BMW has built aero engines, motorcycles and cars for some 80 years and currently participates in the premier auto racing scene with engines for the Formula 1 BMW-Williams racing team. It uses all the information garnered from the experience and participation in top-notch competition to design its unique automobiles.

The 3 Series BMW is an uncompromising, driver-friendly automobile.

The 3 Series BMW is its smallest, least expensive, and for drivers, perhaps most exciting sedan. The 5 Series is a little more cushy, and the 7 Series is definitely a premium luxury car, not as crisp on the road as the smaller models, but great for a big car.

The 3 Series ride is exquisite, firm, supple and totally supportive on crazy corners. Two engines are offered, a 2.5 liter, 184hp inline 6-cylinder and a 3.0 liter, 225hp inline 6-cylinder.

The test car was equipped with the larger engine. It is incredibly smooth and responsive, and coupled to the standard silky sweet six-speed manual transmission, leaves no shortage of torque at any speed. Ninety-five mph comes up fast as you go through the gears. This car is a ticket magnet; think about that if you decide to buy one.

Many fast, good handling cars are on the market. Examples include the Audi A6, Mercedes C320, Lexus IS300 and Jaguar S40. But none, as borne out by numerous automotive press comparison tests, have it all together like the BMW.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but to most automotive buffs this car is pretty. The interior is European businesslike with a smattering of luxury here and there. It is not lacking in cool stuff. It comes with side curtain and head protection air bags, dynamic stability control, traction control, all the usual power stuff, leatherette seats, leather-wrapped tilt and telescoping steering wheel with radio and cruise controls, and star-spoked cast alloy wheels. BMW offers an all-wheel-drive version of the four-door sedan for cold weather folks.

The 325i four-door sedan pricing starts at $27,800, the four-wheel-drive version, the 325xi at $29,550, the 330i at $34,800 and the four-wheel-drive 330xi at $36,550. Add another $2,000 for the coupe and about $9,000 for the convertible.

Options for the four-door model include: $1,275 for an automatic, $2,700 for a premium package with moonroof, auto headlamps, wood trim, auto day/night mirrors, on-board computer, dual power seats, and rain sensing wipers. A sport package with special seats, suspension and steering wheel, adds another $1,400. A navigation system is $1,800, upgraded stereo is $675 (325i and xi only), and leather seats $1,450. It’s easy to add $9,000 to $10,000 to the base price.

The warranty includes a four-year/50,000 mile bumper to bumper with four-year/50,000 full maintenance. A good idea with these expensive European cars is an extended warranty to 100,000 miles (just for peace of mind).

The fuel consumption is fair at 20mpg city/29mpg highway for the 325 versions and 20/27 for the 330 versions. Automatic transmission (heaven forbid in cars like these) subtracts about 2 mpg from these numbers. Remember, premium fuel.

These cars hold their value quite well, but maintenance and repair costs tend to be higher than many. Mind you, Automobile Magazine’s 12-month, 32,000-mile test of the earlier model 323i produced no defects of any kind, even though it was subjected to some very hard driving.

The 3 Series is waiting to be test driven at Harloff BMW in Encinitas, Brecht BMW in Escondido, Cunningham BMW in El Cajon or BMW of San Diego in Kearny Mesa.

Unfortunately for the consumer, BMW’s increasing sales in spite of the economy eliminate any possibility of financial incentives to buy.

Motoring since 1952, Austin Lynas has owned 55 cars and at one time raced mini-sedans in England. An aerospace engineer, he was instrumental in developing the anti-skid systems used in British military aircraft that preceded today’s ABS systems. Lynas can be reached by e-mail at osten@aol.com.