2027 BMW 3 Series and i3 Priced for Australia: 320 From $83,900, Electric i3 From $96,900, Six-Cylinder M350 at $128,900

Image credit: BMW Australia. Overseas model shown.

BMW Australia has put prices on the eighth-generation 3 Series and on the car that matters more for where the brand is heading, the electric i3 sedan. Four variants land in the first quarter of 2027. The petrol 320 opens the range at $83,900, the six-cylinder M350 xDrive closes it at $128,900, and the two electric cars sit in between: the i3 40 xDrive at $96,900 and the i3 50 xDrive at $112,900. Every figure is before on-road costs.

The headline most people will repeat is that the 3 Series got cheaper. That is true, and it is also the least interesting thing about this price list. The badge on the entry car has moved down a rung, the electric car has been priced just the wrong side of a tax line that matters to a lot of its buyers, and the gap between four cylinders and six has grown to the price of a small SUV. Here is how the range actually stacks up.

Pricing

Grouped by powertrain, because the petrol and electric cars are really two ranges sharing a body.

BMW Australia has not published drive-away prices, so budget for stamp duty, registration and dealer delivery on top. There is no rear-wheel drive electric car at launch, which is the single biggest reason the i3 starts where it does.

The 320: Cheaper, Because It Is a 320

The new entry car replaces the 330i sedan, and it comes in $11,000 to $12,000 under it, depending on which 330i list price you start from (we list the sedan at $94,700). Before anyone calls that a price cut, look at the badge. The outgoing car is a 330i with 190kW, 400Nm and a claimed 5.8 seconds to 100km/h, which is what BMW Australia's own 3 Series page still quotes. The new one is a 320: a 2.0-litre turbo four with 48-volt mild-hybrid assistance making 155kW and 330Nm, rear-wheel drive through an eight-speed automatic, and a claimed 7.4 seconds to 100km/h with a 240km/h top speed.

So the money came out of the engine bay. Where it went is the equipment list, and that part is a real change of approach. BMW Australia's specification for the 320 includes items that used to live in option packs:

• M Sport package, M Sport brakes and Adaptive M suspension
• 18-inch M aerodynamic wheels
• Panoramic glass roof with climate comfort glazing
• BMW Panoramic Vision display and a 3D head-up display
• Electric front seats with memory, heating and ventilation
• Driving Assistant Plus and Parking Assistant Plus
• Comfort access, wireless phone charging, automatic tailgate, LED headlights
• A tyre repair kit rather than a spare wheel

Two option packs are listed so far: a Comfort Package at $3,500, which brings most of the M350's comfort items down to the 320, and an M Sport Pro package at $4,200. A 320 with both is a $91,600 car before on-roads, which is worth knowing before you compare it with anything else.

Image credit: BMW Australia. Overseas model shown.

The M350 xDrive: a $45,000 Step to Six Cylinders

There is nothing between the 320 and the M350 xDrive at launch, and the gap is $45,000. The M350 replaces the M340i xDrive with a 48-volt version of BMW's 3.0-litre turbo inline six making 326kW and 580Nm, all-wheel drive, a claimed 4.1 seconds to 100km/h and an electronically limited 250km/h.

On top of the 320's equipment it adds 20-inch M wheels, a heated steering wheel, heated rear seats, glass interior controls and a Harman Kardon sound system. That is a short list for $45,000, which tells you what you are really paying for: two more cylinders, 171kW and all-wheel drive. If a middle petrol variant arrives later it will have a lot of room to work in. BMW has not announced one for Australia.

The i3: Long Range, Priced Over the Tax Line

The i3 is the second car on BMW's Neue Klasse electric platform after the iX3 50 xDrive, and on paper it is the most interesting car here. Both variants are all-wheel drive on an 800-volt system.

One thing to keep an eye on: BMW Australia's own i3 page still lists the 50 xDrive at "up to 900 kilometres (WLTP)" and says plainly that no binding WLTP values are available yet, while the launch announcement quotes 912km. Same car, two numbers, both from BMW. Until a final certified figure is published, read the range as "about 900km on the WLTP cycle" rather than a number to plan a trip around. BMW's page also says the 50 xDrive can add up to 400km of range in ten minutes at a high-power charger, again as a preliminary figure, and only at a charger that can actually deliver that much power.

Both i3 variants get the same core equipment: 19-inch wheels, the M Sport package and brakes, adaptive dampers, a power tailgate, Harman Kardon audio, heated front and rear seats, the glass roof and 22kW AC charging. The $16,000 between them buys the bigger battery, 70kW and the faster charging.

Where the tax line falls

For the 2026-27 financial year the luxury car tax threshold for fuel-efficient vehicles is $91,661, and the fringe benefits tax exemption that makes a novated lease on an electric car so cheap only applies to cars under it. The i3 40 xDrive at $96,900 is over before you add a single option. That matters because the car it sits beside in the showroom, the i4 eDrive35 at $88,900, sits under that line.

A rear-wheel drive i3 with a smaller battery has been reported as coming overseas and would be the obvious way back under the threshold, but BMW Australia has not confirmed one. Two dates to check with your lease provider before you order: the threshold is re-indexed every 1 July, and the rules for the electric car exemption tighten from 1 April 2027. Do not assume today's position holds on the day the car is delivered.

The sedan costs more than the SUV

Here is one the launch coverage skipped. The i3 50 xDrive and the iX3 50 xDrive share a platform and the same 345kW and 645Nm. We list the iX3 50 xDrive at $109,900 before on-roads, checked against BMW Australia's site in July. The sedan is $112,900. So the lower, more slippery car is $3,000 dearer than the SUV, and what you get for it is range: up to 912km against the 805km we hold for the iX3. If you were choosing between them on price alone, the usual sedan discount is not there.

Image credit: BMW Australia. Overseas models shown: electric i3 (left) and petrol 3 Series (right).

What It Replaces, and What It Is Up Against

The new cars are not on sale yet, so they are not in the comparison below. What is in it are the cars you can order today: the outgoing 330i and M340i xDrive, the i4, and three sedans a buyer at this money is already looking at. Pick any two.

Against the petrol 320, the closest thing we hold with a checked price is the Audi A5 TFSI 150kW S line sedan at $79,900: 150kW, 340Nm and 7.8 seconds to 100km/h, so very nearly the same performance for $4,000 less, before you line up the equipment. Against the i3 the awkward comparison is the Tesla Model 3 Long Range at $61,900 with a 750km WLTP figure, which gets most of the i3 40's range for $35,000 less, in a smaller and much plainer car. The i3's answer is 800-volt charging, all-wheel drive and a cabin that is a generation newer. Whether that is worth the gap is exactly the kind of question the comparison tool is for.

Image credit: BMW Australia. Overseas model shown.

What BMW Has Not Told Us Yet

A price list is not a specification sheet, and several things a buyer needs are still missing for Australia:

• Fuel consumption and CO2 for the 320 and M350 xDrive, which is what decides running costs.
• Kerb weights, boot volume and towing capacity. We list the outgoing 330i sedan at 1,600kg braked. No figure has been published for the new car.
• An ANCAP rating. There is none for either car, and the old 3 Series rating does not transfer.
• Drive-away pricing, and whether ordering is open. BMW Australia's site shows the i3 as arriving in 2027 and still shows the outgoing 3 Series sedan.
• The wagon. A new Touring is confirmed globally and not for Australia.

More variants are coming overseas: a plug-in hybrid 3 Series, a hotter i3 to sit opposite the M350, and the next M3. None has Australian timing or pricing, so none of them is a reason to wait unless you specifically want one.

What This Means for Buyers

If you have an order in on a 330i, the question is whether you want the engine or the equipment. The new 320 is cheaper, newer inside and better equipped, and it is 1.6 seconds slower to 100km/h on BMW's own numbers. If run-out offers appear on the outgoing car between now and March, a discounted 330i with the bigger engine may suit you better than a list-price 320. We track them on our deals page.

If you want the electric car on a novated lease, the i3 40 xDrive at $96,900 does not work the way the i4 eDrive35 does, and the saving you lose is large. Either wait to see whether a cheaper rear-wheel drive i3 is confirmed, or price the i4 while it is still on sale. If you are paying cash and want the range, the i3 50 xDrive is the one to look at, and you should price the iX3 50 xDrive beside it, because the SUV is cheaper.

And if you want six cylinders in a 3 Series, it now costs $128,900 before on-roads, and the only alternative in the range is the four. We will add all four variants to the CarSorted directory with full specifications as BMW Australia publishes them.