2019 BMW 330xi
2019 BMW 330xi Our incessant stay over the beklagbare deviation of BMW from its “Ultimate Driving machine” ethos seems to have finally triggered some action. The niche M5 is actually driving, and now the chassis development team for the key G20 generation 3 sedan seems equally determined to bring the legendary threesome to the top of its fiercely competitive pile.
So eager is the team to get this right and close the hater that a few of the loudest complainants were on the Nürburgring for an intense day of public road and closed “ring-driving from early 2.0-liter turbo prototype cars Invited. Note: These versions have been equipped with the M sport package, and there is still time to tune and optimize some of the latest calibrations before the new 330i is sold at the beginning of next year.
A brief summary of the most important changes: Examine the chassis and you will not notice anything radically new, and yet each part is significantly revised — geometry, Elastokinematik (bushings and shock stops), spring and damping rates, and Damper-Internale. The main chassis component of course is the body structure itself; It is stiffened by 25 percent in the total rotation, and the areas in which the front and rear suspensions are mounted are about 50 percent stiffer.
The transition to aluminum for most of the front body structure contributes to a total weight reduction of 120 pounds, which improves agility by lowering the polar moment of inertia and helps to deliver a 50:50 weight distribution ( Measured with full liquids, 300 pounds the passenger in the front seat and 31 pounds in the trunk). The focus on all 3-series models decreases by 0.4 inches (the sport suspension will drop the body by a further 0.4 inches), and the track will increase by 1.2 inches.
The additional stiffness around the suspension brackets withstands vibration better, so that the suspension bushes can be stiffened to give the steering wheel more road feeling (for the first time the sport suspension is given on a BMW unique jacks). The front and rear suspension geometry is reworked to lower the roller centers slightly and to make the stern more neutral. With improved front handle we are promised, the result is lower taxes and increased agility.
The front pantyhose features new internal hydraulic rebound stops that drastically increase the damping force in both directions near the top of the journey (the old internal rebound springs save energy while the body rose and released You on the way back, which is the effective damping rates). The rear shocks include a similar function that works at the lower end of the journey, where a second, smaller piston penetrates a narrower cylinder, which increases the damping rate by 50 percent. This improves body motion control when the vehicle is heavily loaded and traverses larger dips and bumps. Both the basic and the sports suspensions use this technology with different attenuation rates. (The optional Adaptive sports dampers do this and more with external bypass spool valves.)
The base steering frame uses a fixed ratio, and sports suspensions receive a variable rate with a stepless (less noticeable) acceleration of the ratio at higher steering angles. and — Hallelujah! — the totally unpredictable and truly hateful active steering was banished into a special circle of Hell (at least for the G20).
BMW has not shared the specific spring and damping numbers with us, but the basic auto-tuning is very slightly stiffer, and the sports hangers are about 12 percent stiffer than the outgoing sports setup, which means that the gap between base and sport in this Generation. The anti-roll bars have been adapted very easily to obtain a similar control that works in conjunction with the new spring rates and the geometric roller axis. The tires remain the same size, but are reconstructed for less rolling resistance and noise transmission.
In the braking department both basic and Sport models receive four-piston front and two-piston rear saddles, but the sport models have larger discs and saddle pistons at the front and rear, with a unique booster and proportionierungs valves Suitable. The last piece of the dynamic handling puzzle is the electronically controlled, limited-edition diff of the sport suspension, which is completely controlled by the chassis computers and works exactly like the one in M-cars, but with two fewer clutch plates.
2019 BMW 330xi
The time comes for two hot laps of the Nürburgring behind van as in a M2, which serves as my driving coach. The new 3 feels right here at home — no surprise as it logs thousands of kilometers, 12.9 of them at a time on this 73 turn circuit. A bit more surprising is how fast this chassis makes a “ring virgin as I feel comfortable soning eight-and nine-tenths of these chassis ‘ limits, maintaining small glide angles drifting and relying on the brakes to make your thing harder and Later to do in the curves. (However, I discovered a bit of braking vibration at the end of a long braking zone.) The steering disappears here completely and does not attract attention.
The session ends. I am struggling to think of constructive feedback for the chassis team. My criticism is directed to other 3-series engineers. The sports mode tuning of the gearbox requires a lot of work. It was forever to snap high gears at the wrong time and it too seldom pushed down while slowing down for a corner.
The shift paddles and the manual torschieber work great, except for the thin red line in the cluster, which blinks at Redline, is too weak to get my attention. I would also like to see an improvement in the sound of the engine/exhaust at lower speeds. It sounds great at full cooking, but it is still plagued by this dieselish rattling idle and low travel speeds. (The only message we’ve received on this chassis-focused journey over the 2.0-liter turbo engine is that it will win about 7 horsepower and 37 lb-ft of torque.)
