 kmph of top speed, 7.4 seconds for the 0-100 kmph run, and fuel efficiency of 15.38 kmpl.

The next variant in the lineup is the 330i sedan, which has the same 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine, tuned to deliver 260 PS of power and 400 Nm of torque. This engine delivers the same fuel efficiency of 15.38 kmpl, but makes the car faster with a top speed of 250 kmph and a 0-100 kmph timing of 5.8 seconds.

The range-topping 330e sedan has a combination of the 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine (185 PS of power and 300 Nm of torque) and an electric motor (113 PS of power and 265 Nm of torque), the combined output of which is rated at 292 PS of power and 420 Nm of torque. This version also has a 12 kWh lithium-ion battery, which gives an electric-only range and takes 3.5 hours for a full 0-100% charge. BMW claims 40 kmpl of fuel efficiency, 230 kmph of top speed and 5.8 seconds for the 0-100 kmph sprint for the 330e sedan.

In addition to the premium safety features like parking assistant with lateral parking and reversing assistant, front, side, and curtain airbags, ABS with EBD and brake assist, and cornering brake control, the BMW 3-Series sedan also gets dynamic stability control, dynamic traction control, front and rear parking sensors, reversing camera and BMW connected package professional.

The BMW 3-Series sedan has become much more desirable and appealing with this recent facelift, which has made the sedan look sharper and more modern with a host of new features on offer. At the same time, it continues to be a driver’s delight with three potent engine options and a well-sorted chassis.