BMW 3 series 40 Years Anniversary Video

I do not usually embed a video. But this is an unique BMW video. it shows the generations of 3 series starting from the E21 to the current F40.

The BMW E21 3 series was my very first car which I owned. A photograph of it can be seen in the link http://e21s.blogspot.sg/2008/07/cars-year-1998-2001-bmw-e21-3-series.html

For the E21, there was no convertible. It was only available in 2 doors coupe style. There is a wide range of engines to choose from. Mine was a 1.5 litre 316.

When I bought it, the car was already 17 years old with quite a number of faults including the risk of a dead engine in the middle of the road. Beyond 90km/hr speed, the manual gear shift would rattle loudly. There was a problem of a faulty hazard light which would spring out when hot.

Despite its problem, it was a beautiful car to own given its unique C pillar and the kidney grille which were the signature of BMW even up till today F40.

I have personally sat in a E30, E36 and drove a E46 330 with the famous in line 6 engine.

Before purchasing my A3, I had taken a look at the BMW F40 316. But it was priced more than S$170,000 then which was beyond my budget.

The car ownership policy in Singapore doesn't encourage vehicle ownership beyond 10 years. The road tax structure increases once the car is beyond 10 years and there is a need to renew COE. Couple with a higher maintenance cost, these discourage drivers from keeping cars beyond 10 years. Hope that in future, this will change.

Update

BMW 3 Series Family

I was fortunate to be in BMW Museum in Munich in July 2015 and took a photograph of the 3 series family. The family includes the 2002 (known as the predecessor), E21(known as the first generation), E30, E36, E46 and E90. It excludes the F series. What a nice lineup!