Even though it's a non iDrive-equipped car, I'm not a big fan of our BMW's radio. Excuse me: "Audio head unit." For a start, having the same buttons assigned to different functions, depending on the menu level I'm at, is not my cup of tea, herbal or otherwise. Menu-based setups take the driver's eyes off what he or she should be looking at: the road.
But at least the 330i has steering wheel controls, which make up for a lot of egronomic sins. Once your favorites are programmed, simply toggle through the different modes with the upper left button, and switch between presets via the arrows to the right...
But on one frustrating point, at least, they blew it on this car. The mode selector goes from "Sat" to "Aux" to "CD" to "Tuner", but doesn't distinguish between AM and FM, as every other such-equipped car on the planet can do. So when you want to switch bands, as us traffic report dependent LA commuters do every 5 minutes, the steering controls can't help. It's the little things that gnaw at you.
Still, it's a bitchin car, and I'm going to hate to see it go.
Dan Edmunds, Director of Automotive Testing @ 24,431 miles
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