BMW has just updated its most important car – the 2025 BMW 3 Series. The G20 has been around since 2019, which isn’t that long ago but gives you an idea as to just how competitive this area of the market is. They’ve given it an LCI update already, and now they are doing it again.
There are a few things that change in a big way.
Meet the 2025 BMW 3 Series
Chassis tweaks! I thought that would be a good thing, but then I read what actually changed:
- Stiffer chassis mounts connecting the dampers to the body. They say it helps to refine the ride quality.
- Steering effort in Comfort mode is now lighter. Huh?
If this were April Fools, I’d swear it was a joke. Who’s asking for even lighter steering in these cars?!
Outside, you get new 19-inch wheels on the 330i (oh, boy!), and two new colors in Fire Red Metallic and Arctic Race Blue Metallic. Never hurts to have another blue. Inside, you get iDrive 8.5, with over-the-air updates, and a flat-bottom steering wheel that isn’t quite as nice as what’s in the M4.
But the big change is reserved for the M340i. You now get four more horsepowers and 29 more pound-feet of torque, thanks to a revised 48-volt hybrid system.
About that – I have it in my X3 M40i, and I honestly don’t know what the hell it does. Well, I do – it smooths out the power in between shifts so there’s less of a drop-off between gears. Seems to work nicely, but I’ve never driven a B58 without one, so I suppose more is better in this case.
The new M340i now puts out 386 horsepower and 398 lb-ft! I’m not sure if it can beat a base M3, but it’ll be close.
Meet the 2025 BMW M3
No surprises here, it’s a carbon copy of the BMW M4’s updates:
- xDrive models now get 523 horsepower. Lesser models remain the same.
- New headlights
- iDrive 8.5
- New steering wheel with a flat bottom. Perhaps I’d have left mine alone.
- Torque curve is revised – you can have it all from 2750 to 5730 RPM, as oppose to the gradual build up of the original.
- Those delicious silver 825M wheels
- Comp cars get silver trim around their badges. Okay.
- A price increase of $180. Honestly shocked it’s so low. xDrive raises by $1,180 – that’s more like it.
- M3 CS – dead.
- It’s shown in Frozen Tampa Bay Green, so perhaps it’ll be a special “Individual-lite” color available.
That about sums it up. What’s missing? How about new, cool CSL inspired taillights – the original ones remain.
What will happen to the 3 Series?
I’m not sure what BMW is going to do for what remains its most important car. It’s rare for them to update a car twice, but it’s rumored that the G20 3 Series will need to last until around 2028.
That’s due to BMW being unsure about what direction to take the car (all-electric, a combination, etc) – but they know that when developing a platform, leaving room for two powertrains is a huge disadvantage.
The 5 Series knows what I mean.
My advice to you is simple. The regular 3 Series is probably the best it’s ever been, while the M3 remains a compelling sports sedan that takes the 3 Series to supercar levels of performance (minus the driver engagement). There’s still time to grab one.
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