BMW has shown off the first images of its updated 3 Series in sedan form, with the marque’s local arm announcing that the model will launch in New Zealand later this year.
Many of BMW’s recent projects have been very bold and brash in terms of design. But the new 3 Series takes a different path. Its styling and tech changes are much more subtle.
On the outside, the new 3 gets revised headlights with more blue trim within and a slimmer shape. The grille is slightly different, too, although nowhere near as in-your-face as the equivalent grilles on the iX, i4, and 4 Series.
The front and rear bumpers have also changed. The front bumper is less fussy than what it replaces, with the rear bumper sporting a much higher amount of gloss black surfacing.
Arguably the biggest change BMW has introduced to the 3 Series is inside, in the form of a whopping curved screen unit on the dashboard. This comprises of a 12.3-inch digital cluster for the driver and a 14.9-inch central touchscreen.
The screen comes with BMW’s latest operating system. This covers several updates, including the ability to open and shut windows and the sunroof using BMW’s voice-activated ‘Intelligent Personal Assistant’, as well as integrated 5G.
It’s a different story in regards to powertrains, most of which carry over without changes.
In New Zealand, the updated 3 Series sedan will be in 320i, 330e plug-in hybrid, and M340i xDrive flavours, with the Touring set to only be available in 320d xDrive form. This means our market loses the capable 3.0-litre inline six diesel 330d.
The 320i’s ‘TwinPower’ inline four produces 135kW/400Nm. These figures jump to 218kW/420Nm in the 330e, and 285kW/500Nm in the M340i. The 320d wagon, meanwhile, gets 140kW/400Nm.
BMW New Zealand praised the impact the 3 Series still has, despite the increased popularity of SUVs. It says that the 3 Series accounted for 11.5% of its total registrations in 2021, and that 6833 have been registered locally since 2002.
