2012 BMW 328i Sedan First Drive: For Those Who Have to Have It All

Are you ready for a BMW 3-series capable of automatic hands-off parallel parking? A Bimmer smart enough to teach you hypermiling, one equipped with enough onboard cameras to scout locations for Warner Brothers? Welcome to the 2012 328i, BMW’s stab at charming the More Generation.

Test-driving the new 3-series this week in Spain revealed a shuffle of BMW’s priority deck. The current E90 3-series earned its respect and compact-sports-sedan supremacy with a double dose of driving fun backed up by laudable performance credentials. With the sixth-generation 3-series, BMW is reaching beyond mere dynamic attributes to stir comfort, convenience, and far higher efficiency into the mix. To appeal to those demanding everything from their daily driver—that “we deserve more” crowd—the new F30 is slightly larger inside and out and loaded with features hard-core drivers—the “we love our BMWs” set—never imagined.

The fifth-gen 3-series greeted its driver with a secret handshake: high-effort steering that bends the car smartly into every corner with total authority over body motion. The 2012 edition that arrives in February says “Have a nice day” with normal steering effort and a ride that glosses over pavement flaws the way cream cheese fills bagel crevices. Impact harshness is significantly reduced. But with more rubber between you and the road, the cornering response isn’t quite as crisp and hints of roll, heave, and pitch occasionally fluster the equilibrium. Adjusted to its most aggressive setting, the F30’s optional adaptive suspension provides less body control than outgoing E90 models.

Six Becomes Four (But There’s Still a Six, Too)

For almost 20 years, the 3-series faithful have enjoyed the spellbinding whir of inline-six engines that were seemingly sent from on high. While the 335i carries on with a single-turbo 3.0-liter six pumping out a handy 300 hp and 300 lb-ft of torque, there’s a new kid on the engine block with a point to prove. BMW’s new N20 2.0-liter four-cylinder powering the 328i sounds like a throwback to simpler times but that impression vanishes the first time its twin-scroll turbo pumps up 18.9 psi of boost and output swells to 240 horsepower at 5000 rpm. What this engine lacks in cylinder-count prestige, it more than makes up for with what may be a world record for vigor per cubic centimeter.

Teamed with a ZF eight-speed automatic (the only powertrain combo available for driving on our trip to Barcelona), the N20 purrs while cruising, then snaps to attention when the throttle is pressed. By 2000 rpm, it’s already high on torque; by 4000, it’s growling like a baby grizzly roused from hibernation; and by 6000 rpm, it’s threatening to rip a hole through the 7000-rpm (redline) ceiling. Thanks to balance shafts and a dual-mass flywheel, this engine never gets the shakes or stammers and it’s as genteel as a six when soft pedaled. A two-mode muffler corks the din during cruising, and then releases a rousing howl to accompany the stampede. While EPA ratings aren’t final, we’re expecting that the 328i’s highway mileage will reach the high 30s with the eight-speed automatic and that the combined rating might also crack the 30-mpg barrier. Those who pick the six-speed manual transmission will have to bear the loss of a couple of miles per gallon.

BMW claims the new four-cylinder is nearly as quick on its feet as the outgoing naturally aspirated six. That means a 0-to-60-mph run of about 5.7 seconds with the stick shift and 5.9 with the automatic. BMW rates the 335i’s 0–60 capability at 5.4 seconds with either gearbox.

Stiffer Structure, Duller Responses

This alacrity is partially due to the fact that BMW engineers avoided piling on weight in spite of the 2.0-inch wheelbase stretch and the 3.7-inch gain in overall length. To counteract the negative influence of more suspension rubber, the fully steel unibody’s torsional stiffness is a commendable 30-percent higher. While the suspension systems are carry-over in design—struts in front, multilink in back—every component has been fiddled with in some way to suit the new mission.

In addition to the slightly duller turn-in agility, we detected a brake pedal that’s a touch softer underfoot. Quicker stops require a mix of pedal pressure and travel in contrast to the mainly pressure-sensitive response provided by the E90’s setup. The 335i upgrades the 328i’s floating front brake calipers to more-rigid fixed four-piston calipers, which may erase this gripe.

Two power-assisted rack-and-pinion steering systems are offered. Base equipment is the speed-sensitive Servotronic arrangement that’s been available in the 3-series for ages. Replacing the evil Active Steering option, which had the bad habit of changing its ratio at precisely the wrong moment, there’s a new Variable Sports Steering option. Using rack teeth cut at different helix angles, this gear provides a ratio of 14.5:1 on center for poised straight-line stability and control, with a quicker 11.1:1 ratio at the extremes of steering lock to expedite parking maneuvers. An electric motor connected to the rack through a toothed rubber belt provides power assist proportional to both vehicle speed and the tempo of the driver’s steering commands. Variable Sports Steering trims the Servotronic’s 2.7 turns lock-to-lock down to a more wieldy 2.2 turns. Steering feedback is comparable to the outgoing 3-series in spite of the noticeable reduction in effort. The new steering system’s quicker ratios compensate nicely for the loss of response that—at least theoretically—accompanies any wheelbase increase.

VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, rear-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door sedan

ESTIMATED BASE PRICE: $36,000

ENGINES: turbocharged and intercooled DOHC 16-valve inline-4, aluminum block and head, direct fuel injection

DISPLACEMENT: 122 cu in, 1997 cc
Power: 240 hp @ 5000 rpm
Torque: 260 lb-ft @ 1250 rpm

TRANSMISSIONS: 6-speed manual, 8-speed automatic with manual shifting mode

DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 110.6 in
Length: 182.5 in
Width: 71.3 in Height: 56.3 in
Curb weight (C/D est): 3500 lb PERFORMANCE (C/D EST):
Zero to 60 mph: 5.9 sec
Standing ¼-mile: 14.6 sec
Top speed (governor limited): 130 mph

FUEL ECONOMY (C/D EST):
EPA city/highway driving: 21/32 mpg

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2012 Honda Civic Si Sedan Tested: 0 to 60 in 6.1 Seconds

The Honda Civic is now in its ninth generation; the Si, its seventh. The Si sedan, however, is in just its second. With almost two extra inches of length and wheelbase, but only 38 additional pounds (2902 vs. 2864), the Si sedan is very faithful to the coupe experience. Both feature a 2.4-liter four-cylinder pumping out 201 hp and 170 lb-ft of torque. In both cars, that engine is mated to a delightful, short-throw shifter that we could row all day long.

And row we did. Since peak horsepower doesn’t arrive until the 7000-rpm redline, we found ourselves constantly winding out the engine. Pushing a highly stressed four-cylinder to a screaming redline is the point of choosing the Si in the first place. At least there is some low-end torque, unlike Si models of yore. Whereas its predecessor’s 2.0-liter made only 139 lb-ft at a sky-high 6000 rpm—before screaming all the way to 8000 rpm—the new Si’s 2.4-liter inline-four makes 170 lb-ft at a much more accessible 4400 rpm, but tops out a far-less-thrilling 1000 rpm lower.

Farewell rpm, Hello Speed

It seems to be a fair trade-off: At 6.1 seconds, it’s quicker than the five-door VW GTI to 60, and beats the old Si sedan by more than half a second. The Si coupe, too, lands in the losers column with its 6.3-second sprint. The quarter-mile flashes by in 14.7 seconds at 97 mph, neck and neck with the GTI. Those numbers are surprisingly good considering the relative paucity of torque, and they make us wonder what the Si could do if, like most if its competitors—including the GTI, MazdaSpeed 3, and Subaru WRX—it had a turbocharger.

Hot-shoeing is a sure-footed affair, thanks to a limited-slip differential and virtually no torque steer. The Civic circles the skidpad at 0.88 g, compared with a best of 0.93 for the GTI. As for fuel economy (this is a budget-minded car, after all), the EPA promises 22 mpg in the city and 31 on the highway. We achieved 23 mpg in a pretty even mix of city and highway driving.

Mature and Practical Exuberance

If opting for the Si allows you to have more fun than you would in a lesser Civic, opting for the Si sedan allows you to do so without the compromises of the coupe—specifically, its small, difficult-to-access rear seat and narrow trunk aperture. Besides offering easier rear-seat ingress/egress, the sedan’s 1.9-inch stretch in wheelbase and 1.5-inch-higher roof afford rear passengers nearly two more inches of headroom, 5.4 inches of extra legroom, 1.1 inches more shoulder room, and enough space for a third seatbelt. Cargo volume is up by almost a cube, to 12.5 cubic feet, and a wider trunk opening makes it more accessible.

The sedan’s interior features the same red stitching and race-car-style shift lights as the coupe’s. Unfortunately, our gripes about overwrought displays and awful materials in the two-door apply here too. But then there’s price: At a base price of $23,175 ($24,675 with navi), it costs nearly $1500 less than the cheapest Speed 3 and undercuts the GTI five-door by about $2000. In this class, money matters, and in that regard, the Honda has a compelling case.

VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, front-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door sedan

PRICE AS TESTED: $24,675 (base price: $23,175)

ENGINE TYPE: DOHC 16-valve inline-4, aluminum block and head, port fuel injection

Displacement: 144 cu in, 2354 cc
Power: 201 hp @ 7000 rpm
Torque: 170 lb-ft @ 4400 rpm

TRANSMISSION: 6-speed manual

DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 105.1 in
Length: 177.3 in
Width: 69.0 in Height: 56.5 in
Curb weight: 2902 lbC/D TEST RESULTS:
Zero to 60 mph: 6.1 sec
Zero to 100 mph: 15.7 sec
Street start, 5–60 mph: 6.4 sec
Top gear, 30–50 mph: 8.8 sec
Top gear, 50–70 mph: 8.4 sec
Standing ¼-mile: 14.7 sec @ 97 mph
Top speed (governor limited): 136 mph
Braking, 70–0 mph: 170 ft
Roadholding, 300-ft-dia skidpad: 0.88 g

FUEL ECONOMY:
EPA city/highway driving: 22/31 mpg
C/D observed: 23 mpg

View Photo Gallery PHOTOS (19)

Joyous shifter, tidy body control, usable and accessible rear quarters.

Cacophonous road noise, could use more torque, even less sexy than the coupe.

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