BMW's redesigned 3-Series is almost here.
The new sport sedan recently entered the pre-production stage at BMW's main plant in Dingolfing, Germany, and the automaker has given us a glimpse at the new design in a video highlighting some of the assembly steps.
The new 3-Series is due out late this year as a 2019 model and will be followed shortly by the more practical Sport Wagon and high-performance M3.
2019 BMW 3-Series prototype testing on the Nürburgring
Clearly the styling was always going to be evolutionary but it's interesting to see some of the modern touches being introduced, especially for the lights. There's also a glimpse of the interior with the new digital instrument cluster clearly in view.
BMW engineers have worked hard to ensure the car, a G20 to fans, sets the new standard in sport sedan qualities such as ride and handling. Key components like the suspension, steering and brakes are significantly different to what was used in the outgoing model. The car also rides lower and is more rigid thanks to its CLAR modular platform that debuted in the 2016 7-Series.
In terms of powertrains, just one unit has been confirmed so far: an inline-4 that BMW says will be its most powerful four-cylinder yet, meaning more than the 248 horsepower the outgoing 330i's inline-4 generates. Despite the increase in power, the engine's fuel consumption will be around 5.0 percent lower, thanks mostly to tuning of the new 3-Series' standard eight-speed automatic transmission.
