Prepare to have your prejudices shattered and your perceptions altered. Prepare to relearn everything you thought you knew about performance cars. Prepare to drive the 2009 BMW 335d.The 335d spearheads a freshened 3 Series range for North America that will be unveiled at the Los Angeles show next month. Key changes to the 3 Series for 2009 include a new hood with dual character lines leading down to a broader, chrome-ringed double kidney grille. There are new bumpers front and rear, new exterior rearview mirrors, plus new headlights and taillights. The front track has been increased 6 mm, while the rear has been pumped out 24 mm. Six new wheel designs are available.
Inside are mild upgrades to the interior, including a smattering of classier new materials, revised instrument graphics, and the latest-generation iDrive system, featuring the new controller and button cluster from the just-released 7 Series and the same glitzy, high-resolution graphic interface.
The big news is under the hood, however. The 328i and 335i drivetrains continue unchanged for 2009, but they are joined by BMW's first 50-state-legal diesel, a twin-turbo, 3.0L straight-six that delivers 265 hp at 4220 rpm, and a thumping 425 lb-ft of torque between 1750 and 2250 rpm. Driving through a six-speed automatic transmission, BMW claims this engine will propel the 335d from 0 to 60 mph in 6.0 sec while delivering 23 mpg city and 36 mpg on the highway.
It sounds too good to be true -- sport-sedan performance with econo-car mileage. But after our first drive of a U.S. spec 335d in Europe, it appears to deliver on the promise. After 120 miles of stop-start Munich traffic, flat-out autobahn blasts (we can confirm that cruising at 120 mph the 335d's engine is turning a lazy 3100 rpm, and that the U.S.-spec version is limited to an indicated 134 mph), and 80 mph cruising on Austrian motorways, the trip computer on our tester showed it was averaging 30.9 mpg.
It sounds too good to be true -- sport-sedan performance with econo-car mileage. But after our first drive of a U.S. spec 335d in Europe, it appears to deliver on the promise. After 120 miles of stop-start Munich traffic, flat-out autobahn blasts (we can confirm that cruising at 120 mph the 335d's engine is turning a lazy 3100 rpm, and that the U.S.-spec version is limited to an indicated 134 mph), and 80 mph cruising on Austrian motorways, the trip computer on our tester showed it was averaging 30.9 mpg.
An afternoon storming up and over the 6800-ft, switchback-laden, Jaufenpass from Austria into Italy, frequently rerunning sections for video, gassing it hard out of the turns, and waiting for photo ops with the engine idling took its toll -- after 203.5 miles, we topped the 335d up with 8.633 gal of diesel, for an average consumption of 23.6 mpg, impressive under the circumstances. On U.S. Interstates, cruising at a lazy 70-80 mph, we figure 36 mpg is easily achievable. With the 335d's 16.2-gal tank, that means at least 550 miles between fuel stops.
While there's a lot that feels 3 Series-familiar -- the taut, tied-down chassis, the crisp steering, the agility -- the 335d is a totally different kind of drive. Forget the silken rush of power and the marvelous top-end bite you've always gotten from a BMW inline-six -- the 335d's twin-turbo diesel growls like Tom Waits gargling Irish Cream and produces a tidal wave of torque from just over 1000 rpm. Squeeze the pedal, and the 335d makes an elastic lunge for the horizon, the transmission shifting early to surf the torque. It doesn't sound like you're going fast. But you are.
While there's a lot that feels 3 Series-familiar -- the taut, tied-down chassis, the crisp steering, the agility -- the 335d is a totally different kind of drive. Forget the silken rush of power and the marvelous top-end bite you've always gotten from a BMW inline-six -- the 335d's twin-turbo diesel growls like Tom Waits gargling Irish Cream and produces a tidal wave of torque from just over 1000 rpm. Squeeze the pedal, and the 335d makes an elastic lunge for the horizon, the transmission shifting early to surf the torque. It doesn't sound like you're going fast. But you are.
-MOTORTREND.COM
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