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long and winding road was ahead, as the assignment was to test drive three variants of the BMW 3 Series, the world’s best-selling sports sedans since debuting in 1975, on a Jakarta-Bandung roundtrip.

On the day of our trip to Bandung, nine cars of the three variants — BMW 320i, BMW 328i and BMW 335i — in black, gray, silver and white were available to the party of journalists. I was in a group of three designated a white 335i for the trip.

I noticed the car was far sportier than its predecessor. The sedan still retains the BMW coupe-like silhouette and the double-kidney grills and twin headlamps.

The grills are now in a 3-D look and the twin headlamps are connected to the grills, making for the sporty, stronger and more charismatic look.

Before entering the cabin, BMW product planning manager Dennis A Kadaruskan explained some of the sedan’s convenient functions. Like kids gleeful at the sight of their basket of new toys, we were excited to know the trunk lid could be automatically opened without making hand contact. We also were able to move our foot below the rear bumper as long as we hold the car key.

Sitting in the car’s seat made me aware of modernity, luxury and convenience, including with wooden panels used in some parts of the interior and leather upholstery.

Dennis added that the car has also grown in size with a longer wheelbase. “By 50 millimeters, it enables back seat passengers to sit more comfortably,” he said.

The car is equipped with BMW Navigation System Professional, providing Indonesian maps and directions on the high-resolution display monitor either in 3-D look or split screen mode.

“This navigation system is active until three levels below ground, including tunnels,” Dennis added.

I thought the maps were very cute. Driving in daytime, the maps featured a light blue sky and for nighttime, there was a dark blue sky complete with stars.

They also gave clear and direct information for our destination and when we made turns into wrong lanes, the voice narration system warned us to turn back.

I was puzzled when the BMW 335i I was driving suddenly went dead at a traffic light when it turned red. According to Dennis, the engine had turned off because the car is equipped with the Auto Start Stop System, which allows the engine to automatically stop every time the car stops for a short while.

When the traffic light turned green, I pressed the acceleration pedal and the car came back to life and ran like before.

“There will be zero fuel consumption. Although the cars give high performance, they must lower their fuel consumption. It’s our answer to green issue,” he said.

As we entered the Cipularang toll road, I could enjoy the power of the car’s engine. Equipped with TwinPower Turbo, the engine has six cylinders to mark its quality. The engine is capable of producing a maximum power of 306 hp and a maximum torsion of 400 Nm between 1,200 and 5,000 rpm.

Reaching high speed is easy. As I stepped on the gas, the engine responded instantly. It took only 5.5 seconds to reach a speed of 100 km/hour from 0, climaxing at 250 km/hour.

Interestingly, despite the high rotation, the engine maintained its gentle sound and fuel consumption efficiency. The car does 13.9 kilometers for a liter, producing a CO2 emission of 169 grams/kilometer.

All 3 Series now offer optimal Internet connection, through BMW snap-in adapter for Apple iPhone and for BlackBerry Bold 9700, BMW Car Hotspot and BMW Apple iPad Holder.

BMW Car Hotspot provides wireless local area network connection for smartphone, notebook or Apple iPad and the BMW Apple iPad Holder that is put on the headrests eases rear passengers to operate their iPads optimally.

The new BMW 335i is now available at all BMW authorized dealers at Rp 849 million (US$90,223) off the road while the BMW 328i and 320i will be available starting from October.

The indicative price of the new BMW 328i Sport Line and Luxury Line is Rp 729 million off the road while BMW 320i Luxury Line and Sport Line are Rp 649 million and Rp 599 million off the road.