Value for money
Pricing
The 320i Executive sedan costs $54,500. The 320i Executive Touring wagon, tested here, is $57,700. Other sedan variants include:
320d - $57,500
323i - $63,200
325i - $75,900
335i - $107,300
A 330d is due in mid 2009.
The Touring range also includes the:
323i - $67,400
335i - $111,700
Warranty
Three years/unlimited kilometres.
Standard equipment
The 320i Executive includes six airbags, stability control, leather upholstery, 16 inch alloy wheels, rear parking sensors, rain sensing wipers, trip computer, cruise control, automatic airconditioning and a single CD player with USB interface and auxiliary input jack. The Touring also includes roof rails.
Selected options:
M Sport package $6000
Innovations package $3500
17 inch alloy wheels $1900-$2800
Metallic paint $1700
Sunroof $2920 ($3080 in the Touring)
Alarm $1000
Ib-xenon headlights with washers $2200
Sports seats $1330
Retained value
A 2006 BMW 320 Executive automatic sedan retains 53-59 per cent of its new price as a trade in, according to industry valuer Redbook.
Design and function
Technical details
The E90 is the fifth generation of the BMW 3 Series
It was launched in late 2005
Australian market 320is are made in South Africa
This update to the 320i involves no significant structural or mechanical changes
Its 2.0 litre four cylinder petrol engine produces 115kW of power at 6400rpm and 200Nm of torque at 3600rpm
The six speed manual gearbox is no longer offered. A six speed sequential automatic is now standard
The front end of the car, from the 'A' pillars forward, is made from aluminium
Front suspension, with mostly aluminium componentry, is based on the multi-arm arrangement on the 5 and 7 Series; the compact, five link, all steel rear suspension is borrowed from the 1 Series
Brakes are discs with single piston calipers and stability control
Steering is hydraulically assisted
New wheel carriers and other wheel modifications have increased rear track by up to 24mm
After years of criticism, BMW has completely overhauled the iDrive system, used for accessing audio/phone/navigation/airconditioning and other functions. iDrive is optional (with the Professional navigation system) on the 320i
Active head restraints are now fitted to the front seats
Cosmetic changes include larger side mirrors, LED rear light clusters and indicators
Sixteen inch alloy wheels are fitted with 205/55 runflat tyres
The 320i sedan weighs 1390kg; the Touring weighs 1460kg
Ergonomics
The 320i's slim, functional dash is still different to everything else, but is now starting to look a touch dated at this base model level, where it's dominated by grey plastic and brushed aluminium inlays, neither of which creates a particularly rich impression.
However the revisions to iDrive have certainly done the trick. Whereas it used to be the most illogical and difficult cursor/screen based system to use, it's now arguably the easiest, and the 8.8 inch display screen has exceptionally clear, easy to read graphics.
The controller now has side to side movement to access different menus, the stacked panel structure of which is consistent across the system. A rotary movement of the controller allows you to go through the functions available in each menu, and a push action initiates specific functions.
The most frequently used menus - CD, radio, phone and navigation - are also instantly accessible via individual buttons around the controller. The Favourites feature, with eight buttons, each able to access a frequently used function, such as a radio station or phone number, from different menus, has been retained.
The navigation system has superb graphics, including pictorial representations of landmarks along the route, and the choice of several perspectives.
Voice control is also featured on the Professional system, along with an 80 GB hard drive for storage of digital navigation maps and up to 100 audio CDs.
Simple white on grey instruments are easy to read in daylight, however warm orange lighting makes the graphics rather indistinct at night.
The driver's seat has sufficient travel for the tallest adult, and you can set the cushion height and angle separately, which is a useful feature.
The seat itself, as usual at base model level in a BMW, is firm, flat and a bit of a park bench, but quite comfortable on a long drive.
There's no adjustable lumbar, but lower back support is OK.
In the sedan, vision is compromised at the rear by the kicked up tail and bulky back seat head restraints, however larger side mirrors partly overcome this. Rear vision in the Touring is better.
Storage is reasonable, with small covered bins in the dash and centre console, plus usable door bins, but there's still nowhere for the driver to put a largish drink bottle.
Safety
The Three Series scored five stars out of five in Euro NCAP tests.
The stability control system keeps the brake discs dry on wet roads, adjusts pedal force to compensate for fade and automatically primes the brakes if you quickly release the accelerator.
The pedals swing away in a severe frontal crash to reduce lower leg injury, and in a rear ender the front seat head restraints move forwards and up to support the head and neck and minimise whiplash injury.
Under hard braking, a second tier of brighter brake lights is activated, warning drivers behind.
Security
The 320i scored 102.5 out of 120 in NRMA Insurance's security ratings. Data Dot identification is standard.
Space and practicality
Rear seat leg room is reasonable (the Audi has more; the Lexus and Mercedes have less) and is the same in the sedan and Touring, however the narrow rear door opening requires you to duck and weave when getting in and out, while foot room is also tight under the power adjustable front seats.
The back seat in the Touring has a long, angled cushion and a supportive backrest. It's quite comfortable and supportive; in the sedan tested in 2006, it was a bit low to the floor, so taller adults sat slightly knees up.
There's no useful oddment storage in the back seat, which does limit the 320i's appeal as a kid carrier.
The sedan's boot has a long, narrow floor, and is easily extended with the 60/40 split fold rear seat backs, which also have a small porthole for carrying long, thin objects.
The Touring's boot is small by wagon standards, with a short floor and an angled rear end combining to limit the amount and size of any load, however it's also easily extendable, to a long, flat 1.71 metres, again using the 60/40 split fold rear seat backs.
Three child restraint anchors are in the floor, immediately behind the seat.
A protective mesh barrier, load cover, two nets, bins under the floor, shopping bag hooks and a 12 volt outlet are also provided in the Touring.
Build and finish quality
No problems at all. The 3 Series is very solid and has a good reliability record.
On the road
Fuel efficiency
BMW's 115kW 2.0 litre four cylinder engine has been replaced in Europe by a more powerful (125kW) direct injection version that's also much more fuel efficient. It averages a combined 6.5L/100km, compared with the 8.0L/100km average achieved by the port injection engine fitted to Australian market models.
BMW claims that it cannot fit the Euro spec engine to Australian market models until the sulphur content in our unleaded petrol is reduced to 10ppm.
The 2.0 litre averages 11.4L/100km in town and 6.0L/100km on the highway, with CO2 emissions of 191g/km.
This is also considerably higher than its main rival, Audi's A4 base model 1.8 litre direct injection turbo, which is also a stronger performer. It produces 118kW of power and 250Nm of torque (50Nm more than the BMW), yet it averages 10.4L/100km in town, 5.7L/100km on the open road and 7.4L/100km combined. It produces CO2 emissions of 174g/km.
The BMW scores three and a half stars out of five in the Green Vehicle Guide. So does the Audi.
98 octane premium is recommended for the 320i. 95 octane is recommended for the Audi A4.
Performance
The BMW 2.0 litre is also past its prime as far as performance is concerned, particularly compared with the Audi engine (matched with a continuously variable automatic) but also with the 1.8 litre supercharged/five speed auto drivetrain in the Mercedes C200K and the 2.5 litre V6/six speed auto in the Lexus IS250.
The 2.0 litre is very smooth, but it drives rather like a diesel - minus the torque. After a deceptively enthusiastic launch from rest, it becomes sluggish and weak across the midrange, and from 4000rpm on is asthmatic and unresponsive. The six speed automatic works overtime trying to find torque that isn't there, so its adaptive programming can become confused and shift quality and timing can deteriorate. The cruise control cannot hold a set 100km/h on a moderate highway hill.
BMW claims a 0-100km/h time of 9.8 seconds for the sedan and 10.1 seconds for the Touring, both confirmed by our stopwatch. Audi's A4 takes 8.6 seconds for the same trip, the Mercedes C200K takes 9.1 seconds and the Lexus IS250 takes 8.7 seconds.
Handling, braking and ride
Again, the 320i is no longer the benchmark. Its suspension is lightly sprung, with short travel. This works on smooth roads, where the car's light weight and fine 50/50 weight distribution also give it a lovely poised, balanced character in corners.
However on a typical NSW country road, where the bitumen is anything but smooth, the suspension at both ends (particularly the front) regularly runs out of travel, giving the body a severe bashing, while the back end can twitch and flinch at times, unsettling the car.
Its cause is not helped by runflat tyres, which have stiff sidewalls that lack compliance compared with normal tyres. Our test Touring wagon was also fitted with optional 17 inch wheels, with 225/45 (front) and 255/40 (rear) tyres. As well as being overkill on such a low powered car as this, and a mismatch with the relatively soft suspension, they produced a harsh, choppy ride and only exacerbated the limited travel problem.
The BMW's ride/handling compromise would be better in local conditions with the standard 16 inch wheel/tyre combination, however Mercedes and Audi have now moved ahead of the 320i in this regard, especially when it comes to ride comfort. The fact that the BMW is rear drive (like the Mercedes and Lexus), as opposed to the Audi's front drive, is neither here nor there at base model level.
The 320i's conventional steering is very heavy at parking speeds, but accurate and well weighted on the highway. The brakes are excellent.
Smoothness and quietness
The 320i is acceptably refined, though there is some tyre noise on coarse bitumen at highway speeds.
Summary
The 320i was once the class benchmark, but this is no longer the case. Newer models from Audi (A4) and Mercedes (C200K) are superior in several important areas, notably performance, fuel efficiency (the A4), handling and ride comfort on local roads, while the Lexus IS250 gives you six cylinders for the price of BMW's four.
Runflat tyres also limit the 320i's practicality for country buyers, or those who regularly drive long distances, as does its preference for 98 octane premium.
The writer of this report does not necessarily represent the views of the NRMA and this report is provided for you as an alternative to our own NRMA car reviews.
BMW 325i SPORTS (2009) BMW 320i (2009)
