Weekly Top 3: 2009 BMW 335d -- Why "d" Is Better Than "i"
This, friends, is the 335d, BMW's new diesel-fueled 3 Series sedan. It starts at $43,900, which is about $2,500 more than a comparably equipped 335i. Pound for pound and dollar for dollar, the petrol-powered 335i is one of the finest automobiles on the planet. But the 335d is even better, and here's why.
3. Torque. Lots of Torque.
The 335i's twin-turbocharged motor has been justly lauded for its low-rpm kick -- not many cars can serve up 300 pound-feet of torque at 1,400 rpm. But after driving the 335d, the 335i feels like it hasn't been eating its Wheaties. The former's 3.0-liter (twin-)turbodiesel inline-6 assaults you with a frightful 425 lb-ft of torque at 1,750 rpm. Track tests say the 335i is quicker to 60 mph by more than half a second (low fives versus 5.9 for the 335d), but I'll take the sledgehammer surge of 425 dawdler-dispatching lb-ft any day.
2. Range. Lots of Range.
I averaged 32 miles per gallon over nearly 1,000 miles of mixed driving in the 335d, and I wasn't exactly timid with the throttle. The tank holds 16 gallons of diesel. Crunch the numbers, and you've got a real-world range of more than 500 miles per tank. The poor 335i would do well to crest 350 miles between fills -- it's got the same fuel capacity and EPA ratings of 17 mpg city, 26 highway and 20 combined.
1. Sounds Like a Dump Truck Gone Wild.
It's frankly a bit absurd that BMW stuffs this monumentally powerful diesel engine into the diminutive 3 Series, and the 335d has got an appropriately absurd soundtrack. Its gruff rumble at idle evokes truck-stop parking lots. Throttle blips conjure images of black smoke puffing out of big-rig smokestacks. At wide-open throttle, the 335d emits a unique baritone roar -- sort of like how a diesel-powered airplane might sound while thundering down the runway. It's the kind of aural accompaniment that will have your passengers fearfully exclaiming "What is this thing?!" as they're thrown back into their seats. If that's not worth $2500, I don't know what is.
Josh Sadlier, Associate Editor, Edmunds.com
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- S.B. True January 2, 2009, 4:00 AM
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Nice writeup! It makes me want to go out and test drive one.
I love the diesel sound on small cars. When you hear my Golf TDI coming from around a corner, you'd think its a F-350 or something.
7-series would seem like a better match for that beast of a motor. In a 3-series, I'd rather have one of the smaller diesels. Hopefully this thing sells well enough that they bring over the 318d or 320d for the rest of us. 50 mpg - come on! The cheaper fuel gets, the more mpg you need to justify the additional cost of diesel.
We often feel that a diesel isn't responsive enough for a performance car. But you make it sound quite lively. This bodes well for the coming invasion of diesels.
Wish it was in my price range. Damnit BMW, bring the 123d coupe over to the US now!
i don't feel its insane enough... and german diesels don't respond as well to chip tuning as american diesels. this thing can only be bumped up to 500 lb/ft of tq... that might make up the difference in acceleration vs a stock 335i... but the 335i is cheaper, as is gasoline... and a cruising range of 500miles isn't very impressive considering some diesels can do 1000miles! (we don't get any of them though)
I'll still take the significantly faster 335i please....
I just crunched the numbers on this, using average prices for premium gas and low sulfur diesel for the East Coast region, available for download here: http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/dnav/pet/pet_pri_gnd_dcus_nus_m.htm
Since ultra low sulfur diesel has recorded prices on their spreadsheet (February 2007) to now, diesel has averaged a whopping $.144 more than premium ($3.43 vs $3.29).
Assuming the 335i gets 20 mpg (it's EPA combined rating) and that the the 335d gets 30 mpg (a rather conservative estimate), and saying that both cars are driven 15000 miles per year, the 335i will cost you $2464 in fuel, while the 335d will cost $1715 in fuel, a difference of $750 in the diesel's favor.
In other words, even completely ignoring the impact of depreciation (diesels typically fair much better than their gas powered brethren), you'd make that initial $2500 back in 3 years and 4 months (yeah, I know you could in theory invest that $2500 and have some $2950 in today's dollars if you earn 5%, but things get complicated when you take that stuff into consideration and the difference isn't big enough to matter).
Also, since diesel has historically been cheaper than gas (the data shows it only became consistently more expensive than premium from August 2005 on), you can probably feel a little more comfortable about prices driving the diesel
bimmer.
Thus, if I wasn't a college student today, I'd buy the diesel and use the yearly savings on replacing more rear tires and doing more burnouts.
I agree w/your analysis jr1m90. Furthermore, a 5/yo VW TDI has a KBB retail $3,500 higher than a comparable gas VW. Its logical to assume that same relationship will hold w/ the 335d and 335i 5 years from now, but over a larger base. So I would not be surprised if 335ds KBB retail $5,000 over 335is 5 years down the road. Someone may want to use some of that "profit" for a $500 chip that w/d equalize the performance and I bet 500 lb/ft of torque w/d be mighty fun any day.