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The 3 Series was for some time the smallest car line manufactured by BMW, although that place was in 2004 taken by the BMW 1 Series. The 3 Series is BMW's best selling automobile, accounting for nearly 40% of all automobiles sold by the company in 2005. . The 3 Series is the best selling luxury sedan in the United States— selling 98,000 units in 2005 . Social and marketing significanceFrom its sporting origins, the 3 Series became a formal range that was sometimes synonymous with the "yuppie" generation in 1975. Being an accessible prestige-badge car, the 3 Series' reputation grew. By the early 21st century, the E46 3 Series, designed by American Chris Bangle, was the best-selling car of its size in the world, as commonplace in Asia and America as in Europe, while maintaining its prestigious image.
HistoryLike most of BMW's contemporary models, the 3 Series name has been applied to many different vehicles. The 1998 3 Series is marketed similarly to the 1999 3 Series, but the two share few mechanical components and are styled quite differently. 3 Series vehicles can be largely differentiated by the underlying platform: BMW E21 - (1975–1983) 3 Series; BMW E30 - (1984–1994) 3 Series; BMW E36 - (1992–1998) 3 Series; BMW E46 - (1999–2005) 3 Series; BMW E90 - (2006–) 3 Series Sedan; BMW E91 - (2006-) 3 Series Wagon; BMW E92 - (2007-) 3 Series Coupé; BMW E93 - (2008-) 3 Series Convertible;
E21The E21 line was produced from May 2, 1975 (1977 in the USA) through 1983. Originally a replacement for the 2002 coupe, the first 3-Series was a 2-door model only. The New Class sedans would be replaced by the 5 Series. A factory authorised cabrio version was built by Baur. Models:
Europe
1981-1983 315 - 1.6 L M41 I4, 75 hp (55 kW);
1975-1979 316 - 1.6 L M41 I4, 90 hp (66 kW);
1980-1983 316 - 1.8 L M10B18 I4, 90 hp (67 kW);
1975-1980 318 - 1.8 L M42 I4, 98 hp (72 kW);
1975-1977 320 - 2.0 L M64 I4, 109 hp (80 kW);
1977-1983 320i - 2.0 L M20B20 I6, 125 hp (92 kW);
1978-1983 323i - 2.3 L M20B23 I6, 143 hp (105 kW);
1976-1979 320i - 2.0 L M43/1 I4, 110 hp (82 kW);
1980-1983 320i - 1.8 L M42 I4, 100 hp (75 kW);
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