BMW reveals new 3 Series Sedan and Touring

The front, rear and side styling has been refined, with greater emphasis on the dynamic character lines along the side of the car, accentuated by reprofiled side skirts.At the front, a new headlight cluster, new facia panel and a pair of muscular bonnet lines give the 3 Series a bolder, stronger look, highlighted by larger double kidney grilles. Optional Bi-Xenon Adaptive Headlamps incorporate new LED indicator lamps. Redesigned doors mirrors offer a wider field of view and employ concave and convex styling to the mirror caps.

At the rear, bumpers, taillights and the boot handle have been redesigned, the taillights adopting a more pronounced 'L-shape" and incorporating LED elements.

The rear track has been widened as a result of suspension modifications and depending on models is up to 24 mm wider.

The interior boasts revised and enlarged storage areas, new location for window lifts and the new generation iDrive with new ergonomic controller, similar to that fitted to the new BMW 7 Series previewed recently, is now available.

The 180kW diesel engine delivers 0-100 km/h acceleration in 6.1 seconds and uses just 5.7 l/100 km of fuel. All models are available with a new six-speed automatic transmission. Arriving in 2009, model variants, specification and pricing for the local market will be announced closer to launch.