2009 BMW 3 Series Sedan 328i

Pros

Good looks, tight handling, good MPG, solid build quality, free maintenance

Cons

Arrogant dealership, expensive options, run flat tires

This is an amazing car that drives like no other. I had to make a decision between this car and the Mercedes C class, and after I test drove the 3 Series I knew right away that it was the better of the two. Its faster than the C class and also gives better MPG. I also like that BMW allows you to add on many more options a la carte, unlike Mercedes that force you to buy expensive options that you don't want in order to get the ones that you do want. The quality of the leather and the interior overall is also better than it is in the Mercedes.

However, there a two things that I don't like about this car. The first thing that I REALLY don't like is the run flat tires. BMW should offer this as an option instead of forcing it on the buyer. These tires make the ride a lot rougher than it could be. Like the Cadillac CTS, they also do not include a spare tire; but, unlike the CTS, they do not offer a spare tire as an option. People who buy this car should be aware that (according to BMW, the run flat tires cannot be repaired and must be replaced if they are punctured). After doing more research, I have learned that these tires are not as easy to get as regular tires and that you may have to replace two of them at the same time to maintain the alignment of the car. Run flats wear much faster than regular tires and they are OUTRAGEOUSLY expensive to replace. BMW loves to tout the 'safety' of these tires, but they do not tell consumers about the downside---the very high costs of replacing them and their serious lack of reliability. Buyer beware that BMW's free maintenance on their cars does NOT include tires. So, please research this carefully before you buy.

The other thing I don't like are the cup holders. The cup holders are flimsy and the driver's cup holder is placed in front of the front passenger's seat, which is a very silly design. In this age of ergonomics one would imagine that a company like BMW should have done much better than this.

The cup holder thing I can live with because I bought an adaptive cup holder and placed it nearer to the driver's seat. I've gotten rid of the run flats and replaced them with regular tires (and a spare in the trunk) and the car now rides much smoother.

I didn't get the iDrive/nav because I didn't care for its functionality and find it to be a bit clumsy. This is perhaps the one area where Mercedes beats the BMW.

The other cool thing is that BMW's 0.9% financing offer is much better than the 3.9% that Mercedes is offering, so if you have very good credit and you're looking for a hot new ride, the Bimmer is definitely the way to go.