Car Reviews: BMW 3 Series Reviews
The BMW 3 Series is a compact executive car manufactured by the German automaker BMW since May 1975 Successor to the BMW New Class it has been produced in five different generations and in no less than five different body styles It is BMW's best selling automobile accounting for nearly 40 of the company's auto sales in 2005 BMW released its E21 in the wake of the 1973 oil crisis attracting customers seeking both prestige and economy nearly doubling BMW's worldwide auto sales figures in three years and winning numerous automotive world awards and honors Three decades later the 3 Series is still the best-selling of its class While some argue that the popularity of the car had reduced its prestigious image the 3 Series still remains the benchmark and its competitors are often judged on how close they come to this car The 3 series has also maintained BMW's racing heritage The M version of the 3 series M3 debuted in 1988 The 3 series cars usually sell well…Read More about BMW 3 Series at WikiPedia
Latest BMW 3 Series Frequently Asked Questions:
My boyfriend just got a bmw 3 series convertible 2004 reg as a company car. It didn't come with a manual and we cant figure out how to take the roof down. Please help. Does the car need to be switched off?
Answer:i have a 2003 3 series convertible. idk what the 1st guy to comment is talking about LOL i just push and hold a button and it goes down. the button is located right under the cig lighter closesst to the drive and above the shifter
Im 19 looking to buy a car and im looking at the 1992-1998 generation of the bmw 3 series but there are so many i was just wondering the differences
Answer:The "i" stands for injected, and they are all inline 6 cylinder engines, not V6s. BMW no longer uses any 4 cylinder engines in USA. So stick with 323 and up (6 cylinders). Here is a list of the letters, not all apply to 3-series. The system of letters is as follows: * d = diesel * i = fuel-injected * x = all wheel drive (xDrive) * L = long wheel base * C = coupe (no longer used) * T = touring (wagon/estate) * t = hatchback * g = biogas * s = sport package (Sports seats in the front, spoiler on the rear, improved gearbox, custom rims) * si= sports injection (the new range of x5, x3 and z4 engines) * e = eta (essentially "economy" in English) * es = eta sport
On a search on mobile.de for bmw 3 series up to 2004, 90% of the returns are compact versions. What makes these cars cheaper than the normal versions ? If I would have known I would not have asked the question ... right ?
Answer:^^^He said it all, they are underpowered too. Never buy a 323i, that thing is a MESS. They also use hubcaps on the 323i lol.
It seems there are lots of dissatisfied BMW 3 series owners (going by comments on various consumer reviews). Is there any statistic showing the ratio of dissatisfied versus satisfied owners in the USA? My thinking is that consumers with horrific experiences are twice more likely to vent their frustrations via various feedback/review systems than satisfied customers echoing their positive experiences via the same medium. I'm interested in buying a 2002-06 BMW 325 or 330.
Answer:They are some of the most reliable German cars. But they are just average. Not as good as Japanese cars. Better than some American cars and better than British cars/Italian cars. As good as Korean cars and some American cars.
It seems there are lots of dissatisfied BMW 3 series owners (going by comments on various consumer reviews). Is there any statistic showing the ratio of dissatisfied versus satisfied owners in the USA? My thinking is that consumers with horrific experiences are twice more likely to vent their frustrations via various feedback/review systems than satisfied customers echoing their positive experiences via the same medium. I'm interested in buying a 2002-06 BMW 325 or 330.
Answer:Hi AyD In my honest opinion, the 3 series is neither unreliable or expensive to maintain. Firstly, maintenance if anything has got less expensive as labour times for servicing have been cut and the introduction of CBS (Conditioned based servicing) which involves only replcing parts when they really need replacing. This however has generated some unhappiness with customers as it then means slightly more visits to the dealer ie Sparkplug service one month/ Oil and filter the following month / Brake fluid two months after etc etc. With regard to reliability, I am not saying the 3 is flawless however all models in every brand has problems. Some vehicle manufacturers are better than others at keeping things quiet if you know what I mean. The 3 Series was recently (November 10th 2008) voted most reliable car in the UK which for the first time put it ahead of all Japenese models. I am not aware of any fundemental differences between the US 3 series and the UK 3 series. Have a read......... http://www.vcars.co.uk/news/bmw/3-series/bmw-3-series-the-most-reliable-car-in-the-uk-1796.html One thing of note is that BMW are selling more and more every year. A percentage of those will have problems, the more they sell then the more that have problems is always likely to increase. If I could afford it right now a 3 would be my first purchase. Hope I helped, Happy New Year, Pyth
