The dimensions of the car have also changed dramatically when compared to the older car.  The new 3-series has a much beefier appearance, this of course appeals to those who want cars that drive and look as good.  Sadly, however, the 3-series still lacks the interior space for five people.  In fact, the 3-series barely has enough room to squeeze in four adults!  Is this evolution at work?  Hopefully it doesn't take BMW ten years to realize this problem (Lexus took care upon the release of the IS200).

BMW says that majority of the improvements in the interior were to lessen the squeaks and jingles whenever the car goes over bumps (a 2,000 kilometer driven 1995 3-series already has these problems).  They made use of a single-piece plastic dashboard with fittings of either wood or aluminum.  Switches are still confusing and in fact, new buttons have been added to the steering wheel as well (evolution, not revolution).  Personally, the best improvement that BMW has done to the 3-series is not its new look or the interior fittings but the standard features.  In fact, for the top trim 328 it includes everything but the kitchen sink.  Leather, head-protection airbags, 8-speaker system, electronically adjusted seats and air conditioning all come as standard

Although more on the mature side, the handling of the 3-series is still above those of the ordinary sedans.  To plant the BMW name into the handling books, new driver aids have been added to enable the car to give the driver excellent feedback and control.  These aids come in all possible acronyms such as ASC (Automatic Stability Control plus Traction), CBC (Corner Brake Control) and DSC (Dynamic Stability Control).  Though they may sound a bit Chinese, let me assure you that the things they do are common to most of us.  ASC and DSC are much like Mercedes' ESP, wherein the computer senses loss of traction in any of the four wheels and tries to compensate it by regulating the throttle control.  On the other hand, CBC works by shifting the brake pressure to optimize turn-in as well as reduce the wear and tear in the brake pads.

The 3-series is a wonderful sports sedan.  It has matured and grown well from its original racing bred DTM past to its current yuppie status.  Although the BMW could still exhibit better control and feedback when compared to the other so-called sports sedans, some enthusiasts feel that they want something that feels like the old 3-series: razor-sharp and on the edge.  Toyota thinks so too, and thus went to the drawing board.

Roofline angling down to outline the rear window and door a 3-series trademark.
Makes the car look quick even while it's standing still.
The interior has been heavily revamped for the new 3-series. However, old 3-series problems such as a cramped cabin still plague the new 3-series. In addition, buttons are more cluttered than ever with the addition of steering wheel mounted stereo controls.