Outland

Interesting. I would have said the 6 series is actually a decent looking car. 5 is the real turkey styling wise, if you ask me.

e1000

actually - have you guys seen the updated Z4... whoa.... BMW needs to get it's act straight.

advans

The new 3 series? the ugliest car of the year!? besides the PT Cruiser, the pontiac aztec and the chevy mailibu?

the new 3 series does look crapy, i dun really mind the front, but wtf is going on in the back? it seems like BMW hired a KIA designer thats on crack

SteveL1

I've never been one to bash other brands, and I have been a BMW guy since 1986. I've owned 6 of them and my latest was my favorite, a '98 E39 that you can see below. Awsome styling, performance and reliability. 128k trouble free miles over 6 years. Only reason I'm on this board is that my baby got totaled by a 19 yr old idiot, and after looking at the new BMW's, I just could not make myself buy one. The 3 series is not atractive unless you put a bunch of $$$ in body mods, and it's a lot more $$$ to start with. I could live with a C230 spt just the way it comes for some time, but it also lends itself well to mods. The 5 series is just god awfull unless it's an M5 which is way more than I care to spend. Chris Bangle has screwed up the whole brand as far as I'm concerned, except for maybe the 6 series. I've had an E30 M3 a Z3 and the E39 and my wife drives an E46 330Ci. Hate to leave the brand but they just don't turn me on any more.

Here's my baby before it got hurt......



By the way, I'm selling the Fikse rims if someone has a BMW in need of new shoes!

FrankW

Top Gear doesn't form their opinion around manufacturers. All three of them talks about car based on a buyer's view and all three of them has differen opinions. Almost every car they reviewed is pretty much on target on what each car is all about. Unlike the US car mags or shows, Top Gear could care less about what the manufacturer think of them. In the US mags and shows they worry soo much about what they say and everything even the most ****ty car will be a good car. Regarding that Vanquish vs 575 episode that was from last year and guess what I'd take a Vanquish over the 575 anyday. Like they said, the Vanquish has something that as a overall package that moves you emotionally rather than just being a performance car.

On the Continental GT...I rather have the DB9. the C-GT is pretty blend in style IMO.

mick1

I used to be a bmw guy too. The guys at work used to call me Bimmer-man

my old Bimmer.

diamondblak05

It's funny that this topic about the new 3-series was brought up. To add insult to injury, here's my story: One day I took my C230 for a checkup at the local dealer where I bought mine from. This dealer sells bmw, mercedes, porsche, audi, and infiniti. I have a salesman friend who sells bmws so everytime I stop by the dealer, I always go say "HI". Well, that day I stopped in and chatted with him about the new 3-series. I asked him how's business selling the new 3-series. He said people are buying them like crazy and that they can't keep enough on the lot. I gave him a surprised look and told him...."if people are buying them like crazy, how come I don't see any of them on the streets." He looked at me with shock and didn't answer my comment. Well, there you have it folks....ENOUGH SAID about the new 3-series. I concur with TopGear's vote as ugliest car of the year!

FrankW

speaking of bad sales...Guess how many new M5s the local dealership I went to have. SIX!!!

e1000

Six that were unspoken for?!?!

FrankW

yup...3 Silverstone, 2 Black, and 1 Interlago Blue.

mbny

i've only seen one new 3 that really caught my attention. sparkling graphite metallic, light tints and sport package 330i. otherwise they really don't do it for me. awesome car to drive however. my old 330 always put a smile on my face while my C is kinda boring. but it looks much better than the new 3. since some of us are adding pics of our old bimmers, here's one of mine

e1000

I gotta ask, how/why did you go from a 330Ci to a C230 SS?

MHPHOCKEY

Car is ugly, but the Hamann version is kinda nifty. The coupe will be terrible because they are making it a hardtop so it will not look very sturdy. Has a nice ride to it and the tiptronic (shifter) is very fast. Wouldn't be caught dead in the 325, it is boatish. The C350 is a great rival for that 330 though.

netboy

what are u talking about?! isnt the new 3 series a 2006 model? How many C350, E350, or ML350 on the street do u see? i guess they are ugly too!
just because u own a Mercedes and not a BMW, it DOES NOT make it ugly..

diamondblak05

What are you talking about? In case you didn't know, more than 1/3 of bmw sales come from their 3-series, thus I would expect to see more of them on the road than the other series. Same case with the c-class; however, c-class where I live is a dime a dozen. I also see more ML350 and X5s everywhere compared to the new 3, 5, 7 series and E and S classes. Just because a few of us agreed that the new 3-series is plain ulgy compared to the older body style, you don't have to take it personally and reply with such childish remarks.

r3v1ls

We're not judging the BMW 3-series based overall... just the styling. The 3-series is a great car. But it winning the car of the year was not based solely on styling, if it was it would not even be CLOSE to winning. Many of the people on this board also own bmw's, my mom drives a bmw 325 and I think it's a great car and outhandles mine anyday. But the new 3 series is just bleh. Many BMW enthusiasts also agree that it's not that good looking. Other may like the new design and they're entitled to their opinion.

BIGjohnny

Ugly car of the year? I guess that depends on your taste. I honestly thought all new BMW designs were blaaaaah. However, their styling is growing on me. Looks ugly on magazine, but in real life all the lines fit pretty well. Throw some 18s or 19s and it looks even better. Although I do believe the interior is quite ugly.

To me, the Toyota MRS spyder is the ugliest car ever made. Is it me or does that thing look like a huge lady bug?

Outland

Very true. Ive yet to see one other than at the autoshow. Not a single one on the road yet. No A3's either. There's been a lot of bombs this year.

I hear Maybach is tanking pretty heavily as well. Now that's an ugly car. Sales were only like 415 cars all year, 150 less than the year before, which was already less than half of what MB supposedly needs to recoupe the investment.

I seen a new Civic Si a few days ago...I thought I'd like it in the pictures, but its kinda ugly in person.

Outland

This guy is genuinely whacko. Pretty entertaining though.

e harmon

I see an E90 3 series (usually 325) about every 2 minutes on the road here in Miami. The styling is not to my taste, either, but IMO a knockout compared to the 5 series. I have not driven one, but ridden in a 330 sport a few times. It rides like a dream and is surprisingly quick.

e harmon

Outland

I'm sure it is a fabulous car to drive. Its a BMW, after all.

mbny

well here was my situation. my lease was coming to an end on my coupe. I really wanted an M3, but i accumulated 15 points on my license with the 330 and insurance was close to $8k a year. I was paying about $5,400 a year on the 330.

Never considered a C-class. To me they looked like granny mobiles, but then i spotted one on the road that i thought was an AMG and to my surprise it was a C230k sedan. Thought it may have been an added kit, but the guy didn't seem like the type. So I went to MB and there it was. A mars red 05' C230k sport sedan on the showroom floor. I immediately fell in love with the looks. So i drive the auto C230k and as you probably can guess, it felt like a complete pig to my 330. So now I'm thinking I'm going for the C320SS. test drive that and it's really not that much better in my opinion and would still get smoked by my bimmer. after working the lease numbers, the difference in cost for a marginably noticeable difference in power seemed completely ridiculous. So i took the C230k w/ the 6 speed manual to keep alittle money in my pocket and keep the performance close to the C320 auto my fiance wanted me to get so she could drive it. ya right! and that's my story. It does feel nice saving alittle money each month. making a $390 car payment is peanuts. I do enjoy that part especially over the close to $600 a month on the 330 although i wish i had been more responsible and kept my license clean to go with the M3. i'm really thinking about the new Cayman S once my points are wiped off.

gaiex

My mom never liked to much her wagon (kinda gift of my father ) and now my father wants to make her wish real and get her a new car but she likes very much the new 3. series
Every time this topic comes on chat at home I kinda shoot some CLK looks to my mom

here was mine (in a auto shop for sale 2 years ago, allready stock)
-99' 320d
-ECU repro. to 185Hp (NOW I'M HAPPY WITH MY 143HP )
-Koni sport + eibach

e1000

oh it was leased. I think you made the right decision.

anonymouse

Bah - E36 4ever!!!!











but the E46 eventually grew on me