2014 Auto Expo: BMW launches 3 Series GT in India at Rs 42.75 lakh
BMW has launched its much anticipated 3 Series GT in India with a price tag of Rs 42.75 lakhs (ex-showroom pan India). This car has been positioned between the 3 and 5 series sedans and will be manufactured locally to keep costs low in order to attract more buyers in the BMW fold. The car will be going on sale from March 2014.
The 3-series GT will be available only in the 320d GT variant. Power will come from a 2.0 liter, twin power turbo, four cylinder diesel engine generating 187PS of max output and 380Nm of torque. The 0-100kmph run, BMW claims is accomplished in 7.9 seconds, while top speed achievable is 226km/hr. The duty of transferring power from the engine to the wheels is taken care of by an eight speed automatic transmission.
An active rear spoiler plays an important part in the aerodynamic design of the vehicle and reduces lift at high speeds. It is automatically deployed when the car goes past 110km/hr and will retract if the speed goes down below 70km/hr.
The front fascia of the GT has a similar grille like the 3 Series sedan. The headlamps though are redesigned and are located high up from the front bumpers with a smooth flowing rear end. The GT is longer than the 3 Series sedan by 110mm, this gives it more interior space which is mostly found in bigger sedans.
The interior is spacious and many adjustments can be made to make the 3 Series GT an ideal weekend vehicle. A good 520 litres of boot space can be bettered by folding down the 40/20/40 split rear seats to a cavernous 1600 litres. The rear door is electrically operable to ease loading and unloading of luggage.
The car comes loaded with features such as BMW iDrive, 16.5cm central color information display and HiFi loudspeaker system with BMW live. Park distance control (PDC) rear and front along with rear view cameras are a standard feature in the 3 Series GT.