[Montaver]

I currently drive a 23' M340 LCI, and ran a G20 330i for 3 years before that so I am very familiar with the G series 3. I was at my dealer getting my M340 aligned after getting acquainted with one of the friendly pot holes that accumulate here in the North east during winter. My SA threw me the keys to an X3 M50, I had a proper poke around and took it for a drive. Sharing my impressions as I think these cars are quite regularly cross shopped, at least I certainly shopped the X3 M40i a couple of years ago when making the choice.

Ride quality - I was impressed with the X3, it felt very smooth and supple. The M340i with adaptive is more taut by comparison. The M340 feels much 'sportier' and is more active (but not busy), the X3 felt like it moves less with the road surface. If your looking for pure comfort the X3 wins here.

Steering - The X3 has a appropriately quick rack, no dead spot on center and was accurate and easy to place. The M340 is the similar in this regard, I couldn't feel a huge amount of difference although there could be some ratio differences. These are more sporty daily drivers than sports cars so this probably isn't a huge factor, both are satisfying to pilot. Perhaps with more seat time it would become apparent.

Handling - No escaping the X3 is an SUV and it feels like one on the road, from the high waist and upper dash to the seating position it just isn't a sports sedan. It has a more 'cruisy' vibe. It was a brand new car so I couldn't really push it on the twisties. I am sure it handles well when driven hard, but the M340i feels more dialed in here.

Power - My M340 feels quicker at WOT, although its had 10k miles to loosen up the engine and its 500lbs lighter. I could really feel the weight of the X5 here. For anyone who knows the B58 and ZF8, its more of the same here. Top of its class.

Isolation - The X3 feels more isolated from road noise, it actually reminded me of the G60 5 series. Like it has an extra layer of stuffing buried in the chassis to take away some of the deeper resonant frequencies. Bear in mind the 3 series is also very refined, I think it tests at 64db or thereabouts, I would say its like going from 8/10 to a 9/10.

Wind Noise - The fact there is slightly less road noise is offset by what felt like more wind noise, particularly from around the mirrors. Its marginal though, perhaps it just felt more amplified. The fact the X3 doesn't offer acoustic glass is a real miss in my opinion.

Seats - X3 has better seats on initial impression, more supportive and cosseting. I was only sat in it for 30 mins or so, but I am sure it would be good on long journeys too.

Tech - The lack of drive mode buttons is annoying, the M340 still has physical buttons for this. The HUD looked like it had more visual options. I didn't spend much time here as idrive is the benchmark whatever version you are on.

Interior - Both cars have a very solid, well engineered and well built feeling. But there's no escaping the material choices in the X3 feel very low rent, particularly the doors. Its entirely plastic, no metal trim at all (there is some trim that looks like metal, but pretty sure its plastic). I had a poke around an X1 that was also in the showroom, honestly you would think the interiors were switched. I would take the 3 series interior with the X3 seats. The steering wheel on the X3 looks good, but its way too thick/fat.

Ultimately the M340 feels slightly more purposeful and dynamic. The X3 feels more plush, softened at the edges, and utilitarian but still with a performance edge. My overall impression of the X3 vibes with a lot of reviews, BMW did a great job on the dynamics/ride/drive train and I think a lot of people will enjoy the way it goes down any type of road. However if you have driven any G series BMW's, they ultimately all do well in this area and have a well defined BMW 'feel' across the models. From a styling/interior/tech perspective the X3 really feels like a 'point in time' car that's sandwiched between design languages and taken aggressive cost cutting on the nose. Something had to be sacrificed, and I guess it ended up being the interior. For this reason it doesn't feel like it really moves the game forward in the way the F to G generation did. Maybe they will make some tweaks for the LCI. I drove off feeling a bit wistful about how well BMW could of executed it if market forces were a different (acoustic glass, B&W sound, higher quality interior, more physical buttons, etc.). I'll have one on my shortlist when my lease is up anyway.