More than twenty years of testing cars have led me to know that the first impression when getting into one is a good one. Rarely are these first feelings refuted by the discovery that use and custom can give you, and what happened with this BMW 340i I admit that it was love at first moment. It is true that I had just gotten out of a rational, cheap, and LPG-powered utility vehicle: a car in which functionality and price eclipse any consideration and comparisons are odious, but in any case, by design and implementation, this new BMW 3 Series is much and deserves to be known in depth.
It has a lot of applied design and none of it is free. Functionality and detail elements merge brilliantly: carbon roof, rear aerodynamic extractor, front apron... It overwhelms with its impression of technology and the dynamic potential it suggests. They are 374 CV, 33 CV more powerful than the M3 that was marketed when I started working in this wonderful world of automobiles... although far behind the current M3, which with 510 CV is three times the five-liter M5 V10 F1 heritage.
BLESSED RAPTURE
I settle in, adjusting the seat in length, height, and width—it's equipped with a seat that inflates the cushions to accommodate different back sizes. You press the start button and its snore makes you think that this 340i is going to run a lot. I have a question. What will your experience be like on a long trip? Will it be comfortable to finish a 500 km non-stop trip with the body as if you were simply going to eat with the family on Sunday? I have to check it out, I tell myself as I head out of the parking lot and decide, instead of heading home, to mentally plan a five-hour drive to discover this BMW. Even in the parking lot, I realize that it is difficult for him to turn and I prefer to ensure with a couple of extra maneuvers to avoid sullying the precious paint of the BMW with that of any column. I would then verify that the turning diameter exceeds 12m: which can be a challenge on the narrowest streets in city centers and their narrow parking lots.
I take the highway. One of those highways out of Madrid. It's all enormously nice. It's easy to listen to music while I move to the rhythm of the traffic without a hint of laziness and, of course, discomfort. I alternate between Comfort and Eco modes. The differences go beyond the degree of firmness of the damping, with two positions—not going to extreme firmness in the most consistent mode and some difficulty containing body roll in comfort mode on curly areas. Only two ways, many will say that more is not necessary.
The driving modes also appear to modify climate control, engine mapping, and shift logic. Thus, the Eco mode is solvent to maintain speed, although to attack re-launching or overtaking it makes the change seem a little slower than desired and you can feel more comfortable alternating driving modes both to have the most forceful response and to avoid some vertical movements of the body when adapting to the irregularities of the asphalt.
The kilometers go by. The filtering is really very good and even with the suspension in its Sport mode it is not uncomfortable. It matters little that the Michelin Pilot Sport 4 is overinflated, at 3 bars no less. It is not dry. It also seems very well insulated from the environment, although suddenly after turning off the audio equipment I notice an uncomfortable whistling noise despite the acoustic comfort windows (€246). It is not uncomfortable and a look at the treetops makes me realize the strong wind, something that was not noticeable in the direction.
A LOT OF MUSCLE
The highway ends and I face a mountain pass. I do a containment
exercise looking at the Head Up Display (€1,415) to moderate with the
accelerator because I am aware of the radars that have finished the hardest
ramps: those that far exceed 10% unevenness and that, by the way, they appear
practically flat. Because this 340i has plenty of strength for that and much
more, regardless of whether it is just the driver or loaded to the limit of his
capacity.
After the pass, I reach a national road without splitting. The car still seems delicious to me, with fast steering that facilitates instant, very precise lane changes, and a complete guarantee of safety due to the ease with which you can attack any overtaking truck. Right foot fully, kick down the gear, fast and without jerks, and you feel an enormous force pushing you forward. One glance at the speedometer makes me feel guilty…but relieved for the few seconds I've spent in the wrong lane. I wonder for a moment about its real potential. I'd see him a couple of days later, on "our" beloved bumpy speed ring. There you realize the true magnitude of performance capacity and in this case how much and how the BMW 340 iX is capable of running.
Far from seeming short, the 1,000 m of the maximum acceleration test seems to take a looong time: in one breath you are above the legal speeds on the motorway, in a little more you already notice how the landscape goes by very quickly, how the noise is conditioning you, how the steering seems to lose weight by working in communion with the suspension to adapt to irregularities, how everything happens faster every time... I exceed 200 km/h and keep the right pedal fully. This never ends. The meters continue to pass and the sensation of radicalism grows, the vibrations of the asphalt and the tar lanes. I notice my pulse racing and not a little anxiety that continues to increase until the beep of the computer tells me that that interminable 1,000 m has finished. The speedometer reads more than 220 km/h. The test achieved... and sensations so brutal that on the road —perhaps with the exception of the free speed sections of the Autobahn or on a circuit— it is not advisable to experiment. On the open road, it is better to opt for prudence: for safety and for the legal consequences of its very high potential to gain speed.
ACCURATE AND SUPER NICE
Fast. Very fast. Stable at very high speed and instantaneous in its reactions, the 340i takes advantage of its all-wheel drive to ensure traction even if it means reducing the potential for propulsion to skid and its friction slightly increases consumption.
But there is a world beyond that of the highest performance, that of daily use where soundproofing, equipment, infotainment, and driving aids can leave a delicious taste on the palate. And how could it be otherwise, the term premium defines it perfectly.
PREMIUM IN THE WHOLE EXTENSION
Correct is the interior space. The total length of the 3 Series is over 4.70 m and its width is close to 1.83, which would suggest a spectacular habitability, but the longitudinal layout of the engine takes a toll as it is not able to offer a huge space. Despite this four occupants of 1.85 m will be able to travel without hassle, without discomfort, and with excellent quality of life given the balance of its suspension and excellent soundproofing. The starting speed of the engine and the smoothness of the transitions between gears and equipment are also at a high level... at least in our test unit.
Because in this case, the BMW 340i xDrive looks at a call price that is not exaggerated when compared with other alternatives with powers close to 400 hp, and even if the optional equipment mounted is valued, it does not become crazy, although it does impose its own. The cost of daily use will not be negligible either, since despite its Eco label —by means of 48-volt micro hybridization— this BMW does not boast of ultra-low consumption, nor does it claim to, although it can move in figures below 8 l/ 100 km and guarantees an absolutely convincing user experience. It is not in vain that we are facing a saloon that is simply magnificent in its conception and in its development, a car of those born to offer precision, character, and all the speed that you are going to ask for and that exemplifies the increase in power registered in recent years.
CONCLUSION: DIFFICULT VERY DIFFICULT TO PUT A BUT ON IT
You have to go to every earthly argument of space, price, or that
the best equipment is optional to "sink your teeth" and in an
exercise of brother-in-law raise objections to a car like this. My feeling is
that someone —the development team— did a magnificent exercise in anticipating
the needs that could appear on board while driving, sports, or traveling, to
provide a solution. That the seats seem short to you? The bench is extendable.
Does change seem slow to you? Things change in Sport mode. And that's not to
mention the equipment and operation of driving aids. Simply magnificent.
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