Gear Sports

There are several reasons why the new 2007 BMW 335i Convertible has been built with a retractable hardtop instead of a conventional cloth top.

Most of them are practical but boring, like security and wind noise. But for Albin Dirndorfer, BMW’s project manager for the new 2007 3 Series Convertible, it is all about elegance

We can see why Dirndorfer felt the urge to take his “elegance” metaphor a little too far. The new 335i convertible is an attractive mix of complex engineering and fine design.

Although built from lightweight steel, the hardtop’s three folding panels don’t make the structure of the car any more rigid when the top is deployed. This chore is accomplished by chassis reinforcements built into the floorpan and rear bulkhead.

This additional structure, plus the hardtop and its operating mechanism, pads on 452 pounds to the 3,571-pound 335i coupe for a total of 4,023 pounds.

The twin-turbo, 300-horsepower 3.0-liter inline-6 in the 335i convertible might have the mass of 4,023 pounds to move around, but there’s not a quicker four-seat convertible short of a Mercedes-Benz CLK63 AMG. BMW claims this new convertible with its six-speed manual transmission will accelerate to 60 mph 5.8 seconds, just 0.3 second slower than a coupe with a six-speed manual.

In order to maintain optimal front-to-rear weight distribution, plastic quarter panels are used up front. According to BMW, these new panels are not only 50 percent lighter than equivalent steel versions, they’re also dent-resistant.

Go ahead and mark this as the only time BMW will ever draw technical inspiration from Saturn.

Set to go on sale in April for around $46,000, the 2007 BMW 335i Convertible will enter the market with few direct competitors.