| Snow country drivers' enduring dilemna gets only a little easier with three recent arrivals from BMW. Winter-worthiness or fun in the sun. Traction, or the top down. Must life's pleasures be always at odds?
First, the practical and affordable 318ti: From the maker The Ultimate Driving Machine, a hatchback! Will florists and caterers demand driving gloves? BMW calls it a three-door coupe. The seats are firm, bolstered like a sports car's. Fully automatic climate control is not offered, but the clever one-touch defrost button works well. The rear seat split-folds to carry skis plus a passenger. I was able to stow my 210s easily, but the cargo cover was clumsy. Rear hatches tend to squeak, but this one is solid and silent. Its support struts sagged in sub-zero weather, however. The ti handled with precision, cornered with aplomb. The four-cylinder engine and five-speed manual conspired to encourage driver involvement: "Shift me and I'll accelerate even faster." Raw power isn't the point. A six (available in the 3-series coupe, sedan, and covertible) cannot be had with the hatch. Newly available to all four-cylinder BMWs is traction control, to reduce slippage on snow and ice. Traction control and rear-wheel drive, BMW boldly claims, have proven superior to front-drive and four-wheel drive vehicles on slippery surfaces. Tests showed more control in 90-degree turns, quicker straight-ahead acceleration, and better maneuverability on an obstacle course. I say winter driving combines dozens of discrete situations. In some, rear drive and traction control are indeed advantageous. But it's easy to design a test to emphasize one car's strengths. For go-in-the-snow security, my experience says front drive generally works better, and four-wheel drive works best. To choose rear-drive is a compromise--but not a bad one. The BMW system is among the best around. BMW's new 328 trio replaces what were previously called the 325 sedan, coupe, and convertible. Torque and horsepower are two different things, and to illustrate the difference, there's no better case study than the new 328 and the old 325. The new car's enlarged engine produces 190 horsepower--a mere 1 hp more than the 325's. More significant is its 14 percent higher torque. That translates to a lively drive--the ability to leap off the line, dart through traffic, and overtake lumbering trucks on the highway. Dual-zone climate control lets driver and passenger choose individual temperatures. A split-folding rear seat is standard in the coupe, optional in the sedan. An alternative is a solid seatback with a pass-through to the trunk, and a newly added ski bag to protect the car's interior. Front seats, door locks, washer nozzles, and exterior mirrors are heated, optionally. BMW's new Z3 is the a driving machine of nearly unparalleled pleasure: a convertible two-seat roadster reminiscent of the classic BMW 507, last sold in 1959. James Bond drove a Z3in GoldenEye. I drove one in Dallas. Sleek, low, and light, the Z3 accelerates to 60 in 9.1 seconds. With the top down and the wind in your hair, it feels faster. For an extra $975, a four-speed automatic replaces the five-speed manual. A worthwhile $500 option packages includes heated seats, washer jets, and outside mirrors. Inside, the "dual cowl" design gives driver and passenger separate spaces. Dual air bags are standard. Dropping the top is a manual operation, but it's so easy it makes power tops seem superfluous. Traction control will arrive eventually (as a $1,100 option). A hardtop will be available as well. Which may academic, because the Z3 isn't--at least not for the MSRP. Many dealers have stopped taking orders. But with BMW ramping up to build them by the hundreds of thousands, Z3 figures to be a familiar figure on U.S. roads.
Engine: 1.9 liter four cylinder, 139 horsepower 1996 328i Sedan
Engine: $32,900 1996 BMW Z3
Engine: 1.9 liter four cylinder, 139 horsepower Copyright 1996, The New York Times Magazine Group. All rights reserved.
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