Date: Mon, 06 Apr 1998 20:50:22 -0700
From: bmwracer_at_pacbell.net
Subject: [e36] Addendum to my Review of E46 3-Series
Well, as fate would have it, I submit my E46 review to the digest and
the next day I pick up the March 1998 issue of BMW Car and there's more
stuff on the E46 3-series... After some careful reading and analysis,
here's what I've found:
Aluminum suspension (like the current 5-series) - helps reduce
unsprung weight and that helps handling...GOOD
Use of light, high-strength steel throughout the body structure -
torsional stiffness in the body is 50-60 percent better than the E36...
this helps handling too and makes the car safer... GOOD
With all this lightweight stuff, how did the E46 get heavier? - it
got bigger... BAD... and we know that bigger does not necessarily mean
safer... look at the "Titanic"... REALLY BAD
Wheels and Tires I - judging from the semi-transparent view of the
E46, the spare looks to be full-size, but with a cheapo steel wheel...
GOOD (full-size tire)/BAD (cheapo wheel)..
Wheels and Tires II - the tires in the semi-transparent view look to
be PERFORMANCE tires (Pirelli P700s, I think) with M Roadster-like
five-spoke wheels... VERY GOOD... however, this view is probably of a
options-loaded model... let's really hope the basic version ($30K for a
"basic" version? yipe!) has decent wheels and tires...
Steering Wheel - looks like we'll get the bulky four-spoke one with
cruise and stereo controls integrated into the wheel... nice, I suppose,
but I never use my car's cruise control and I only have the stereo on
when my wife's in the car... I don't need it! make it an option, BMW!!!
No mention of a folding rear seat, but I'm guessing it will be one...
every X-mas, I somehow jam a tree in the back, and the folding seatbacks
help a lot... pickin' out those pine needles is no damn fun, though the
pine smell lasts through the winter...
I am beginning to like the front end more and more, though... the small
headlight cutouts really give the car a personality... I guess I'll get
used to the grille/hood combination... that's the latest for now...
check the digest again for any future revelations from me (if I haven't
bored you to death already!)
