The all-rounder

Bavaria’s 2017 iteration of the 3 Series Gran Turismo gets a new petrol motor, and it might just be the best fast luxury car for India.

- Rishabh Bhaskar 

As a country, we love to travel far and wide and mostly as a family. Which means a car has to offer space, practicality and comfort. In 2014, BMW introduced the 3 Series GT to cater to the needs of luxury car buyers who wanted exactly that. Two years down the line, the 3 GT gets a mild refresh and a 250PS petrol motor, aimed squarely at the enthusiasts. Let’s find out what it delivers.

DESIGN AND BUILD

Refreshed for 2017, the new 3 Series GT gets subtle revisions on the outside as well as the inside. In typical BMW fashion, the design is all about understated elegance. The sharp crease lines on the bonnet and along the sides look great. Viewed head on, it does resemble the 3 Series sedan. However, the eagle-eyed will spot the wider grille and LED headlamp cluster.

The petrol variant of the 3 Series GT is only available in the luxury line trim. So, its kidney grille gets more slats (24 instead of 18 on the sport line), and there’re generous dollops of chrome around the car. I particularly like the chrome around the window line that highlights the glass area and accentuates the side profile of the car. The frameless windows and the way the roofline merges with the stubby boot lend the car a distinct look. In fact, I did catch a few bystanders taking a second look at the car. I think it’s because the design is still quite unique in India.

The side profile also has a few functional elements like the air breather located aft of the front wheels. It reduces wind turbulence and in turn improves stability at high speeds. The new L-shaped LED tail lights look stunning, especially in the dark. BMW has retained the active rear spoiler that deploys at speeds over 110kmph or at the touch of a button located behind the power window switches. Overall, the car looks quite appealing as it steers away from the boring three-box design of a regular sedan.