Boston.com's view

There may be no more perfectly executed line of affordable automobiles on the planet than the BMW 3 Series, from design to handling to fit and performance.

Sure, Toyota’s Camry and Honda’s Accord perfectly suit those for whom an auto is just a conveyance, but if you want to travel with a certain zest, the 3 Series is a sensible and sizzling line of automobiles to consider, even if “affordable” becomes debatable in the $40,000 range.

I’ve reluctantly just let the best of the 3 Series leave my driveway: the 2007 328xi Coupe. It’s so good that I’d buy it. Sure, the M3 has more snarl, and the hardtop droptop just unveiled at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit arrives with a cute buzz, but car enthusiasts are drawn to cars like this one — an all-wheel-drive performance coupe that sizzles in summer and slices snow and ice in winter.

Looks are subjective, of course, but this long-hooded, beefed rear pillar, hunched trunk coupe looks fast even when it’s going nowhere.

Inside, ensconced in an eight-way adjustable power driver’s seat, this is a car that fits like a tight shirt. You can adjust the sound system and other features from the steering wheel. Even the infernal BMW iDrive system (think computer mouse between the seats) seems more intuitive than intrusive in this model because all the needed adjustments appear on a screen at center console.

The 328xi comes with a 3-liter, 24-valve, inline six-cylinder engine. It produces 230 horsepower (that feels like 300) and 200 lb.-ft. of torque (the tug you feel when you pass at highway speed).

As yet, the more powerful 300-horsepower engine from the 335 i is not available in the 328xi. But that’s not a problem because linked to a six-speed manual transmission (as tested) or a six-speed automatic, the 328xi has plenty of zip. I found the tight toss of the manual transmission to feel almost like a race car’s because of its snap and efficiency.

And even as I played with this hot coupe, I felt safe. The car features dynamic stability and brake control, traction control, hill descent control, front-seat side-impact air bags, and — for passengers — front and rear side-impact bags.

Imagine a car you can feed power to so that it carves whatever line you choose under icy or snowy conditions. That means that in a Boston neighborhood where parking is at a premium, the 328xi can ease into and out of a parking space buried in snow. It also will handle well when there’s several inches of new snow on the ground, allowing you to travel to parts of ski country where even some SUV drivers dare not tread.

The ski package available on the 328xi is part of a $600 optional cold weather group that includes heated front seats and a mid-rear-seat pouch that extrudes from the trunk into the passenger compartment to hold skis.

That option, coupled with a $3,150 “premium package,” helps boost the base price of $37,1000 to $42,770. But the premium package might not be worth the added expense. In addition to leather added to leather that comes standard with the car, you will pay for an integrated garage door opener, an auto-dimming rear-view mirror, auto-dimming outside mirrors, a compass, extra lumbar support, and Bluetooth technology.

But that’s a minor criticism of the BMW. This coupe is stiff, cool, fun, and features all-wheel drive.

I’m not sure why more automakers do not build cars like this one.