A BMW festival in Singapore’s shopping district with plenty to do, plus the debut of the BMW 320i sedan, X3 M and X4 M high-performance SUVs

SINGAPORE 

Online shopping might have put a dent in the crowd at Singapore’s central shopping district, but BMW gives you a bunch of great reason to visit Orchard Road this weekend. 

BMWFestSG is the inaugural street festival held by the German luxury carmaker, and it’s happening at the Grange Road Carpark (opposite Orchard Cineleisure, next to Somerset 313) from 10am to 10pm this Saturday and Sunday, September 14 and 15. If you can”t wait – it’s open right now as we speak, Friday September 13, 2019. 

CarBuyer gave out five goodie bags (each with S$30 of food vouchers) in a contest, but if you didn’t get one, not to worry: The festival is open to all and no entry fee is required. 

Organised by BMW Group Asia and BMW distributor for Singapore, Performance Motors Limited, BMWFestSG is an event that is aimed at keeping the brand in the spotlight in between its bigger bashes.



BMW already holds its uber brand extravaganza, BMW World (picture above), in Singapore every four years – the last was in 2018, and a 2014 edition preceded that – but BMW was champing at the bit to show people a good time.



“It’s four years between BMW World, so we thought it was a pity to wait that long until the next event,” says BMW Group Asia managing director, Christopher Wehner, pictured above. 

There’s a plethora of things to do and see at the festival. 

The majority of BMW’s current model lineup will be on display, more than 30 in total,  though you should pay special attention to three cars in particular, as they’re making their Singapore debuts here. 

First is least expensive version of the new BMW 3 Series, the 320i. As we covered earlier this year, the new seventh-gen 3 Series is an impressive piece of machinery, but only debuted with the mid-range 330i model. 

The 320i, which has the same 2.0-litre engine but with 184hp (compared to 252hp of the 330i), starts from S$206,888 with COE for the luxury variant, and S$212,888 with COE for the M Sport variant.

Compare that with S$231,888 with COE and S$248,888 with COE for the 330i Luxury and M Sport variants, respectively, and it’s a big difference.  

The 320i makes 184hp and 300Nm of torque, does 0-100km/h in 7.1 seconds, an efficiency figure of 6.3L/100km, with a VES B rating.


The model shown here is the M Sport variant, and its standard spec includes the BMW ‘Live Cockpit Professional’ 12.3-inch active instrument display and 10.25-inch touchscreen infotainment display. 

Also appearing in public here for the first time are the very first ‘full M’ versions of the X3 SUV  (white, above) and X4 coupe-like SUV (red, above). CarBuyer has of course tested the X3 and X4 in various incarnations, but not the M models yet. 

Both models share the same underpinnings and are essentially almost the same, mechanically, although the X4 has coupe-styling and is likely to be tuned differently. 

The same inline six 3.0-litre twin-turbo found on the previous M3 new high-performance S58 inline six 3.0-litre engine (that’ll be in the next M3 and M4) shows up under the bonnet, making a colossal 510hp and 600Nm of torque. That’s fed through an eight-speed automatic gearbox, all-wheel drive, and BMW’s Active M Differential – read our review of it working on the X4 M40d variant here.

Both have the same wicked specs on paper: 0-100km/h in 4.1 seconds, a top speed of 250km/h, fuel consumption 10.6L/100km, and a VES band of C2. 

The BMW X3 M retails for S$458,888 with COE, and the X4 M at S$467,888 with COE.

Then there’s the BMW Experience, which is like a truncated version of BMW World. There are five segments each showing off a facet of the brand. Visitors can tour each segment and collect a stamp, and a complete set of five rewards you with a free BMW premium. 

Born Electric, for BMW’s green motoring models, BMW i.

The 1, showcasing the just-launched BMW 1 Series hatchback.

X, for BMW’s sport utility vehicles (SUV), which features an X5 ride up a balancing ramp.

Hey, BMW! runs visitors through the very-clever Intelligent Personal Assistant system on the new 3 Series. Can’t visit the festival? Watch it in action below.

M Town, featuring BMW M, the high-performance sub-brand.

Other activities include the BMW City Circuit, where you can test drive a range of 20 BMW models, and the BMW Drift Experience (sit in a car that’s oversteering, we always recommend it) – both of those happen at Scape, across the road. There’s also fashion shows,  traditional German country music (it’s almost October), an eating competition, and beginners German for the kids.

For more details hit up http://bmwfestsg.com.sg/