All Indicators Show The Next 3-Series Is Basically A Smaller 5. Does That Disappoint You?

They are following the Audi approach to design

Funny how all the Audi fans are first to comment. Insecure much? What ever it looks like it will be the best in class.

Are you saying I am an audi fan? Really?

@ racerf109, I don't think people say "_____ much?" anymore. It's kind of like people who still say "really? really?".

Anyways basically all this means is BMW fans on Autospies can't accuse Audi of making cars that look the same anymore, which they will continue to do though anyways.

I honestly like the new BMW's and their design, I am about 90% sure my next car will be the new 335.

Looks great to me. Hope it doesn't put on the pounds like the 5 did.

Agent 001

Get ready for some serious denials and deboosts.

As far as some Idiots on this site are concerned only Audi produce similar looking vehicles. BMW would never do such a thing.

Ignorrance clearly is bliss, you always post things on this site as if what your saying means something. For one each BMW has a similar look while not being exactly the same as its larger or smaller version and always have its nothing new. The spy shots make the 3 look like a smaller more aggresive 5 series. Sorta like the E46 BMW was, as far as the deboosts and whatever medial things you were discussing only an idiot would even care. There are always people that attempt to make an Audi BMW debate out of every post here its getting old, and shows how little you know about cars. Next....

there's a difference between "similar looking vehicles" and "identical looking vehicles". Family resemblance vs. identical twins. A 3-Series, 5-Series, and 7-Series share styling features, and they're all recognizable as being from the same brand, but you can tell them all apart from any vantage point. There isn't a shared front end, rear end, light cluster, etc. among any of them. The A4, A6, and A8, however, are virtually indistinguishable from any angle to anyone who isn't an Audiphile, and from a dead on front view it's nigh impossible. Even from the side, where the length should give them away, they're hard to distinguish, and I like them (just not as much as you do).

I've been working for Audi for years and as much as it's true they can be hard to distinguish it's equally true for the new BMW's...this is all based on viewing cars in traffic.

You guys are writing way to much about this and appear to be taking it way too seriously...can't be healthy.

BMW has disappointed me for a while, so nothing new.

really? what cars have you owned/driven and been disappointed by?

i'll admit that i'm not happy with the steering feedback on my F10 5-series. it's just not the level that i'd expect from bmw. HOWEVER, it's still better than most of the competition (i think audi has actually gained an edge here).

ok so why buy it than?? I never understand these posts there are plenty of great cars in this class if you truely dont like the 5 series. The M the new supercharged A6 the eclass, the XF the list goes on either you like the car you paid thousands of dollars for or you dont own it...I think its you dont own it but hey what do I know im only using logic lol.

"really? what cars have you owned/driven and been disappointed by?"


- I've owned a BMW (330i) and I’ve driven plenty. What Am I disappointed by?

1) Lack of a Limited Slip Differential on all cars sans the "M" models.

2) Super expensive (hard to replace when you really need to have them replaced) Run Flat tires.

3) No Spare Tire. Not even a donut.

4) No dipstick. What happens when you want to see what color your oil is? Or if you want to smell it, or taste it? :)

5) Lack of head turning designs is another. Current Designs are drab and over conservative

6) And then there's the plain spartan looking interiors that looks cold and does not elude and warmth.

7) plain looking gauges. Same ones they've used since the 70's.

8) Undersized wheels and tires.

9) Crude looking unfinished Brake calipers.

10) Driven mostly by folks who don’t know anything about cars.

11) Artificial over boosted feeling steering.

lex: so what do you recommend we buy instead? model for model.

lookswise, that sounds good to me. the 5 is elegant, beautifully proportion and has great character lines. and the interior is huge step up.

steering wise, i seriously doubt they will use the same programming in the power steering....it's lacking in feedback in the new 5. i'm sure they'll correct it in the 5 next year too.

Well if you care about me opinion, here it is...

When I first saw the 5 I said homerun BMW and all those who got Bangled out of the brand will come back.

And a lot did.

But the more I see the 5, the more I wish they got MORE revolutionary.

Go look at a 550i sport 08 or newer next to a new one and see what I mean.

The Bangle version is more interesting and unique.

I also think down the road people will pay more for some of the Bangle work like current 3-series coupe and convertible, 08 or newer 5 sports, etc.

Also, because the 5 is so conservative I find myself not getting what I need visually out of the 5 and my eye wanders to A7 and Panamera V6.

The 5 is great but I'm not LUSTING for it which is always my barometer for how good a design is.

My .02

001

It's ALMOST like they did it on purpose like Audi did with the new A6 design to upsell people to the A7 and Gran Coupe ;)

001

Agreed. The new BMW designs are too tame - the Bangle cars created a new design language. They didn't appeal to everyone and didn't intend to - I liked that attitude a lot.

Historical perspective.......

EVERY new evolution of the 3-Series has essentially been a smaller 5-Series since 1992.

Honestly its a little premature to have any discussion on the new 3 series styling. If it does resemble the 5 that would be awesome, the new 5 is a gorgeous car, and the sales numbers speak for them self! When the new one series had camo on it it looked similar to any other camod BMW, but it looks totally different. So we will have to wait and see.

Dustbuster if you think BMW's are tame then Audis are the equivalent to a high strength sleeping pill.

...and what does Audi have to do with whether the next 3-Series is a good car? Not sure I'm following the logic here. Why are BMW people so defensive of their favorite brand?
I worked with BMWs when the Bangle cars hit and yes, they were polarizing but I felt they were "special" in comparison to the competition. Now everyone says the new 5 is the greatest thing since sliced bread and I don't see the car stand out (good or bad) like the last gen did. Hope the new 3 breaks the mold - would consider buying one.

I don't like that they're getting too close to looking identical. When I first saw the new 5 series, I seriously thought it was a new 3 series and right now you're asking....why? Well, because the new 5, although much bigger than the 3 just looks smaller because of it's sleeker lines and lower looking. I know the 3 is going to get a similar look to the current 5 but, I really like the fact that a couple of years ago...you can definitely tell the difference between a 3 and a 5...there was no mistaken. And I'm a huge fan of the 3 series...I just don't want to look like I can't afford a 5 so instead I got a 3....Does this make any sense? This is just how I feel.

Surprise! I didn't see that coming!

BMW is taking lot less risk with their new designs. New 3 series design seems to be purposely dulled to attract a wider audience. I don't blame BMW as more and more manufacturers are doing it. Look at new Civic, it a dulled version of outgoing Civic, new Jetta and Passat, new A8...etc

I don't think BMW or Mercedes or Lexus will ever take one of their top cars and do anything radical. It doesn't make sense if the formula is working. That does not mean there are no other vehicle where they can take design or performance risks. So a 3-Series that is similar to a 5-Series is very logical.

I loved my first BMW, an E46 coupe. Great handling and a real spare tire. I modded it and drove it 10 joyous years and it was a mistake to get rid of it. Then I started driving a E90 330xi. I was naive about runflats, having no experience with them before. The suspension crashes over every bump or pothole and the shifter is less precise than the previous generation. If you only use a car for short commutes and dont' care about the sloppy suspension, then BMWs with their mandatory runflats may be good enough. Good luck if you want to take it on a trip or long drive. I have been stranded several times already and you'll never get a runflat replacement late at night or on the weekend. I've slept in fleabag hotels and in the back of the car while trying to find a replacement tire. BMW has abandoned me and I'm not going back!

If the new '3' looks like the '5', that is okay with me. I've seen a few '5's on the road and they look great.
I won't be able to afford either, but it's just as well, since BMW has taken a different direction in recent years.
While they still build wonderful cars, they are less of a sports car. They continue to get bigger, heavier, more complicated, more expensive, etc.
I was a fan/owner from the early '70's until about '98. The price of admission is no longer justified.

Spy shots look great so far! Appears to have classic 3 series proportions! No doubt it will be a huge success.

nothing new here! The new 5 series is a miniature version of the 7 series!

I love all the negative comments from the usual suspects very entertaining. Thats how you know your brand it on fire. BMW's sales are at record levels, and people love the new elegant and sporty designs, and all the haters know it. The impressive part to is that they don't have to sell a car like the A1 to inflate sales numbers, and BMW is leading the way with bring carbon fiber to mass production, as well as affordable premium electric, and hybrid vehicles, and every M car is a class leading benchmark.. Oh so successful.. Let the good times roll!!

uh....what? Actually Audi has been roughly 100 to 150K behind BMW in sales for the last decade. It is currently half way through 2011 and BMW is about 80K vehicles ahead of Audi, at this rate BMW will still be over 100K vehicles ahead of Audi. So no real gains have been made. Its just Audi marketing hype, which certain people eat up. Yes Audi has been growing, but so has BMW a roughly the same rate.

And NO BMW does not have a car positions as far down market as the A1. Plus the A3 also starts 2K cheaper than the one series. Audi is getting sales the easy way.

The 80K figure is from a tread on this very site from one of your fellow Audi fanboys.

http://www.autospies.com/news/The-big-Luxury-3-Audi-Mercedes-BMW-revisited-Who-will-wear-the-luxury-king-crown-in-3-years-65346/


The article you are referring to is about the Mega City car, which will start in the 35K range much higher than the A1.


"over 46% of all BMW sales were from their entry-level model for the longest time (until the 1-series) debuted, whereas the A1 and A3 make up less than 30% of all Audis sold. Please explain how that is getting "easy sales" when BMW has already launched a vehicle BELOW their entry level model, and are considering something even below the 1-series?"

Any sources? BMW is not planning anything to compete with the A1 on price. They are planning FWD 1 series, but they will still be a 1 series, and compete with the A3. The A1 is a Polo

The only reason Merc, and BMW would go further down market, is b/c Audi when cheap first to inflate sales..

Look at the number they don’t lie.


"This very site has discussed ad nauseum how quickly Audi has closed the gap on BMW despite having a smaller model lineup, and could well likely pass them within the next 5 years"

HAHA this site has NO credibility..its just amature speculation.

I honestly do not care if Audi sells more cars one day, they can sell all the Polo and Golf knockoff they want. The whole brand culture does not appeal to me at all. BMW will continue to make benchmark sports sedans like they have for the past 40 years regardless of sales numbers.

Yes the car will be sized like the A1, but will carry a premium price, and will have premium features to go with the price. Like a carbon fiber body. The A1 starts around 20K....Hardly premium.

"Since in one of their slowest markets (US)the A3 is outsold by literally EVERY other model"

Audis US. Sales are not anything to base an argument on. Audi Sales in the US are pitiful in general, in Asian/european markets the A1, A3's are huge sellers. Not to mention the A3 is only sold in hatchback for in the US which in not very popular.

“Please don't tell me to "look at the numbers" then offer up zero links while demanding that I do.”

I gave you a link the show the gap has consistenly been 120K to 200K difference between the two for the last decade. I don’t care if you’re convinced or not.

I just point out the fact to keep the Audi fandoys honest.

BMW invented the 3 sausages approach, and returning to it after the Bangle era is welcome. Lets hope, however, that the 3 doesnt mimick the 5's weight gains.

Styling-wise it doesn't.
If they drop in last 5 series platform, then it will.

Nothing wrong with the 3-series resembling its bigger brother models. Why mess with successful designs just to make fanboys happy?

I like the 5 series look, but the last article posted of the look of the next gen 3er was ultimately not looking like a 5 series enough to be a winner... I don't care for the squared out angel eyes on the picture I saw or the rear end... The profile shot in this article is nice though... I am excited to see how it turns out and whether I will want to replace the 09 335 coupe I have with a next gen 3er