Caraganza First Drive Review 2023 BMW 330i: A Cheeseburger with Sriracha Sauce

I guess I’m the weird one in my family. This revelation, of course, isn’t surprising to those who consider me family (nor most of my friends I reckon), but I tend to be a little bit on the conservative side; solid-colored ties; plain oatmeal, and cheeseburgers with only American cheese and little else: mustard, ketchup, pickle (dill chips only please), and if I’m feeling edgy a slice of bacon once in a while. But that’s pretty much it.

Others in my family don’t subscribe to this; my daughter can’t eat a cheeseburger unless the cheese is something that can’t easily be pronounced in English, along with copious amounts of mushrooms, mayonnaise, a dab of something called “sriracha sauce”, and (shudder), relish.

This makes it all the weirder that I like my cars, unlike my cheeseburgers, fully loaded. In fact, I guess I’ve become quite the spoiled brat in that regard because I’ve grown so accustomed to getting pampered by the car companies who contribute to the press fleets. This ends in me getting a top-of-the-line model of whatever vehicle they want reviewed; this further leads to me spending (usually) a week driving around with all manner of nice stuff. A plain cheeseburger just won’t do, it must be fully loaded when it comes to 4 wheels, or it just won’t do.

That would explain my initial sort of disappointment when BMW sent me a 2023 330i for a recent week. When it comes to BMWs I am used to the top tier, M designated cruisers. Ones that showcase everything BMW has to offer. The 2023 330i was, gasp, the base model; no M designation, no high-end stuff like M Carbon bucket seats and M Drive Professional package with an onboard drift analyzer and lap timer like the M4 I had last year.

Turned out, that was just fine.

For 2023 the 3 series got a nice makeover with some (sorely needed in my opinion), interior updates including a new all-digital dashboard with a curved glass unit that houses a 12.3-inch digital gauge cluster and 14.9-inch infotainment screen, along with slimmer vents and fewer buttons. Outside the headlights were given a cleaner look and the grille and bumpers were updated and there’s new wheel designs.

The 2023 BMW 3 Series sedan lineup is comprised of the 330i, 330e and M340i. Each comes as a rear-wheel drive but can be had as an all-wheel (xDrive) model.

Well then, my tester was the base model 330i, so I guess I’d just have to suffer through the week. Okay, on the outside it looks nice; new headlights are slimmer like the vents on the interior. And the seats in that new interior are comfortable, the iDrive control knob is still in the same place, the 12.3-inch digital gauge cluster seems like you can set it up pretty much any way you want, and that 14.9-inch central touchscreen seems to be much more responsive. Welp let’s see how the base turbocharged four-cylinder engine with 255 horsepower and 294 lb.-ft of torque (as opposed to the 3.0-liter inline-six with a 48-volt hybrid system putting out 381 horses on the M) and 369 lb.-ft of torque mated to the eight-speed automatic transmission does on the road.

Okay, seems fine in “Comfort” mode, but I wonder about “Sport”? Holy sh-t, that sure seems to turn it up a notch, or two, or three. And brakes seemingly respond on the spot. Very nice.

I discovered another nice feature while out running errands. I needed to go to a shipping store I’ve used many times through the years. When I arrived, there was now a clothing store in its place. Well, shoot. The 330i has navigation standard, so I decided to give it a try, or a shout in this case. Using the voice feature I asked, “where is the nearest store where I can get something shipped?” and to my pleasant surprise I was directed to the place where my old friends had moved. So, I guess the speech recognition has had a bit of an upgrade.

When I got home, I pulled out the Moroney sheet (normally the sticker you see attached to the window of a new car) and saw that my 330i “base” model had the M Sport and Dynamic Handling Packages which includes M Sport suspension, and the M Sport brakes (that explains the ‘holy sh-t moments), as well as the great looking Open Port Fine Wood Oak Grain trim on the inside, along with the Premium Package which explained the Heads-up display, the lumbar support in the sport seats, and the heated steering wheel and front seats.

In other words, my plain-ish cheeseburger had been loaded with all kinds of stuff, and I loved it.  There was no “M” badging, no onboard drift analyzer and lap timer, just a good looking 4-door sedan that is fun to drive and is affordable as BMWs go ($52,890 MSRP). In contrast I had the 230i last year, and while it was good (and cheaper at $48,945), that was a coupe; the extra two doors on this 300i, along with the options would be a much better choice, at least for my world.

Perhaps all this explains why since its debut in 1976 the BMW 3 series has been BMW’s best-selling vehicle ever.  I know it quickly vaulted higher up on my favorite BMW list.

I still won’t be putting sriracha sauce on my cheeseburger; that, my friends, is where I draw the line.

The 2023 BMW 330i
MSRP: $42,300
MSRP (as tested with Dynamic Handling, M Sport, and Premium Packages): $52,980
Engine: 2.0-liter turbocharged I4, 255 horsepower @ 5,000 rpm, 295 lb.-ft torque @ 1,550 rpm
Transmission: 8-speed shiftable automatic
Fuel Mileage (EPA): 25 city, 34 highway, 29 combined
Fuel Mileage (as tested mixed conditions): 30 mpg
Curb weight: 3,536 lbs.

Exterior Dimensions
Length: 185.9 in.
Overall width with mirrors: 81.4 in.
Overall width without mirrors: 71.9 in.
Height: 56.8 in.
Wheelbase: 112.2 in.
Ground clearance: 5.7 in.

Interior Dimensions
Front head room: 38.7 in.
Front leg room: 42.0 in.
Front shoulder room: 56.0 in.
Rear head room: 37.6 in.
Rear leg room: 35.2 in.
Rear shoulder room: 54.6 in.
Cargo capacity, all seats in place 13.0 cu.ft.

Warranty
Basic: 4 yr./ 50,000 mi.
Drivetrain: 4 yr./ 50,000 mi.
Rust: 12 yr./ unlimited mi.
Roadside: 4 yr./ unlimited mi.

 

Greg Engle

Comments

comments