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"Whether you&amp;#039;re talking about driving dynamics or sales figures, the BMW 3 Series is the car other automakers emulate in the hotly contested market for compact sports sedans. Believe it or not, the 3 Series has been around since the mid-1970s, when it had the unenviable task of replacing the hugely popular 2002 sedan. Thankfully for BMW fans, the 3 Series did not disappoint, and continual improvements have kept the car at the cutting edge in terms design and technology. This year&amp;#039;s arrival of a new 3 Series ushered in smoother and sleeker styling, along with the highly anticipated arrival of a new turbocharged 4-cylinder engine. Purists might worry that BMW is suddenly talking about fuel economy as much as steering feel and horsepower \u2013 and that&amp;#039;s before the arrival of the ActiveHybrid 3 Series. Does this leaner, and somewhat greener, 3 Series still take the fight to rivals like the Audi A4, Mercedes-Benz C-Class, Infiniti G37 and Cadillac ATS?        BMW 3 Series    BMW hasn&amp;#039;t lost the plot with all this talk about fuel economy. The turbocharged and direct-injected 240-bhp 2.0-liter inline-4 pulls strongly and hustles the 3 Series from 0-60 mph in 5.7 seconds when equipped with the 6-speed manual gearbox. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but we think the new 3 Series looks great. The narrower headlights and more upright twin-kidney grille help give the front fascia a tauter and sportier appearance. A strong side character line leads your eyes to the rear end that, unlike some past examples of the 3 Series sedan, is as refined and equally handsome as the front of the car. The 3 Series cabin is all business, the controls are logically placed and there isn&amp;#039;t a hint of tacky plastic-wood or superfluous bits of chrome to be found anywhere. BMW has even managed to add a smidge more (0.6 inches) rear legroom, so the view from the backseat is better than ever too. You can tailor the 3 Series to your driving whim, thanks to the choice of four drive modes: Comfort, Sport, Sport+ and Eco Pro. The latter will eek out those extra MPGs, though we prefer the performance edge provided by Sport+. The settings modify everything from the feel of the power steering, to throttle response and the calibration of the stability control. In the Sport settings the handling had that traditional (and highly addictive) BMW heft that makes this rear-wheel-drive sports sedan a thrill when the road gets twisty. 5. BMW still offers a deliciously smooth and powerful 300-bhp turbocharged inline-6 in the upmarket 335i model. Four-wheel-drive is available with either the 4 or 6-cylinder engines, and there is a choice of 6-speed manual or 8-speed Steptronic automatic transmissions. The manual is great fun, but the 8-speed is pretty awesome if you prefer to let the car shift for you. Sport-themed hybrids haven&amp;#039;t always found a sweet spot in the automotive market, though we&amp;#039;re cautiously optimistic the ActiveHybrid 3 Series could prove a winner. For starters, it&amp;#039;s pretty quick, with an estimated 0-60 mph time of 5.2 seconds. The car comes with a turbocharged inline-6 mated to a 55-bhp electric motor for a healthy total output of 335 hp and 330 lb.-ft. of torque. Highway fuel economy is expected to fall around 32-mpg (about the same as the 328i which is powered by an inline-4).        BMW 3 Series    Is the 3 Series still the sports sedan all others aspire to?   We love the power and performance of the turbocharged inline-4, and the EPA estimated 33-mpg highway average is much appreciated. But why didn&amp;#039;t BMW make this engine sound more melodious? At idle, it sounds tinny and rattles like a diesel. The standard stop-start system helps save fuel, but it&amp;#039;s unrefined in the way it shuts the car down and starts up again. During a test drive, it felt like the 3 Series was stalling at every red light. How can General Motors get a stop-start system so right in something like the cushy Buick LaCrosse eAssist, yet BMW gets it so wrong in the 3 Series? Should you have to press a button or click a dial to find that traditional BMW steering feel? We understand that selectable driving modes are fashionable and, in certain cases, they&amp;#039;re handy at lending a dose of sportiness, or extra fuel economy, to any drive. But the handling of the 3 Series feels too light and disconnected until you click into Sport or Sport+ modes. The ActiveHybrid 3 Series has an electric-only driving range of, wait for it, 2.5 miles. That should get you to the corner store for milk and eggs, but it sure won&amp;#039;t get you back again. The electric motor also cuts out if you exceed 47 mph.        BMW 3 Series   "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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