BMW 320d 2019 Review

It wasn’t that long ago that everyone had gone crazy for diesel power. From executive class saloons to hatchbacks, Aussies belatedly twigged to the fuel efficiency and performance benefits of turbo-diesel that our European counterparts had been savouring for years.

While we might have been late adopters, when Australia got aboard the trend we did so with gusto and the market for diesel passenger cars here exploded by 57 per cent between 2012-17, with premium European brands leading the charge. And then came ‘dieselgate’.

The infamous emissions cheating scandal began in the US in 2015 but took some time before things really hit the fan here. Once it did, however, the pull back on diesel was significant, with sales of diesel-powered passenger cars to private buyers falling by around 30 per cent in 2018.

All of which is a long-winded preamble to make the point this diesel-powered G20 generation BMW 3 Series 320d is already something of a rarity and may become even more so in the future.

The cost of entry to the 2019 carsales Car of the Year family is in the low $60K range and the BMW 320d is just a few dollars more.

At $67,900, it’s $3000 more than the 320i to be exact but the 320d is still one of the more affordable prestige diesels on sale Down Under. At this price, and providing you’ve not gone crazy with the options, you’ll incur only a small amount of luxury car tax (LCT), thanks to the 2019-20 threshold of $67,525.

It’s no back to basics offer either. Indeed, the BMW 320d comes with an impressive level of equipment with standard features including adaptive LED headlights, three-zone climate control, head-up display, automatic parking, a 12.3-inch digital dash and 10.25-inch central touchscreen, wireless smartphone charger, 10-speaker stereo, DAB+ digital radio, Apple CarPlay, and 18-inch alloys.

In deference to our market, which tends to demand a high level of fit out, the 320d also comes standard with an M Sport pack, which includes an M aerodynamics package and a chunky leather-trimmed M steering wheel. M Sport suspension is also included, although there’s a less flashy Luxury Line fit out available as a no cost option.

Standard safety features include six airbags, lane-departure warning, autonomous emergency braking, blind spot monitoring, forward autonomous emergency braking, rear cross-traffic alert, rear collision alert and speed sign recognition all part of the standard kit.

Our test car also came fitted with optional extras including 19-inch double spoke M alloys ($1900); metallic paint ($2000); Vernasca leather interior $2500; glass sunroof ($2900) and heated front seats ($700).

Every BMW 3 Series still comes only with a basic 3-year unlimited kilometre warranty, which is disappointing, given that mainstream passenger car warranties now pushing out to five, seven and even eight years.

On the plus side, prepaid servicing for the first five years or 80,000km costs $1565 ($4110 including brakes and wipers), which is fairly sharp by class standards.

The fact the new G20 generation 3 Series won our car of the year should be a clue.

Yet at first flush having driven the 320d in Luxury Line trim I feared BMW hadn’t gone far enough with this new model in its pursuit of quality leaders Audi and Mercedes-Benz. However, stepping up to this better-dressed 320d with M Sport pack alleviated that concern. Such niceties as full leather sports seats, special Tetragon aluminium finishes, and smart stitching on dash, doors and seats really make an impression.

On the downside, the car came fitted with optional 19-inch alloys, which made the ride noticeably more fidgety than the Luxury Line we’d previously driven on 18s.

The four-cylinder twin-turbo diesel boasts outputs of 140kW and 400Nm, the latter figure being on par with the pricier 330i. More importantly for diesel buyers is this engine’s frugal fuel consumption figure of 4.5L/100km (Combined). At that rate, and with a fuel tank capacity of 60L, you could drive from Sydney to Melbourne and halfway back again between fills.

The 320d’s impressive efficiency gives it a comfortable advantage over its stablemates the 320i (6.3L/100km), the 330i (8.9L/100km) and even the hybrid 330e (6.4L/100km).

For reasons already outlined, there’s no equivalent turbo-diesel in the soon-to be updated Audi A4 range to draw a comparison with, nor does Jaguar’s XE offer a diesel rival anymore, but over at Mercedes-Benz you can still buy a C220d for $65,200.

The C-Class diesel undercuts its BMW rival by $2700 on MRLP, matches it on power and torque (143kW/400Nm) and gets an extra cog in its nine-speed transmission, but a delivers a slightly less thrifty fuel consumption of 4.7L/100km.

The BMW diesel is hitched to a highly effective eight-speed automatic and this combo launches the 320d from 0-100km/h in a decently swift 6.8sec. That’s four tenths quicker than the petrol powered 320i, but a full second slower than the 330i. Perhaps more importantly, it’s seven-tenths quicker than the C220d Benz, due in part to the BMW’s svelte 1450kg kerb weight, versus the 1570kg C-Class.

There was a time when a gleaming new BMW 3-Series was a must-have accessory for every upwardly mobile young executive. Today, driving tastes have changed and the appeal of the mid-sized prestige saloons has largely been subsumed by the deluge of premium SUVs.

In many ways that’s understandable as the higher seating position and more lifestyle-oriented accommodation means SUVs are the multi-tool of the motoring world. But try as they might, engineers still haven’t been able to make SUVs as satisfying to drive as a good sports sedan.

Even in this lower horsepower diesel configuration, the G20 320d is a true driver’s car – a real return to form for the 3 Series and BMW. Despite not quite having the keen throttle response of the petrol 330i, the 320d glides along on an effortless wave of readily available torque, while the car itself is endowed with fundamentally excellent rear-wheel-drive chassis dynamics.

It feels like a machine that’s been built by people who like to drive, with keen reflexes, excellent road-holding and the sort of fluid connection between car and driver that BMW has largely built its brand upon.

After years of category domination, the 3-Series has had to eat some Mercedes-Benz C-Class dust in recent years, as the Benz marketing machine went into full blitzkrieg mode. As a result, the C-Class crushes both the 3 Series and the Audi A4 in the Australian sales, while all three are in turn being overwhelmed by their in-house SUV stablemates.

However, as good a car as the C-Class is, its sales lead doesn’t paint an accurate picture of how close these traditional rivals are. In fact, our own comparison earlier this year between the 320d and a petrol-powered Mercedes-Benz C 200 gave the win to the BMW.

While the 3 Series may not be regarded first and foremost as a family car, it’s three box design and mid-size dimensions mean it can comfortably fulfil this role for smaller broods.

The new G20 3 Series is slightly longer (76mm), wider (16mm) and taller (1mm) than its predecessor, and it sits on a wheelbase that’s been expanded by 41mm. The extra overall length and wheelbase are most appreciated in the rear seat, which offers a bit more legroom (11mm) to stretch out.

That said, the 3 Series is a mid-sized car, so it will better suit smaller families with school-aged kids – or empty nesters. While rear seat legroom is good by class standards, it’s only adequate for an average-sized adult, and tight for anyone of a larger physique.

The 480-litre boot does mean you can pack to travel for four people. The rear seat also offers a versatile 40/20/40 spilt fold function, which is handy if transporting extra-long items.

The shift away from diesel in the passenger car segment now has momentum. Much of this has to do with the fact many European car-makers are getting out of diesel in response to tough new emissions standards.

As such it’s possible that this may be one of the last of the breed of new-generation passenger car diesel engines that we see from BMW, so it’s appropriate that it is such an excellent unit. Decades of dedicated development have culminated in this remarkably efficient, smooth, powerful and responsive engine. The fact that it comes packaged in a machine with such thoroughly impressive dynamics means you can enjoy driving it enthusiastically yet not pay much of a penalty at the bowser.

The fact is, for some people, diesel is still an excellent choice. And when it comes to mid-sized prestige sedans, we rate the BMW 320d as the pick of the crop.

How much does the 2019 BMW 320d M Sport cost?
Price: $67,900 (plus on-road costs)
As tested: $77,900 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder twin turbo-diesel
Output: 140kW/400Nm
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Fuel: 4.5L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 119g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety Rating: 5-star ANCAP (2019)