3 Series changes all under the hood
Visually the 3 Series remains almost unchanged but there are some major engine upgrades
YOU MAY struggle to see the cosmetic changes, but you should notice the power boost. A midlife upgrade to the BMW 3 Series Sedan sees the launch of a new 340i six-cylinder model to replace the 335i, while in the four-cylinder ranks the 328i makes way for the more powerful 330i.
All petrol and diesel engines in the range feature TwinPower Turbo technology, and the added muscle comes with claimed reductions in fuel consumption and C02 emissions across the line up.
Producing muscled-up outputs of 240kW and 450Nm, the new 340i petrol gains 15kW and 50Nm over the 335i, giving it the claimed ability to sprint from 0-100km/h in just 5.1 seconds at sea level along with the usual electronically limited 250km/h top speed. Despite this, C02 emissions are said to be 10% lower.
Lower down in the range, the new BMW 330i gets a 2-litre four cylinder petrol unit with 185kW – a 5kW gain over the 328i – while torque remains the same at 350Nm.
The four-cylinder 320i reduces by 1kW to 134kW but torque is upped to 290Nm, a 20Nm increase. The baseline petrol 3 Series downsizes from a four-cylinder 1.6 turbo to a threecylinder 1.5 turbo, but outputs stay the same at 100kW and 220Nm. This is the first 3 Series to use a three-cylinder engine, and the model designation changes from 316i to 318i.
Power gains have also been achieved on the four-cylinder turbo diesel BMW 320d, which is boosted to 140kW and 400Nm (from 135kW and 380Nm), while CO2 emissions are reduced around 9%. The claimed 0-100 km/h time of 7.2 seconds is two-tenths of a second quicker than the previous BMW 320d Sedan. The diesel range-topper, the six-cylinder 330d, fires an unchanged 190kW and 560Nm to the rear wheels.
This midlife tweak comes exactly three years after the F30-generation 3 Series was launched in South Africa. Visually, there’s a very mild nip and tuck and you’ll have to look carefully to spot the new aprons with revised air intakes at the front which are said to accentuate the feeling of width.
Headlights also get newly designed LED daytime driving lights, while full-LED headlights can now be specified as an option. The newly designed rear lights are full-LED units.
The range-topping M3 also gets two new colours to its palette: Smoked Topaz metallic and Champagne Quartz metallic.
Inside the 3 Series cabin, Munich’s designers have upped the classy feel with new materials and additional chrome highlights for the controls, air vents and central control panel. The front cupholders get a new sliding cover.
Customers can personalise their Beemer with a wide range of different upholstery and interior trim, as well as new wheels, exterior colours and equipment options.
Tech updates in the 3 Series include an upgraded navigation system and a Parking Assistant that now enables automatic parallel parking. Improvements to transmissions include an engagement speed control function on the sixspeed manual which automatically brings the engine to the right rpm for the next gear when changing up or down, resulting in improved smoothness. And yes, this includes a sporty throttle-blip on downshifts. The eight-speed Steptronic has a smoother-shifting feel and is also able to perform multiple sequential downshifts.
BMW has tweaked the 3 Series chassis with stiffer suspension and a 10mm ride height reduction but claims this hasn’t adversely affected ride quality, an area where the F30 saw a big improvement over its E90 predecessor. The electric steering has also been honed for a more precise feel.
The upgraded 3 Series range goes on sale in SA in the third quarter of this year, with pricing to be announced at that time. The updates also apply to the 3 Series Touring station wagon but as before this model will not be sold locally.