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"An Automotive Love Affair"

Point / CounterPoint
By Joseph Mavilia and Price Cobb

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Price

Joe

Hey Joe:

With my ever growing enthusiasm for Wagons, and my knowledge of the 540i, I was rabid to get my hands on BMW’s new (for the USA) 323i Sport Wagon

Actually Joe, I’m trying to get folks to look at the wagons first before delving into the SUV world.

Clad in most of the delicious lines of the latest 3 series for 2/3’s of the car, this latest edition couldn’t have come at a better time. I’m on a personal crusade to educate folks to spend more time looking at today’s wagons alongside their personal favorite SUV before purchase.

With the incredible success and acceptance of the 3 series, the Sport Wagon adds to the already wonderful line of BMW’s. Now many of us will still be able to have our cake and eat it too.

Well Mr. Cobb:

Why would a furry rabid want to drive a BMW? And what’s with all the passion for a Beeeemer wagon anyway? Is mama in a family way or do you have some macho reason to fall in love with station wagons?

For sure, BMW styling has always been popular. Brother John, who owned a foreign car repair shop, loved them for other reasons. Namely, they were often in the shop for repairs that were not cheap. I understand that has changed and the more recent generations are pretty reliable.

In any case, I happen to share your preference for a wagon over a gas guzzling SUV.

And with the cost of gas climbing out of control, this BMW Wagon that boasts 27-highway mpg will become even more popular.

Price                                       Technical

Joe                                            Technical

There is no 6-cylinder engine sound in the world that compares with the siren of BMW’s inline six. My only complaint is that although it is 2.5 liters, and 170 horsepower, more torque  (currently at 181 lb ft) would be welcomed.

Your complaint is duly noted. I guess I didn’t really lack for power in my drive, but neither did I with the Volvo V40 Wagon that I consider the toughest competition to this BMW. The V40 only has an inline 4 cylinder but with the Turbo it develops 160 horsepower and 170 foot pounds of torque.

Price                            Features & Design

Joe                              Features & Design

Not overly large for a Wagon, when you open the rear hatch you have close to 2.5 times as much room as the standard 323 sedan. With the rear seat up there is 26 cubic feet of cargo space. With the rear seat down, there is 48 cubic feet for those all day shopping sprees.

Seats have an acceptably supportive perimeter without being obtrusive. That is to say the bolsters hold you in place well for what it is, yet ingress and egress are unrestricted.

Smaller, yes but I happen to love the smaller size. It’s easier to schlep around town in and plenty large enough for 4-5 people to travel in comfort. I used to have a 1970’s vintage Chevy wagon and it was one of those tanks with the third seat that faced to the rear. Bucket of bolts is more descriptive relative to this work of art by comparison.

The fit and finish of the BMW is always appreciated and the quality of the interior is among the best on the market.

Seats - Ditto. Well done, BMW.

Price                    Performance & Handling

Joe                    Performance & Handling

As spectacular as most Beemer’s are, I have never been overly enamored with their clutch actuation. I can make an argument for the way the engineers have chosen to allow the take up (feel and actuation of the clutch mechanism) to be this long and oh-so-progressive in the search for control but they take it to an extreme.

A new driver could benefit from such a release, but in the real world this sort of clutch actuation makes herky-jerky shifts unless you spend gads of time in a BMW or focus hard on a clean clutch release. My recommendation to the engineers: Shorten the throw.

The brakes are wonderfully powerful and show little signs of fade even when pushed hard. The ABS can be felt and this version is marvelous, offering short and straight stops.

Steering is BMW sharp with near perfect linearity. Turn the wheel and the car responds accordingly. Not too much turn in, nor too little. Precious few manufacturers do this. BMW does it across the board!

The wagon is heavier than the sedan and normally that should make it noticeably slower but BMW has shortened the final drive gearing 11% to perk it up a tad. However, from a dead stop, up hill with the AC on, the wagon is less than inspirational.

I love to drive German cars because they provide such a confident solid feel. They take the curves like it were on rails. Adequate power but nothing to get excited about. I was more impressed with a recent test of the Honda Insight Hybrid, electric and gas car.

The brakes work well and stop sure but why do they grab at slower speeds? That made me uncomfortable. I shouldn’t have been aware of the function of braking, other than it stops well.

The steering is much too hard for me. I like a softer and lighter feel turning the wheel. I like to feel the road a bit, but this was too stiff. As a race driver you’re used to muscling a car about and I’m not as athletic as you anyway. I’ll bet the ladies would agree on this point.

I guess you appreciated the car a little more than I did because of the high tech mechanics. I like the overall feel but beyond the pretty veneer and what makes the car tick, I get distracted and annoyed at having to pay a premium for the BMW “badge”.

Price                                               Pricing

Joe                                                  Pricing

 Ditto, Joe.

 Not bad for the quality and utility of this sporty wagon and less than I expected.

Good News

I’ll go with you on this one Joe. Particularly the auto up/down of the windows. All cars should have this simple yet effective feature.

German car solid, great fit and finish, comfortable ride, perfect size and utility, I particularly like the auto up / down windows.

Bad News

Not enough low torque. Joe, as you mentioned the Volvo has a similar amount, but with the turbo it is more at less, (more torque at less rpm) a better deal all around.

Steering is too stiff, brakes grab at slower speeds.

Price

Joe

I’ll say it again to all of you. If you’re looking for something that’ll hold more than a sport sedan, yet retain the ease and safety of handling of the sedan, you must look at all of the current European wagons before you buy. My personal favorite from BMW is the 5 series wagon, but if you like a more intimate car and one that will save you a few bucks but keep the fun in your commute both to the office and Home Depot this is it.

Green Flag

Overall I like the BMW line and this wagon is especially useful and perfect for the small / young family. It provides some class and just the thing for the young executive not afraid to make a family statement.

However, if I were in the market for this class car I’d look long and hard at the Volvo V40 for less dough and the only other really in this class, in my opinion is the Audi A4 Avant. And of course if money is no object, look at the E Class Mercedes Benz Wagon for a cool $48 grand.

Green Flag