Compare the2025 BMW 3 Series SedanVS 2024 Volkswagen Arteon

The 3 Series Sedan’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Arteon doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the 3 Series Sedan are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Arteon doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The 3 Series Sedan has standard Active Head Restraints, which use a specially designed headrest to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Active Head Restraints system moves the headrests forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Arteon doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

The 3 Series Sedan’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Arteon doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the 3 Series Sedan and the Arteon have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, rearview cameras, available all wheel drive, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, around view monitors and rear cross-path warning.

The 3 Series Sedan’s corrosion warranty is 5 years and unlimited miles longer than the Arteon’s (12/unlimited vs. 7/100,000).

BMW pays for scheduled maintenance on the 3 Series Sedan for 1 year and 16000 miles longer than Volkswagen pays for maintenance for the Arteon (3/36,000 vs. 2/20,000).

The battery on the 3 Series Sedan is in the trunk, which protects it from hot underhood temperatures that can degrade battery life. By keeping the 3 Series Sedan’s battery 20 to 30 degrees cooler, its life is increased by years. The Arteon’s battery is in the hot engine compartment.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the 3 Series Sedan third among compact premium cars in their 2024 Initial Quality Study. The Arteon isn’t in the top three in its category.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that BMW vehicles are better in initial quality than Volkswagen vehicles. With 35 fewer problems per 100 vehicles, JD Power ranks BMW higher than Volkswagen.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that BMW vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen With 77 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks BMW higher than Volkswagen.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that BMW vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks BMW 18 places higher in reliability than Volkswagen.

The M340i’s standard 3.0 turbo 6-cylinder hybrid produces 86 more horsepower (386 vs. 300) and 103 lbs.-ft. more torque (398 vs. 295) than the Arteon’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

On the EPA test cycle the 3 Series Sedan gets better mileage than the Arteon:

Regenerative brakes improve the 3 Series Sedan’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Arteon doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

An eight-speed automatic is standard on the BMW 3 Series Sedan, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only a seven-speed automatic is available for the Arteon.

The 3 Series Sedan’s launch control uses engine electronics to hold engine RPM’s precisely in order to provide the most stable and rapid acceleration possible, using all of the available traction. The Arteon doesn’t offer launch control.

For better stopping power the M340i’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Arteon:

The 3 Series Sedan stops much shorter than the Arteon:

Changing a flat tire near traffic can be dangerous and inconvenient. The run-flat tires available on the 3 Series Sedan can be driven up to 50 miles without any air pressure, allowing you to drive to a service station for a repair. The Arteon doesn’t offer run-flat tires.

The 330i handles at .95 G’s, while the Arteon SEL Premium R-Line pulls only .84 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The M340i executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.9 seconds quicker than the Arteon SEL Premium R-Line (25 seconds @ .77 average G’s vs. 26.9 seconds @ .65 average G’s).

The BMW 3 Series Sedan may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs up to about 300 pounds less than the Volkswagen Arteon.

The 3 Series Sedan is 5.6 inches shorter than the Arteon, making the 3 Series Sedan easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The design of the BMW 3 Series Sedan amounts to more than styling. The 3 Series Sedan has an aerodynamic coefficient of drag of .26 Cd. That is significantly lower than the Arteon (.3) and many sports cars. A more efficient exterior helps keep the interior quieter and helps the 3 Series Sedan get better fuel mileage.

The front grille of the 3 Series Sedan uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Arteon doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The 3 Series Sedan has .8 inches more front headroom, .8 inches more front legroom and .5 inches more rear headroom than the Arteon.

Pulling a handle automatically lowers the 3 Series Sedan’s rear seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Arteon doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

With its sedan body style, valet key, locking rear seatbacks and remote trunk release lockout, the 3 Series offers cargo security. The Arteon’s hatchback body style and non-lockable folding seat defeat cargo security.

The engine in the 3 Series Sedan is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Arteon. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because the accessory belts are in front.

The 3 Series Sedan offers an optional heads-up display that projects speed, warning and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Arteon doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

Compared to the Volkswagen Arteon, the BMW 3 Series Sedan eliminates the need for separate garage door openers and associated risks of losing, breaking, or having dead batteries with its standard integrated Homelink® universal remote controlled from the rear view mirror.

The 3 Series Sedan’s optional Parking Assistant Plus can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. The Arteon SEL Premium’s automatic parking system requires operating the brakes and transmission to safely park.

The 3 Series Sedan is available in both rear-wheel drive and all-wheel drive configurations. The Arteon doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

The 3 Series Sedan will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the 3 Series Sedan will retain 51.33% to 52.95% of its original price after five years, while the Arteon only retains 35.76% to 36.38%.

Consumer Reports® recommends both the BMW 3 Series Sedan and the Volkswagen Arteon, based on reliability, safety and performance.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the 3 Series Sedan third among compact premium cars in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The Arteon isn’t in the top three.

The BMW 3 Series outsold the Volkswagen Arteon by over 14 to one during 2023.