1995 BMW 3-Series Interior Review at Automotive.com
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BMW
3-Series
1995

1995 BMW 3-Series Review: Interior

Below is a full, detailed 1995 BMW 3-Series review and road test from New Car Test Drive. A full evaluation of price, equipment, the driving experience, and specs are all here in a structured, easy-to-navigate format from journalists with limitless e ...     read more
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1995 BMW 3-Series Review

Driving machine running on all cylinders
Interior
The look of the interior is classically European: spare, upright and cerebral. The gauges are BMW's traditional round analog dials, with speedometer and tachometer front and center. Controls are all well-placed and easy to use, once you decipher their purpose (with German cars, a thorough read of the owner's manual is a smart idea). Standard cruise control has been extended to the 318i.

For some drivers, the no-nonsense interior is appropriate - stripped down and ready for action. For others, the interior looks shockingly spartan for a $30,000-plus car. Compared with the best American and Japanese interiors, the materials may seem less than luxurious and the padding thin. The cupholders are a crude dealer-installed option - BMW's grudging response to what it perceives as a sloppy American habit of slurping beverages while driving.

On the other hand, the interior is remarkably roomy for a car of its size. The coupe and the convertible lose some rear legroom compared with the sedan (6 in. in the case of the convertible), but they are still acceptable for adults and far more useful than the compact rear compartments in many sporty coupes and convertibles.

Highly supportive seats reinforce the 3-Series' aggressive character. The deep side bolsters are clearly designed to keep both the driver and front passenger in place when the car is hustling around corners.

A premium 10-speaker, 200-watt audio system and leather interior - standard on the 325i - are now available as options on the 318i, as are sport suspension packages.

Security has been a big issue at BMW because the cars have a particular appeal in the hot-car market. All the radios have standard theft-deterrent systems, and the engines have a disabling feature designed to foil hot-wire artists. New for '95 is a freewheeling lock cylinder that defeats entry by anything other than the correct key. Next Page


1995 BMW 3-Series