San Diego Magazine / March 2006 / BMW's 330i is a Good Fit

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BMW's 330i is a Good Fit

TEST-DRIVING A 2006 BMW 3-SERIES sedan in San Diego is like shopping for high-quality black slacks at Nordstrom. It doesn’t really matter how much they cost, how deep the pockets are or if they need alterations. You’re going to buy them.

Why? Because you can’t go wrong. Black pants are never passé, and a BMW 3 series will always be the choice pick for driving enthusiasts. Even in recent years, when the unfriendly iDrive and less-than-sexy body changes put off some consumers, the compact sedans and coupes have remained the sweet spot for BMW. It got sweeter in 2005, when an all-new design for the sedan was introduced as the ’06 model. The new 3 body is sexier, longer, wider, faster and lighter.

But with the base price of an unoptioned sedan starting at $37,295, I want to analyze some of the smaller details, apart from the driving experience. Frankly, some could have been done better. But then, BMW is about driving—not drinking your coffee neatly or conversing comfortably at high speed. It’s a performance brand with a stout, all-new, aluminum in-line six-cylinder in an aerodynamic package. It goes like a rocket ship, albeit a smooth one.

Familiar with the brand equity BMW has with its loyalists, I bring along my friend Judy, current owner of a 1999 323. She sits in the passenger seat on the drive to Palm Springs.

Acceleration in the new 330i is nothing short of thrilling. The new aluminum engine in this fifth-generation model has 255 horses and 220 foot-pounds of torque. The Valvetronic system and three-stage induction system take passing in second gear to a spiritual level. Yes, I said second gear—not third or fourth. Redline is at 7,000 rpm, and torque peaks at 2,750. It’s easy to forget and completely throw away the sixth gear that rates you 30 miles to the gallon on the freeway. The engine is so powerful and smooth in low gear, it’s a blow-your-hair-back thrill ride just jetting around Mission Valley at low speed.

Freeway driving is not quite as much fun—mostly due to noise. Surprisingly, the cabin is loud—enough that Judy and I notice it during conversation. I’m very aware of her voice competing with the wind outside my window. Is it a deal-breaker for this car? Uh, no. The driving experience is such fun you tune it out. Like the airport noise when you live in a high-rise downtown condo, the payoff is greater.

Equipped with an optional premium package, sport package and cold-weather package, our ride tops out at $42,865. For that price, however, you do not get a cup holder on the driver’s side of the car. Seriously. The last time I saw a cup holder this goofy was in a 1998 SUV—and that Japanese manufacturer quickly got rid of it. Positioned high over the right side of the console, this holder is well into the passenger’s real estate.

Equally odd is a repeat of the same unstable gadget to the far right of the passenger seat. Judy comments on her lack of boundaries after inadvertently sipping my drink, which is positioned directly over her left knee. And I laugh so hard I skip a downshift and promptly spill the milky beverage all over the audio system. This, you would think, should simply not be an issue in an intelligently designed German car. But then again, they probably don’t sip big cups of cappuccino on the autobahn.

The list of interior disappointments is very small. They include cabin noise from the moonroof, wind rush, and road rumble from the floor. For nitpickers, the loud click-clack of the turn signals can be offputting. Since automotive writers sometimes look for things to criticize, I thought it was just me being fussy until Judy pointed out the turn signals in her 1999 are so loud she avoids using them. (Now we understand all those unexpected lane changes by all the thousands of BMW owners in San Diego: They’re type A’s who can’t take a little clicking.)

But rest assured, none of this will matter the first time you walk out at night and unlock your new 3-series sedan with the key fob. The stunning exterior ground lighting will light up all four door handles, the silky smooth engine will rumble to a start, and you’ll be glad you own a kick-butt Beemer and a great pair of black pants.