BMW E90

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BMW E90 range

Manufacturer	BMW
Production	2005–present
Predecessor	BMW E46
Class	Entry-level luxury car / Compact executive car
Body style	2-door coupé 2-door coupé cabriolet 4-door sedan 5-door station wagon
Platform	FR/RWD or AWD
Engine	Otto and diesel engines I4, I6 1.6-3.0 L, 85-225 kW
Transmission	6-speed manual 6-speed automatic
Curb weight	1,425 to 1,775 kg (320si and 330xd touring respectively)
Similar	Cadillac CTS Infiniti G35 Mercedes-Benz C-Class

The BMW E90 automobile platform is the fifth generation of the BMW 3 Series range of entry-level luxury/compact executive cars. The car is also available as a station wagon/estate (designated as E91), coupé (E92) and coupé cabriolet (E93). It is the successor to the E46 platform, and was launched in March 2005.

1 E46 comparison
2 Body styles and models
3 Special edition
4 Awards
5 References
6 External links

[edit] E46 comparison

The E90 sedan is 49 mm longer, 78 mm wider and 9 mm taller than the E46 equivalent. The wheelbase is longer by 35 mm. Despite the increased dimensions, the E90 is lighter than the E46, which can be attributed to the use of lighter materials in construction. Large amounts of aluminium were used in the body work, and the engine block is made of aluminium and magnesium. The piston sleeves still use steel.

The E90 also introduced run flat tires to the 3 Series range. Consequently, cars with run-flats are not equipped with a spare tire.

[edit] Body styles and models

[edit] Station wagon (E91)

The station wagon model of the 3-Series is available with both rear-wheel drive and xDrive AWD.

[edit] Coupé (E92)

2007 BMW E92 335i coupé

3-Series convertible

The two-door coupé model of the 3-Series became available in August 2006. It is also the first BMW coupé offered with xDrive. All E92s also come standard with Xenon HID headlights. Interestingly enough, the coupé is longer and narrower than its E90 counterpart. The E92 comes with 325i (not available in the USA), 328i, 328xi, 335i and 335xi models.

[edit] Coupé-cabriolet (E93)

BMW will be producing a retractable hardtop model rather than a traditional cloth-top convertible. It is slated for release in March 2007.^[1] The E93 also no longer has the "retractable seatbelt helpers" that the E92 coupé uses whenever one closes the respective door.

[edit] Special edition

The 320si is a special homologation version, built in order to qualify the car for the FIA World Touring Car Championship (WTCC).^[2], released in 2006 and limited to 2,600 units. The 320si uses a modified 4 cylinder engine (N45) different to that in the standard 320i (N46). Modifications include an increased redline to 7,300 rpm, a shortened stroke (by 2 mm), an increased bore (1 mm) and higher compression ratio (11,0:1) over that of the standard 320i engine. The engine is mostly hand built and does not have Valvetronic, decreasing the number of moving parts. Acceleration from 0 to 100 km/h (62mph) is in 8.1 seconds and acceleration in fouth gear from 80 to 120 km/h is in 7.7 seconds compared with a standard 320i which achieves 9.0 and 9.1 seconds respectively. Fourth gear acceleration is comparable to that of the 325i which achieves the 80 to 120 km/h sprint in 7.5 seconds.

[edit] Awards

In April 2006, the E90 was awarded the World Car of the Year title by a jury of 46 international automotive journalists. The car was praised for its balance between performance and practicality, as well as between style and seriousness. The jury also praised the new diesel engines and the all wheel drive variants.^[3]
Car and Driver magazine listed the E90 3-series on their Ten Best list for the 16th time in 24 years of the list's publication.
The E90 was named "Best New Sports Sedan" in the 2006 Canadian Car of the Year awards.