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According to a rigorous scientific study entitled "Anecdotal Report of Things I've Noticed Lately," vanity license plates are more popular than ever. In recent days, I've spotted a Land Rover wearing "LUVMYLR4," a Jaguar XJ proclaiming it's "PURRFECT," and a Porsche 911 Targa that apparently figured in an ugly divorce -- or so I imagine, based on the plate: "SHEH8SME." I also noticed a white Ford Bronco adorned with "OJ 32," a vanity tag in such good taste that I've no doubt the gentleman was on his way to the opera.

Here's a new version of the world's quintessential sport sedan and perpetual All-Star, the BMW 3-series -- the designated target for car manufacturers everywhere. There'll be sleek convertibles, sporty wagons and coupes, and clumsy-looking SUV variants of this design from BMW in the coming months, but the whole of this iteration's character is embodied in the first-out four-door, the volume seller. At first glance, the 3-series sedan seems softer, more consensual, and less idiosyncratic than the last couple of Bangle-body 3s, but there is a lot more to this car than jumps to the untrained eye. I can confidently predict two things: that it will be another best-seller, and that it will evolve considerably during its production period. The first because it looks very good, the second because it has been cleverly designed to be easily and inexpensively changed visually.