BMW 330i Not So Premium Interior

This review echoes the Truth About Cars review on the 335i. Interesting!

Oh boy....Lexus fans will have a field day here.

"Look at the IS interior. It is perfect. God couldn't have created something as perfect as the interior of a Lexus IS..."

Yeah yeah yeah... :p

shouldn't the audio system be a little more advaced/complicated than a honda? love my audio system. cupholders SUCK no doubt, but all bmw cupholders suck so no new news there. gauge visibilty, brent you're a putz. storage, ya its small but my car stays cleaner cuz of it. start button....get the comfort access for $500 bucks and the start button rules!

actually, lets look at that last one some more.

traditional car...step 1- insert key. step 2- turn key.

bmw 330i...step 1- insert key fob. step 2- push button.

hmmmmmm. ya.....bad design BMW. Very bad.

The 3 series has average quality plastic. The X3 plastic was stolen from the Chevy Cobalt.

ya will....thats exactly what i ( a magic feel believer) said, you knew exactly how it would go. magic feel believer, may i use that one?

The best position i have seen for a starter Button is on the MB vehicles ( On Top of the Gear Lever)

Also i think the use of a Start/Stop Button Should eliminate the need to Insert Anything Anywhere. (In The MB Keyless Go System you simply: Walk up to the car, Pull the door handle and get in, Step on the Brake Pedal and Poke the Start/Stop Button and Voila!! Engine Running) everything else is done by the car without you needing to know about it (Im refering to all the Lock/Unlock/ Immobilizer Verification Stuff)

im confused i read this article no where does it say this interior is less than premium by no means, it sounds like a guy that should be driving a mini-van, cross over, or family sedan. a "compact" luxury car isnt made for someone that needs tons of storage space, the actual review of the 3 series tauts its high quality interior and other points that make the 3 series a bmw. No need for excuses or to defend the 3 series the proof is in the evidence of the article, and the site itself. The 3 series has one of the if not the nicest interior in its class period, the g35 poor materials, cts poor materials, c class poor materials, tl average materials, and the is interior only looks good in top trim the regular models without the wood if anyone has seen one if not post those pics please and compare to the 330i would look fine in a toyota corolla.........people find any "false" title to push bmw off its platform....next

and dont believe on the review read the regular "edmunds" review of the 3 series, or any reputable magazines review of the 3 series and the interior

Yes, this is quite funny however somehow I am not surprised. The cupholders on this thing is the wierdest I have ever seen and I just don't know why it was designed like that. Also for the start button - why the hell should you have to put it in if you are not going to turn the key. I mean the 3 series and the Civic are pretty much the same in size department, that is why the comparision was made.

Also halfpast3: "shouldn't the audio system be a little more advaced/complicated than a honda?" The answer to this question is NO. Why, Do you see rich people do more work than people who are poor? NO you don't so why should you have to do more work to get the same amount of music out of a car? The system should be more advanced not complicated.

But Performance is all that matters right, would any of you buy a car with a seat strapped to a chassis, with wheels and an engine? There is not a lot of weight here.

Even Edmunds admitted that the Audi A4 has a "better" interior than the BMW 3-series when it compared the Audi A4 to the BMW 330i.

The Audi's lower price point, high content and finer interior appointments

What Works:
Still the sweetest interior in the class,

Still Great Inside
As good as the A4 is the only category where it truly trounces the Bimmer is interior appointments.

Despite being essentially unchanged since 2002, with the exception of its newly shaped steering wheel, this interior still sets the standards for the class in fit and finish, warmth and usability. It's perfect, from its clear dials to its abundant chrome accents, and the BMW's interior is cold, plasticky and an ergonomic miss by comparison.

ut with a price tag thousands less than the Bimmer, a richer cabin than any of them, a wider choice of body styles and a well-rounded personality, the Audi A4 is a mandatory consideration for those shopping in the sport-oriented entry-level luxury car market.

It is clearly apparent that Audi creates subjectivey better interiors than BMW.

My 2003 has excellent quality, materials, and fit and finish?
I had a 2005 530i loaner. Interior was the same as mine.
For some reason, I'm not believing this.
Keep in mind, that was ONE GUY who said that, Brent.
ALL of the other editors prasied the 330.

All of the reviews that I have read about the BMW 3 series from 2001 to 2006 the BMW always wins because of the performance and driving pleasure. It is always beaten in the comfort category. Some people may feel comfortable in the BMW interior, buy whoever (except the 2007 G35, especially Lexus and Audi) - I personally find it ok - but many want more comfort and performance out of the same vehicle. No doubt that BMW can improve.

maserati9-

You didn't mention the A4. The A4 has a superior interior to the 3 Series, even in its fifth year. I believe the IS does, too, though I haven't spent much time in one, and the redesigned C-Class dash from 2005 was much improved.

mstangpny07-

That's a pretty biased comment. BMW's lineup of interiors is average for a luxury manufacturer, average at best. The 530i seems to have a pretty rushed design and though I like the exterior, the interior is sub-par, and it pales in comparison with the jewel-like A6 interior of finely-stitched leather E-Class interior. GS interior? It's built and executed well, but the design is a bit derivitave. All of the Lexus sedan interiors look like the IS on the inside; it works on the IS, is acceptable on the GS and is not very formidable in the LS. When the last-gen LS had a more unique design, it seemed more expensive-looking in there because of its exclusivity.

Mistake:

"...jewel-like A6 interior of finely-stitched leather E-Class interior"

Should read:

"jewel-like A6 interior or finely-stitched leather E-Class interior"

Sorry for the odd sentence there- it made me sound like English was my second language.

kart1 "Do you see more rich people do more work than people who are poor" what the $^#@ does that mean. are you high? so advanced/complicated = more work. I see. here i thought there might be more features and therefore there might be more buttons. haven't sat in a civic recently (b/c i'm so rich and wouldn't be caught dead in one....SARCASTIC TYPING) but i am guessing it has less buttons b/c it has less features. does it have bluetooth, dsp,surround sound, equalizer etc?

size had nothing to do with the comparison, learn to read. the comparison was made to bash bmw b/c for $15000 you can get better quality in a civic (according to brent).

It's simple, in the world of automotive interiors there is Audi on top and then there is everyone else, below.

No other car company has received such universally acclaimed praise over their interiors the way Audi has.

This can be concluded through the hundreds of magazine articles from Motortrend to Car & Driver to Road & Track to Automobile. Or even online sources such as Edmunds.com and even non-automotive magazines such as Businessweek help prove this claim.

Audi has the best materials quality out of any mainstream car company.

There is no fighting that claim. BMWs have extremely tough plastic and Mercedes wood in the CLS is from a can.

Audi's slogan should be We Lead and Everyone Else Follows in Automotive interior design

will their ever be a day when we don't talk about a audi, lexus or BMW interior. What about the Ferrari f430 interior, or Jaguar, Bentley, Aston Martin.. Play the interior card a little too often, Nice interiors don't seem to help Audi in the U.S.

Larry, they do help consumers who buy on luxury alone. I know people who do as rare as they maybe.

We don't talk about F430s, Gallardos or Bentleys because not very many people drive those cars.

It's not that difficult to figure out.

GermanNut-

Sure, but most people who own Audis for the sporty aspect, too. I mean, if everyone shopped for pure luxury, Mercedes and Lexus would be the world's most popular brands. Audi is just as sophisticated as those too on the inside, if not more, but it's also more sport-oriented. It's the perfect BMW-Mercedes balance, to me.

Wow I'm having a lot of typos today!

"most people who own Audis own for the sporty aspect, too" should be the sentence.

"Audi is just as sophisticated as those TWO..." should be the other typo.

Yes, but on pure effectiveness of interior from ergonomics to layout, materials quality to feel etc...

Audi wins on interiors by a good margin.

If we bought based on interiors alone, Audi would win.

BMW530i
" Oh boy....Lexus fans will have a field day here.
"Look at the IS interior. It is perfect. God couldn't have created something as perfect as the interior of a Lexus IS..." "
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You know that if the article said that Lexus had interior design problems that you would be the first one to say I told you so, so don't put words in other peoples mouth. And just to satisfy your unconditional want of us Lexus fans to bash German cars, here you go: This could never happen to Lexus. Lexus actually takes time and effort to make their cars as perfect and appealing as possible.

halfpast3: Buddy looks like you were up half past 3. The question you are asking is referring to the comment which I made you know, "Do you see more rich people do more work than people who are poor." It means exactly what it says. You can't understand such a simple question and you are making comments about by reading ability? Rich don't do more work (maybe I should have said manual labor, since for some people everything has to be spelled out). Complicated is not the word that should have been used (Oh to avoid further misunderstanding I know you said advanced too). Advancement doesn't always mean complexity. The system in this BMW is complex even though it is advanced (according to the author, no electronic device is complex for me to use). Apparently a person doesn't really need to take his/her eyes off the road when using the Civic's ergonomics, in the BMW it is necessary. (Also doesn't the Civic come with a in-dash CD-Changer?) The point is if other manufacturers can do it why can't BMW? Don't say 50-50 weight distribution.

About the size comparison, it is something that I added personally as an opinion (I think people still have the right to say what they want right? Or are you not in the US?). However, I do stay on that point since the Civic and the 3 series are pretty much the same size, comparisons can be made to show what is offered in a more premium model compared to a non-premium model. So all that part meant was that the Civic is a good comparison since one would expect to get more features from the premium model and it is good base to compare from. If the author would have used the Camry/Accord as a comparison then people would have complained about size (due to storage complaints from the author).

LexusIS30,

Lexus actually takes time and effort to make their cars as perfect and appealing as possible.
========================================

NO CAR IS PERFECT.

And I admit I was feeling a little trollish with my first comment in this thread.




Germannut,

Your Audi-bias is killing your credibility. Yes, Audi makes good interiors but so does the competition. You must be on crack when you claim the Mercedes CLS interior is crap.

I support you on the "Audi A4 has a better interior than the BMW 3-series", but your posts still smell of bias. Quit it...

The audio system in the 330 is great, at least sound-wise. I can agree that it can be cumbersome to adjust however.

The Engine Start Button came about because of COMFORT ACCESS. If somebody is too cheap to up the ante $500 extra to get it, then I guess they have to deal with the HUGE hassel of putting the fob in and then pressing the button.

People love to pick apart the 3 series because everybody is trying to emulate exactly what BMW is doing with it. They made the market and continue to set the benchmark.

Logical, I'm everywhere you go on this website. I said the wood in the interior of the CLS, not the whole interio.r I think the layout and ergonomics are good (considering they are straight from the E-class) The wood feels cheap in comparison to the wood that Audi uses.

Oh wait the wood is cheaper because only one company can possibly have the highest materials quality. That would be Audi.

phantom330: I agree with you: people tend to pick apart the top dogs in order to bring them down. However I just want to ask one question, does this work with Lexus too, because I have seen so many people attack Lexus on this website.

can't argue with you on the cd changer....it drives me nuts bmw won't do it but thats about the only valid point you make. your "rich people work doing more work" crap is garbage. been reading karl marx lately or something?

back to your reading ability....read your post "I mean the 3 series and the Civic are pretty much the same in size department, that is why the comparision was made" that is what you wrote. you are not adding your own opinion. you are saying the reason for the comparison in the article IS BECAUSE of size. its not. the comparison was strictly about $$$$ and what you get for your $$$$

ok, whatever. I haven't read anything from Karl Marx, ever - I don't like communism. Why is it garbage? If you spend 25k more on the BMW it should have better interior design, layout, etc. right? BMW interior isn't bad, but compared to Audi and Lexus (their biggest competitors right now) its even worse..

About my opinion "I mean the 3 series and the Civic are pretty much the same in size department, that is why the comparision was made" this is what I said right - did the author say that the comparison was made because of size? No - so it is my opinion. I am not denying the money factor, but size also counts (didn't he complain about storage space - if he would have picked any car lets say for 3 grand more a Camry would that have been fair?). Civics go for 15k, but the author could have easily compared it to a 18k Camry or Accord but then it would be unfair. You see size is key to this comparison because despite being the same size the Civic offers more utility. If you take out the money factor the Civic is a good comparison (because of size and function of the car), if put in the money factor then you start to ask why does the BMW cost more and evaluate on that.

In the end there is more to a comparison than just money, even though that is all that was used.

Oh by the way thanks for evaluating my reading ability teacher ;).

He just didn't complain about quality of materials did he?

you are so wrong here i can't even think. he didn't compare it to an accord or camry b/c it would have been less effective. he picked the cheapest car possible with better or equal INTERIOR features to say $15000 can get you the same as $42000 (according to his evaluation of coarse). thats it. size is irrelivent. it is not the key. in fact, he only compared the radios on the two cars. nothing else. i give up. have a nice day.

BTW-you should read karl marx. you would like his thoughts on rich people and poor people and their levels of "work" :)

Logical, we aren't the usual suspects. Call me the permanent suspect.

I'm going to fight off every single one of your posts and you are going to sit and watch every single one of them get corrected.

I know comparing it to the Camry/Accord would have been less effective, my point was that the Civic is a great comparison.

Plus I know who Karl Marx is and pretty much what he stands for - I don't like his thoughts.

What do you think I am a socialist - I could care less.

BMW530i-
"And I admit I was feeling a little trollish with my first comment in this thread."
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You must feel "trollish" an awful lot then, with all the hatred you post on this web site.

Its silly to compare BMW with Civic.

But it is not silly to compare it with Lexus IS - which is why BMW interior really does suck - competition does it better.