- 74,962
- 12,975 overpriced
- Central Point, OR
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- autoshopper.com
2007 bmw 3-series review this car review is specific to this model, not the actual vehicle for sale. All-new version mostly keeps the faith. introductioncompetition in the convertible market has reached new heights. No longer is it enough for carmakers to have just a convertible. Now, to be truly a contender in this niche market, they must offer a hardtop convertible, one that replaces the traditional folding fabric top with a retractable hardtop. Witness the volkswagen eos, the volvo c70, and the chrysler sebring. always one to avoid being left behind in any competition, bmw stepped up with a new 3 series convertible for 2007 that comes with a three-piece, fully automatic, one-button up-and-down hardtop. Each way takes less than a half-minute. When the top's up, the car is as close to a two-door hardtop in ride, handling and interior comfort as is possible with a removable roof. With the top down, it's everything a convertible should be but with almost none of the penalties, like overly blustery, hairdo-destroying wind and vision-blurring cowl shake, commonly associated with open-top cars. bmw compensated for the 200-plus pounds added by the top and its supporting mechanicals by raising the energy levels under the hood. The base engine, if there is such a thing in a bmw, is the same displacement, 3. 0 liters, as the top engine in the '06 convertible, but with 230 horsepower, five more than that engine. The up-level engine also displaces 3. 0-liters but, boosted by dual turbochargers, pumps out 300 horsepower, up 75 from the '06's top engine. Neither model name relates any longer to engine family. The 328i comes with the normally aspirated engine, while the 335i comes with the turbocharged engine. Standard is a six-speed manual transmission; optional is a six-speed automatic transmission allowing manual gear selection with the steptronic feature. much of what has allowed bmw to claim to be the ultimate driving machine survives on the new 3 series convertible, and, for that matter, on its coupe and sedan siblings. It's a superbly balanced car, and in unadulterated form, sinfully fun to drive. Steering is light when it should be, that is, at low speeds, and with proper resistance and feedback at the elevated speeds the car constantly tempts drivers to explore. Nearly equal front/rear weight distribution leaves the driver in full command of where the car goes and when, with a high-threshold stability control system reassuringly keeping watch should a driver somehow manage to venture beyond the car's almost limitless capabilities. For those extreme times, the brakes, too, stand ever ready to add vital safety margins. sadly, at least for long-time, bmw purists, another field in which bmw feels compelled to stay competitive, if not lead the field, is in using electronics to manage its cars' functions. And the 3 series convertible has not been immune to this creeping plague of numbing isolation. For example, some of the electronic assists to the car's brakes are welcome, like systems that keep the discs dry in wet weather, compensate for overheating-related fade and prime the system when a panic stop seems imminent. On the other hand, the system can't seem to leave things well enough alone in normal driving, abruptly adding pressure, for instance, as the car slows to a stop quite independent of how the driver is attempting to feather the pedal to achieve a stable, non-rocking stop. there are other features that bmw insists on improving that didn't need improvement, like active steering, and a few that have lost some of their excellence, like the manual transmission. But the point is that the 3 series may well be an endangered species, the s. lineupthe 2007 bmw 3 series convertible comes in two trim levels. The 328i 43,200) is powered by a 230-horsepower inline-6, the 335i 49,100) by a 300-horsepower, twin-turbocharged inline-6. Both engines come with a six-speed, manual transmission. The 335i premium package 1550) matches the 328i's save the dakota leather, which is standard on the 335i. The standard, electronically limited 130 mph) and high-performance, run-flat, 225/40r18 front tires and 255/35r18 rear tires on 18x8. 0 front and 18x8. 5 rear alloy wheels with styles unique to each model. safety features include the usual array of front and side airbags, plus lower dash-mounted, anti-submarine knee airbags. Rear seats are also fitted with pop-up roll bars behind the head restraints that deploy in a fraction of a second when sensors detect signs of an impending rollover. The driver's feet get added protection from pedals that retract during a frontal crash and a dead pedal constructed to collapse under crash-force pressures. A tire-pressure monitoring system comes standard. As such, given that the design has encountered something significantly less than universal acclaim, the 3 series is the least radicalized, leaving it the best looking, most cohesively styled and visually balanced bmw of the current lot. up front, the new 3 series easily passes what some automotive stylists call the rearview mirror test, whether a driver can recognize a car's brand from a quick glance in the mirror. The traditional, twin-kidney grille is braced by deep-set, organic-shaped, compound headlamps that so far have been spared the drooping eyelid-look of many of its brand mates. A broad, multi-faceted bumper tops a three-segment, sharply edged, lower air intake with fog lights parked at the extremes. The outline of a low-profile power bulge traces back across the hood from the upper corners of the grille to the base of the a-pillars (the side frames of the windshield). The wide track (distance between the tires side to side) pushes the tires to the outer limits of the body, giving the '07 a solid, planted stance. side view shows a silhouette that keeps the faith with the traditional overall proportions of the 3 series coupes in its long hood and short deck topped by an expansive greenhouse. Short front and rear overhangs (distance between the tires and the ends of the car's body) bear eyewitness to the car's standard-setting handling. Picking up on the seam between the hood and the front fender, the beltline flows rearward with the slightest suggestion of a wedge. The character line running the length of the car from just aft of the front wheel well to the taillight follows the prevailing bmw styling cue of a crease above compound-curve (as in, part concave and part convex) body panels; it's not the traditional 3 series' slender groove in convex panels, but t. Climate Control✔ Cruise Control✔ Bluetooth✔ Alloy Wheels
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