Each week, our German correspondent slices and dices the latest rumblings, news, and quick-hit driving impressions from the other side of the pond. His byline may say Jens Meiners, but we simply call him . . . the Continental.
While I spent the past few weeks in the U.S. and the People’s Republic of China on various driving trips, I missed out on a few events here in Europe. My friend and colleague Manfred Jerzembek went to the BMW 3-series launch and the VW Up drive in Rome (myself, I drove the Up in Wolfsburg this August). Manfred was impressed by the overall quality and roominess of the Up, but he noted significant differences in the quality of the various trim levels. “The coarse-grained texture of the base model’s dashboard destroys any grace in the interior,” he notes. He also reports that the difference between the 60-hp and 75-hp versions of the three-banger is bigger than expected. Both engines run relatively vibration-free, but on the open road, the 60-hp variation is rather feeble.
Manfred also spoke with various BMW execs about the new 3-series—the quintessential BMW and the model line with the highest production volume. Chief designer Adrian van Hooydonk explained that the 3-series is the “sprinter,” while the 5-series focuses on “autobahn speed.” Driver orientation is emphasized again. “The design is just a promise,” he says. Poised to deliver are new, turbocharged engines, including the 2.0-liter four that is the first of BMW’s modular engine generation, which ranges from three- and four- to inline six-cylinder engines. They are mated to six-speed manual and eight-speed automatic transmissions.
On the subject of transmissions, I received confirmation (yet again) that BMW will—with gnashing teeth, I presume—offer a six-speed manual for the M5 and the upcoming M6, only for the U.S. The 550i and 650i with the manual box—also not offered elsewhere—enjoy take rates well into the two digits. Between us, I get the impression that German engineers (not only BMW’s, to be sure) believe U.S. customers to somewhat obtuse. See, you just don’t get the superiority of an automated transmission’s electronic brain… Keep asking for the manuals, I say. Personally, I wish to stay connected to the hardware and the road instead of going through an additional electronic layer any time. If the U.S. market is the last one to appreciate this point of view, so be it. Beyond the U.S., there are but a few enthusiasts in the U.K. and Japan.
I am sure the next M3 will be offered with a manual as well, if only in the States. “An M3 without a manual is unthinkable,” a company executive tells me. Returning of the regular 3-series, it will be produced in the German plants of Munich and Regensburg, also in Rosslyn, South Africa, and Shenyang, China. Perhaps also in Brazil? BMW is very close to making a decision on a production site there.
Euro-NCAP: Everybody Can Do It
The notorious Euro-NCAP results have been published. Twelve new cars, including the Volkswagen Up, the Kia Rio, and the Chevrolet Volt, received the top crash-test rating of five stars. This by no means should imply they are equally “safe.” Rather, they are graded within their respective segments. Consider that five cars were given only four stars—the Jaguar XF and the Jeep Grand Cherokee among them. Oops, worse than a Rio? Four stars, for context, were also awarded to the Chinese Geely Emgrand and the Chinese-engineered MG6. Figures they are as safe as a Grand Cherokee.
The NCAP and Euro-NCAP standardization procedure is a topic for a whole different, in-depth story. While everyone in the industry pays lip service to Euro-NCAP when the microphones are turned on, big question marks linger behind the scenes. For color, consider that the last-gen Kia Sedona received only two stars in the Euro-NCAP, which rendered it unsaleable in Europe, but five stars in the (similarly questionable) U.S. NCAP. But hey, there is relief: A supplier executive told me that “we can get any car to reach at least four stars.” Oh, good. Kia should have known.
