The BMW 3 Series has become not only the cornerstone of the sport sedan segment but also one of the pillars of the brand. Even in this era when buyers are SUV crazy and both sedan and coupe sales are shrinking, buying your first BMW 3 Series means something, particularly to enthusiasts. Of course, like any long-running nameplate, the 3 has had its ups and downs since its introduction in the mid-1970s, so we’re here to rank them for you from worst to best.
Also, because BMW’s naming conventions are now seemingly without much meaning, we’re including the 4 Series here too. BMW’s first crack at the 3 Series came way back in 1975 with the E21 chassis. This car isn’t inherently bad, but considering that it had to replace one of the most beloved European cars in history (the 2002) and do so in an era where smog regulations in the US were killing performance means it wasn’t the best of the best.
Unlike later 3 series, the E21 was only ever offered from the factory as a coupe (though convertibles were offered from coachbuilder Baur) and while it spawned some of the coolest BMW race cars ever with the Group 5 320 turbos, they never became as ubiquitous or beloved as the E30, for example. Initially, the E21 was offered exclusively with carbureted four-cylinder engines, though by late 1975 BMW offered fuel-injected engines and six-cylinder models. The E21 didn’t hit US shores until 1977 and when it did, it was only offered as the 320i and was pretty severely detuned compar.
