BMW 3-Series broadens the options

By Alexander Corne

THE 3-Series is BMW's most popular range of cars, but it hasn't always been so.

Dealers in Germany didn't believe anybody would buy one when the 1600-2, the first modern small BMW, was launched in 1966.

But the concept worked and 30 years of ever-increasing sales has seen the 3-Series top six million sales.

The 1600-2 gave rise to the famous 1602 and 2002, which were the best performing small two-door German cars through the 1960s, vying with Alfa Romeo to claim European performance honors.

The baby BMWs offered the same sporting flair of the bigger BMW sedans and coupes, but at a more affordable price.

When a turbocharged 2002 took to the European race circuits it swept all before it, prompting the release of a road-going version, examples of which fetch sky-high prices today. The 2002 Turbo was the first production turbo road car.

In the 1970s the first proper 3-Series was introduced. BMW took the concept a stage further in 1982 when the second generation was unveiled, the range for the first time including a four-door sedan which quickly became the hottest seller.

When the current 3-Series shape was unveiled in 1989, BMW again raised the small performance car stakes. The new series offered better roadholding, performance, comfort and luxury than ever before.

The 3-Series has now been on sale for seven years and will be replaced next September by a new generation. During the life of the present generation, the 3-Series has blossomed to include five distinct body styles and is available in Germany in 29 different, standard production models.

The line up includes the standard four-door sedan, a two-door coupe, five-door Touring wagon, four-seater convertible and three-door Compact hatch. The two-seater Z3 roadster, which is built in America, is based on 3-Series running gear.

The most famous 3-Series versions are the M3s, powered by a 236kW straight-six engine. The M3 offers supercar performance but is easy to drive in town at low speeds.

In Germany, the M3 performance package is available in coupe, sedan and convertible body styles.

BMW's mix and match engineering means that most engines and most body styles can be combined.

Despite building almost 300,000 3-Series a year, the variations in paint finish, accessories and options, combined with the 29 different models means that the company rarely produces two identical cars.

In Europe, there are natural gas powered 3-Series cars which produce a reasonable 64kW. There are 1.6-liter, 1.8-liter and 1.9-liter 16-valve four-cylinder engines, while straight-six power is divided into 2.5-liter, 2.8-liter and 3.2-liter capacities.

The 2.5-liter engine is actually badged 323, just for marketing reasons.

The 3.2-liter straight-six engine which powers the M3 range is not sold in standard cars. It uses a double variable valve timing system for inlet and exhaust valves and is an example of BMW's advanced engineering philosophy.

In addition, there is a range of diesel and turbo-diesel four and six-cylinder engines.

While the original 1600-2/1602 cars offered sporty seats and performance to match today's hot-hatches, such as the Golf GTi, it was a rather basic car inside. By comparison, the present 3- Series range is packed with high technology, some of it dedicated to safety.

Most 3-Series come with dual air bags, antilock brakes and some even offer traction control. There is climate control air conditioning, compact disc players, and leather seats with electric adjustment. Some of these items were not even fitted to limousines back in the late 1960s.

BMW's philosophy of allowing technical innovation to trickle down its range from the most expensive to the cheapest, means that within only a few years, the most state-of-the-art systems are available on modestly priced smaller cars.

Few other car companies in the world are as quick to effect this technological transfer.