BMW 3 Series Review: 2009 Model | 3 Series | Car Buyers Guide

A new 3-Series? Already? Well, yes and no. It might only seem like it has been five minutes since the 3-Series saloon arrived onto the Irish market but since 2005 it has helped the car become one of the 10 best-selling models in Ireland and up until recently it really had the compact executive saloon segment all sown up without too much trouble. However, the arrival of new versions of the Mercedes-Benz C-Class and Audi A4 in the last 12 months have meant that the 3-Series no longer has things its own way. The C-Class is now infinitely better to drive than it was before, it looks superb and it’s also far better finished than previously. The same can be said for the Audi A4, which has also enjoyed a growth spurt and is now big and upmarket enough to be considered a serious rival to the 3-Series.

With the sixth-generation 3-Series still about three years away, the Munich firm has given the car a mid-life sprucing and, as usual, it is of the blink-and-you’ll-miss-it variety. There is a new bonnet with some new grooves on it to make it look more aggressive; new lights at the front with ‘Corona’ rings; and new L-shape rear lights, which are made up of two LED light clusters and LED direction indicators. You also get new bumpers at the rear and, depending on the model, you might even notice that the track has been widened by up to 24 millimetres by means of a new wheel carrier. There are a few other detail changes, of course, but they’re too tedious to list here.

Inside the 3-Series, most things remain the same, but the materials have been updated, brightening the cabin somewhat. The biggest and most significant change surrounds the often-criticised iDrive system. It would appear that BMW engineers have spent some time in an Audi recently because the revamped iDrive system takes more than a little inspiration from Audi’s MMI unit. You no longer have to click through an exhaustive series of menus; instead, a few useful buttons let you bypass the system. You can now go straight to things like navigation, CD or radio using good, old-fashioned buttons. For many Irish buyers, of course, iDrive won’t even feature. Opt for this system, however, and you also get a hard disk that stores your music and the satellite navigation maps and there is also a new web browser which, for now, works on the rather sluggish EDGE network.

The engines remain the same as before, with the exception of the second-most-powerful diesel, the 330d, which now features an aluminium crankcase and third-generation common-rail injectors that boost performance to 245bhp and a massive 520Nm of torque. This engine meets EU 5 emissions standards already and, as a tree-hugging option, it can even be tweaked to meet EU 6. And it’s a cracker. There was always something of a gap between the worthy 320d and the amazing 335d and this new engine bridges that gap very well. It is quiet and powerful and with a 0-100km/h time of 6.1 seconds and a top speed of 250km/h, it’s not exactly slow.

Dynamically, you won’t notice much difference between this and the current car – we tried the 330d and the top-of-the-range 335i petrol model at the Munich drive event and both had power to burn and had the same ultra-responsive steering feel that we have come to know and love. The new model arrives in Ireland later this month, with the 318d and 320d likely to remain the biggest sellers. The changes to the 3-Series saloon will also be present on the Touring model when it arrives at the same time. Expect a flurry of activity for the car in January, especially the 318d, which was one of the real winners from the VRT changeover. Prices start at €40,235 for the 318d ES with the delightful, Band C 330d coming in at a relatively reasonable €55,650. All in all, the changes should be enough to keep buyers interested for another three years until the all-new version arrives but should they find interest waning there should be a new X3, along with numerous special editions and engine tweaks, going on sale in the meantime to tempt them back into the showroom. BMW didn’t get to where it is today by resting on its proverbial laurels and letting its customers wander over to the dark side.

Interior image caption: Inside the 3-Series, most things remain the same, but the materials have been updated, brightening the cabin somewhat