Entry level F30 320i heads to the US - Starting at $33,445

Originally Posted by JoeFromPA

Now maybe it's just me, but the pictures of the interior of the 320i look like lower quality interior materials.

This makes me wonder if BMW is going to strip the 3-series a bit beyond just a detuned n26. Will it have less sound deadening, cheaper materials, etc. (i.e. the 1-series)

It probably will have what Mercedes refers to "Text" seat surfaces (like vinyl). That holds up well and usually looks very good.

I think this 320i will be a massive success. I have a 328i baseline in Alpine White, so exterior-wise the cheapest F30 available. Trust me most people love it and I get loads of compliments on it. I have a few options that bumped the price up but I've always thought that a stripper with no options is a fantastic deal esp. bearing in mind the free maintenance and discounts. If this 320i will be available lease or buy for a few bucks more than an Accord or Camry people will be all over it. Power-wise 180 is also enough for most people.

Originally Posted by JoeFromPA

Now maybe it's just me, but the pictures of the interior of the 320i look like lower quality interior materials.

This makes me wonder if BMW is going to strip the 3-series a bit beyond just a detuned n26. Will it have less sound deadening, cheaper materials, etc. (i.e. the 1-series)

I doubt it.

Originally Posted by Jamesonsviggen

The person thinking $33k and a $299 lease are within budget and that $37k and $329 are not.

This is not so much a car for people on this forum, it's the numbers shoppers and the people who would consider the IS250, ATS 2.5, A4 BASE CVT etc.

how can you lease a base, $37k 328 for $329 a month, unless you are making a huge cap cost reduction?

The 328 is a $40k car.

This 320 is a $33,455 car, INCLUDING the $900 destination fee, with bluetooth std.....

Paying $1,000 over invoice will put this in Toyota Camry land, and will render the 3 series far more "less special" than it already is.

Literally anybody could afford a $30k out the door stripper, brand new real deal BMW.

Originally Posted by JoeFromPA

Now maybe it's just me, but the pictures of the interior of the 320i look like lower quality interior materials.

This makes me wonder if BMW is going to strip the 3-series a bit beyond just a detuned n26. Will it have less sound deadening, cheaper materials, etc. (i.e. the 1-series)

It's just you. Materials will be exactly the same. They build these cars on the same production line.

Originally Posted by beden1

It probably will have what Mercedes refers to "Text" seat surfaces (like vinyl). That holds up well and usually looks very good.

it has the exact same leatherette as in the other models, and can be ordered with Dakota leather as an option.

Can't imagine there would be less 'sound proofing' etc....comes off the same line, same body shell, same warranty, same prepaid maintenance, etc.

Just different engine. Dashboard, doors, everything should be identical other than engine and of course options.

Could order one of these with some wheels, xenons, manual transmission at $1k over invoice makes this competitive with a loaded Honda Accord.

But you still get the cachet, maintenance, service and dealership experience.

Originally Posted by pilotman

how can you lease a base, $37k 328 for $329 a month, unless you are making a huge cap cost reduction?

The 328 is a $40k car.

This 320 is a $33,455 car, INCLUDING the $900 destination fee, with bluetooth std.....

Paying $1,000 over invoice will put this in Toyota Camry land, and will render the 3 series far more "less special" than it already is.

Literally anybody could afford a $30k out the door stripper, brand new real deal BMW.

We have the NY Times here, as well as dealer adverts in the tri-state area that all have base-no line cars with a couple of options with $40-42k MSRPs for $329 a month.

Originally Posted by beden1

It probably will have what Mercedes refers to "Text" seat surfaces (like vinyl). That holds up well and usually looks very good.

That's MBTex. Their version of leatherette. Much more widely used. Virtually impossible to get a C Class with actual leather without a custom order. They use it extensively in the E Class and their SUVs, too. And because of the name, MBTex, most Merc buyers don't even know they don't have leather. Heck, I even had one of their product specialists insist to me that MBTex was some special kind of leather for Texas cars (at a Texas car show).

Originally Posted by Jamesonsviggen

We have the NY Times here, as well as dealer adverts in the tri-state area that all have base-no line cars with a couple of options with $40-42k MSRPs for $329 a month.

true, but with a substantial cap cost reduction, and that's only 10,000 miles a year, hardly a good deal....run a similar deal on a $33,000 car instead of a $42,000 car and it will be $239 a month....

to drive a BMW....


$329*/month for 36 months. $1,500 Lease/APR Credit and $750 Loyalty Cash included in payment.




Vehicle Registered outside N.Y.
• $329 First months payment
• $2,750 Down payment
• $0 Security Deposit
• $725 Acquisition fee
• $3,804 Cash due at signing




Vehicle Registered in N.Y.
• $329 First months payment
• $2,750 Down payment
• $0 Security deposit
• $725 Acquisition fee
• $3,804 Cash due at signing

Originally Posted by pilotman

true, but with a substantial cap cost reduction, and that's only 10,000 miles a year, hardly a good deal....run a similar deal on a $33,000 car instead of a $42,000 car and it will be $279 a month....

to drive a BMW....


$329*/month for 36 months. $1,500 Lease/APR Credit and $750 Loyalty Cash included in payment.




Vehicle Registered outside N.Y.
• $329 First months payment
• $2,750 Down payment
• $0 Security Deposit
• $725 Acquisition fee
• $3,804 Cash due at signing




Vehicle Registered in N.Y.
• $329 First months payment
• $2,750 Down payment
• $0 Security deposit
• $725 Acquisition fee
• $3,804 Cash due at signing

I made no aspersions to it being a good deal. But fact is, the ATS and G27 make a good case for themselves with lower starting prices and leases at $299 a month. BMW since the launch of the F30 bumped the price by over $1000 and now again another $350. The 320 allows to snag numbers buyers.

Originally Posted by m8o

With owners of 328i often seeing hiway mpgs in the low to mid (if not high) 30s, why would anyone be thinking about this?

Reality Check:

While Bimmerfest would lead you to believe that the roads are filled with 28 year old 335i M-Sport owners in their Estoril Blue F30's, the real world is something very different.

The typical 3 Series driver is a 48 year old. She's 50% female. 60% of them are leasing. 90% are driving vehicles without Sport line or sport anything. 80% are 328i's. And with the average at 48 years old, for every 29 year old male enthusiast there's a 75 year old female using the car to hit the beauty salon.

So the reason "why would anyone be thinking about this" is because the typical 3 Series driver has to ditch important options for the sake of hitting a monthly budget. You see a $349 car advertised on TV. You come in. You add a few options. Suddenly you're at $479. Then you're out the door, off to Audi and off to Acura.

The one thing BMW won't let you trade out of in their most affordable Sedan is the powerplant. The 328i is a beast, extremely powerful. Some might say it's overkill. Certainly a 75 year old female wouldn't notice if you trimmed off 50 HP, might even appreciate it. Oh, and she can save $4,000? And then add the Premium package or the Technology package? Touchdown.

BJ

Originally Posted by Jamesonsviggen

First, the 328 can get very close to G37 performance, not to be a magazine racer but this does give a good foundation-much closer than the G25:

http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/...an_comparison/


http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/...take-road-test

So the 328 is within a couple tenths of the G37, but seconds faster in most measures compared to the G25.


Don't forget, the ATS brags about the lower starting price thanks to the 2.5L. So now BMW gets to bring the 320 in which is as fast or faster at the same price. The 320 is already sold in other countries so it's kind of a no brainer to bring it here. It's just a detuned N20.

Exactly, close but not quite, that's where 335 closes the gap and comes on top.
Infiniti answer is the new IPL that will feature a turbocharged V6 powerplant - I don't think they target the M market with that but rather 335 market.

Originally Posted by JoeFromPA

Now maybe it's just me, but the pictures of the interior of the 320i look like lower quality interior materials.

This makes me wonder if BMW is going to strip the 3-series a bit beyond just a detuned n26. Will it have less sound deadening, cheaper materials, etc. (i.e. the 1-series)

It does look cheap in the shots, however when I was in Germany this past fall I was put in a 1-series rental with cloth upholstery, in 2009 I rented a 318d that had a cloth upholstery.

Originally Posted by lqaddict

Exactly, close but not quite, that's where 335 closes the gap and comes on top.
Infiniti answer is the new IPL that will feature a turbocharged V6 powerplant - I don't think they target the M market with that but rather 335 market.

The interesting thing is, the gap between the 328 and G37 is SMALLER than the gap between the 328 and the 335. So that says to me the 328 has a pretty convincing engine for a base drivetrain. The G25 was DOA.

Hope this delivers outstanding gas milage because by the time you select a couple packages and two or three options you're looking the price of a 328i

Originally Posted by Jamesonsviggen

The interesting thing is, the gap between the 328 and G37 is SMALLER than the gap between the 328 and the 335. So that says to me the 328 has a pretty convincing engine for a base drivetrain. The G25 was DOA.

I am not arguing that, the 2009 comparison you posted is from ... well 2009.
It will be interesting to see what BMW will do for upcoming 4-series and future 3-series.
Anyway, looking farther it appears that IPL will target the M crowd if it is to be believed a 3.7 twin-turbo V6 with 530HP is going to be placed in its heart - that's the GT-R territory, and they will directly compete with that, M division, AMG, etc.

Originally Posted by Vector Pilot

Hope this delivers outstanding gas milage because by the time you select a couple packages and two or three options you're looking the price of a 328i

huh?? No matter what you add to it it will be $4,000 less than an equivalently equipped 328.

Originally Posted by lqaddict

I am not arguing that, the 2009 comparison you posted is from ... well 2009.
It will be interesting to see what BMW will do for upcoming 4-series and future 3-series.
Anyway, looking farther it appears that IPL will target the M crowd if it is to be believed a 3.7 twin-turbo V6 with 530HP is going to be placed in its heart - that's the GT-R territory, and they will directly compete with that, M division, AMG, etc.

I had the 2009 test as it was the latest one found for the G37- they really have not done anything to the G aside from the upgraded automatic. The latest test was against the F30 but it was the G25 which came in 7th while the F30 328 came in first.

As of now, the IPL is overpriced and offers no real power gains. Lets hope the IPL is like you said, a de-tuned GTR-maybe even with a manual trans offered!


A couple of my favorite cars in my ownership history were Nissan products('95 300ZX and '89 Maxima SE 5mt) so I always hope for good cars out of them.

Originally Posted by tturedraider

That's MBTex. Their version of leatherette. Much more widely used. Virtually impossible to get a C Class with actual leather without a custom order. They use it extensively in the E Class and their SUVs, too. And because of the name, MBTex, most Merc buyers don't even know they don't have leather. Heck, I even had one if their product specialists insist to me the MBTex was some special kind of leather for Texas cars (at a Texas car show).

That's it. We had MBTex in our 1979 MB 300D and it wore like iron. The only times when I wished we had leather was during the summer months when I would sweat driving down to the NJ Shore on the weekends. I ended up putting fitted genuine sheepskin covers on the front seats and they did the job perfectly.

My 1979 320i had material seats that also held up extremely well.

Originally Posted by boltjaM3s

Reality Check:

While Bimmerfest would lead you to believe that the roads are filled with 28 year old 335i M-Sport owners in their Estoril Blue F30's, the real world is something very different.

The typical 3 Series driver is a 48 year old. She's 50% female. 60% of them are leasing. 90% are driving vehicles without Sport line or sport anything. 80% are 328i's. And with the average at 48 years old, for every 29 year old male enthusiast there's a 75 year old female using the car to hit the beauty salon.

So the reason "why would anyone be thinking about this" is because the typical 3 Series driver has to ditch important options for the sake of hitting a monthly budget. You see a $349 car advertised on TV. You come in. You add a few options. Suddenly you're at $479. Then you're out the door, off to Audi and off to Acura.

The one thing BMW won't let you trade out of in their most affordable Sedan is the powerplant. The 328i is a beast, extremely powerful. Some might say it's overkill. Certainly a 75 year old female wouldn't notice if you trimmed off 50 HP, might even appreciate it. Oh, and she can save $4,000? And then add the Premium package or the Technology package? Touchdown.

BJ

I think 320i is here to pull that 48 average age down. Most younger buyers into job market not too long ago cannot afford the payment on a $40k+ 3 series, BMW does not want to lose out to the competitions in that demographic of 20 to 30 year-olds.

The 320i looks no different than the 328i or 335i. Very soon BJ you need to increase the size of your L328i badge, or risk being laughed at by new college grads.

Originally Posted by beden1

That's it. We had MBTex in our 1979 MB 300D and it wore like iron. The only times when I wished we had leather was during the summer months when I would sweat driving down to the NJ Shore on the weekends. I ended up putting fitted genuine sheepskin covers on the front seats and they did the job perfectly.

My 1979 320i had material seats that also held up extremely well.

MBTex is just a TM'd term for their vinyl, a name that is likely only a few years old. VW is called V-Tex.

Some other euro companies name their vinyl too. Volvo I think even has a marketing name for their cloth lol.

This is good news, it could mean BMW is moving the US more like Europe where you get lots of choice.

Anyone know what they took out to save $4000? Can't be just a detune.

Originally Posted by Chris90

This is good news, it could mean BMW is moving the US more like Europe where you get lots of choice.

Anyone know what they took out to save $4000? Can't be just a detune.

I think I read somewhere smaller brakes, but that may be in other countries. I also see the exhaust is different.

Originally Posted by Jamesonsviggen

MBTex is just a TM'd term for their vinyl, a name that is likely only a few years old. VW is called V-Tex.

Some other euro companies name their vinyl too. Volvo I think even has a marketing name for their cloth lol.

You had corrected me earlier, but we used to refer to Mercedes vinyl as Text. Regardless of what is was or is called, it wore very well.

Originally Posted by Vector Pilot

Hope this delivers outstanding gas milage because by the time you select a couple packages and two or three options you're looking the price of a 328i

Yeah, but it'd be a 328i WITHOUT a couple packages and two or three options.