So, I began this hub, with the intent to speculate on what the "BMW 340i" would be, what current 340i's now are, and whatnot. However, I decided it wasn't going anywhere, and dropped it.

Yet somehow, my hub score on this has been going down to tubes and I'm in danger of being flagged, DESPITE the fact that this was never published. Oh, the joys. So I decided I'd try to redeem this hub and go somewhere with it. Thus, the BMW 340i!

So what was the 340i in the past? It was never a real BMW, that's what. The 3-series in the US has gone as low as the BMW 318i and as high as the BMW 335i. No official BMW V8 has ever been placed in a 3er straight from the factory.

However, many custom jobs have been done to try to make a 340i. The image I attached is one of many.

Which V8s do a number of these tuners use? It depends on what fits, really, but there are three common ones: The 4.0 liter Lexus V8, the 4.4 liter BMW V8, and a 5.7-liter LS1.

For certain generations of 3, such as E21, the Lexus V8 was the only one that would fit. For later generations, due to the increase space under the hood, the BMW V8 is used. Those two are the "purist's" 340i, for those who want to simulate, by using an overhead-cam V8 (especially one form the same company), what a real BMW 340i would be like.

The LS1, on the other hand, is a simulation of pure badassedness. The LS1, despite its high displacement, is actually a rather compact engine, and has been stuffed into practically anything on wheels. It is an OHV V8, the classic modern-day muscle car engine, so the intent here is NOT to simulate a real V8 BMW 3-series. The intent is just to do something awesome. Put some nice pipes on it, and listen to the beautiful sound of a muscle car coming out of what looks like an unassuming European sport-compact.

And as for a BMW 340i ever officially coming from the factory? I have good reason to believe it will happen.

Nobody ever thought there would be a BMW 335i, but now there is one. And obviously, it doesn't have a 3.5-liter engine - it uses a 3.0 with turbos on it. It's tuned to put out official numbers of 300 horsepower, 300 lb-feet of torque (although independent tests claim close to 330-340 horsepower). So obviously, what BMW is doing is rating the last two numbers not after the actual engine displacement, but to what engine displacements the power compares to. Power and torque are a forever-increasing thing, and unless BMW decides to either rest on its laurels or (for whatever reason) power down, there is no doubt in my mind that they will pump up the power of the future 3-series. They will have to - the BMW 3-series has a ton of competition, and as soon as one of their competitors gets the chance to out-power BMW, they will jump on it.

So what could be a BMW 340i? Perhaps a twin-turbo 3.0 liter (or even 3.2 liter) juiced up to 350-380 horsepower and 340-370 lb-feet of torque. And knowing BMW, they could find a way to STILL get 30+ MPG out of such a vehicle.

The prospect of that alone makes me drool. If they go that route, imagine what the next M3 would be like. But  will they go that route?

While you're pontificating that, here's an old BMW Z3 with an LS1 inside. Enjoy the sound of THIS.