2024 BMW 3 Series

If we were aliens observing this world and sending our findings back to our highly advanced civilization many light years away, we would cite the BMW 3 Series as a prime example of the luxury compact sedan. There are some great cars in this class, but the 3 Series remains the benchmark.

Things like power, fuel efficiency, cabin space, interior design, and technology are all areas where the 3 Series makes a strong showing. Over seven generations (this one launched for the 2019 model year), the 3 Series has flown the BMW flag as an excellent ambassador for the company’s talents. The 2024 3 Series holds the standard high.

Following last year’s styling revisions and tech upgrades, there are no significant changes to the 3 Series for this trip around the sun.

To compare, the Mercedes-Benz C-Class starts at a price similar to the 3 Series. The Audi A4, Acura TLX, Alfa Romeo Giulia, Lexus IS, and Genesis G70 all come in slightly under.

Before buying a new 3 Series luxury sedan, check the Kelley Blue Book Fair Purchase Price to know what you should be paying. The Asian contenders have the strongest resale values. The 3 Series is a little below average in this respect.

The 2024 330i is propelled by 255 horsepower from a turbocharged 4-cylinder engine. That’s a healthy amount for a base model. Accelerating from a standstill, the 330i can hit 60 mph in 5.6 seconds, one of the quickest cars in its class. Shave off a couple of tenths with the extra traction of all-wheel drive.

We’ve found that the 3 Series is as comfortable as ever (well, except for that little middle spot in the back), but the driver’s seat is most definitely the place to be in any variant.

This is where the otherwise smooth suspension starts to impart the sensations of poise and nimbleness, where the engine’s responses to throttle inputs become clearer. The higher the horsepower, the greater the thrills. But we think even the 330i is enjoyable and engaging.

At the other end of this tempting spectrum, the M3 has always been much more than a fast 3 Series. In our opinion, it’s one of the finest creations a car company has ever built. Anyone who loves driving should consider owning one at least once in their life.

We’ve spent hundreds of hours driving and researching this generation of compact luxury cars, including the 3 Series.

Fuel Economy

The 330i with rear-wheel drive achieves 29 combined mpg (25 city, 34 highway). All-wheel drive changes those figures to 27 combined mpg (24 city, 33 highway). We’re impressed by this engine’s balance of power and efficiency, one of the best in this class.

Starting with a full battery charge, the 330e plug-in hybrid can travel about 20 miles on (mostly) electricity, returning the equivalent of 73 mpg in mixed city-highway driving (68 MPGe with all-wheel drive). When all that battery power has been used up, the 330e operates as a traditional gas-electric hybrid, delivering 28 mpg (25 mpg with AWD).

The M340i manages 26 combined mpg (23 city, 31 highway), even with xDrive in the picture. The M3 runs to 19 mpg combined (16 city, 23 highway) or 18 combined mpg (16 city, 22 highway) if it’s an M3 Competition xDrive model.

Every engine in the 2024 3 Series range requires premium gasoline.

The quality of materials and how they’ve been put together is at the usual top-notch BMW level. The impressive Curved Display is a standard feature in every 2024 3 Series. It’s a frameless glass-covered unit housing a 12.3-inch driver information screen and an expansive 14.9-inch touchscreen for the infotainment system, each with high-resolution graphics.

Although the 3 Series falls into the category of compact luxury sedan, each generation has been bigger than the one before. So, the 2024 3 Series is relatively spacious. Rear legroom is 35.2 inches, pretty much as good as anything in this class. Behind the 40/20/40-split folding rear seats, trunk space measures a generous 17 cubic feet. The 330e drops to 13.2 cubic feet of trunk area because of its hybrid battery.

BMW has kept the 3 Series a little more conservative than the closely related 4 Series. We think that’s probably a good call. All the lines and proportions seem to work. White and black are the only no-extra-cost colors. Premium paint choices are either $650 or $1,500. The standard wheels are 18-inch alloys. The M3 cars sit nice and low on their suspensions, wearing extra aerodynamic appendages. They also have carbon fiber roofs that lower the center of gravity and save weight (the enemy of performance).

Engines
All the tech, ergonomics, suspension tuning, and quality materials wouldn’t mean as much if these elements weren’t backed up by engines that didn’t excite. BMW’s expertise in this area is considerable, culminating in the breathtaking 503-horsepower inline 6-cylinder engine that powers the M3 Competition model. The base engine is also fuel-efficient.

Infotainment system
The 3 Series comes with the current iteration of BMW’s well-liked system, iDrive 8. The standard navigation system includes BMW Maps, and the voice command feature can also obey spoken requests to open (or close) the sunroof. Drivers can transfer their profiles to other contemporary BMWs because all the relevant information is stored remotely in the cloud.

All-wheel drive
A popular option with 3 Series buyers, all-wheel drive helps apply the power to the road and provides confidence in tricky conditions.

Driving Assistance packages
Some more affordable rivals have things like blind-spot monitoring as standard, so we’re obliged to recommend spending extra on the Driving Assistance package to acquire that, lane-departure warning, and parking sensors. The pricier Driving Assistance Professional package adds adaptive cruise control and a partial self-driving function in traffic.

Parking Assistant
As well as steering the 3 Series into and out of parking spaces, this optional bundle also includes automatic emergency braking, and a 360-degree camera system.

Harman Kardon audio
This optional surround-sound system makes the whole 3 Series experience even more luxurious.

Kicking off the array of powertrains in the 2024 3 Series is a turbocharged 2.0-liter 4-cylinder engine propelling the rear-wheel-drive (RWD) 330i and its all-wheel-drive (AWD) counterpart, the 330i xDrive. Output is 255 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque through an 8-speed automatic transmission.

The 2024 330e is a plug-in hybrid with either RWD or AWD (the xDrive version). It also uses a turbocharged 2.0-liter 4-cylinder engine and an 8-speed automatic transmission but adds an electric motor energized by a lithium-ion battery. Total output is 288 horsepower and 310 lb-ft of torque.

One of BMW’s famed inline-6 engines is in the M340i, displacing three liters and turbocharged to produce 382 horsepower and 369 lb-ft of torque. A 48-volt mild hybrid system also enhances it to help the engine produce its peak power quicker and smooth out the efficiency-enhancing engine stop-restart function.

Again, there’s an 8-speed automatic transmission on board, with rear-wheel drive as standard and all-wheel drive available as an option.

It has the same displacement and number of cylinders in the same configuration, but the M3 does without any electric assistance. Instead, it increases output to 473 horsepower and 406 lb-ft of torque. Or in the case of the M3 Competition: 503 horsepower and 479 lb-ft of torque.

The regular M3 comes with a 6-speed manual transmission and is rear-wheel-drive exclusively. The Competition has the automatic and is the only M3 to offer xDrive — M-tuned, of course.

4-Year/50,000-Mile Warranty

BMW’s new vehicle and powertrain warranties last four years or 50,000 miles, whichever happens first. This is typical among European luxury car marques. Roadside assistance is included for that period, only with unlimited mileage. Scheduled maintenance is free for three years or 36,000 miles, which is not so typical. The 330e’s hybrid battery is covered for eight years or 80,000 miles.

Safety Ratings

Oddly, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) doesn’t give the 3 Series a Top Safety Pick rating, even though it performed superbly in the institute’s tests. The car earned a maximum 5-star overall score from National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Standard driver aids are a little sparse, not much more than forward collision warning with automatic emergency braking, plus automatic high beams.