BMW 3 Series

摘要

With its superior driving dynamics and classic design, the BMW 3 Series has been the benchmark for all D-segment models, practically since it first arrived on the market. The vehicle owed its enduring appeal and success, however, in no small part to the environment in which it made its debut. At the beginning of the 1970s, because of tensions over the Yom Kippur war, relations between Middle East oil-producing nations and those purchasing the oil in the US and Europe were at a low ebb. An oil embargo was imposed, pushing up fuel prices dramatically across the western world, At the same time, the Neue Class (New Class) line of BMW vehicles - which had been in production since 1962 and had successfully seen the firm survive an internal financial crisis - was beginning to age and the OEM's 51% shareholder, Herbert Quandt, wanted to replace it.