Fishing for efficiency at BMW

BMW is ramping up the application of its fuel and emission-saving EfficientDynamics technology on 330d and 335i sedan models.

Both gain technical upgrades that result in improvements of 8.8 per cent and 4.2 per cent respectively in fuel consumption.

The 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbodiesel 330d now delicately sips at the rate of 6.2L/100km, where previously it required 6.8L/100km. The twin-turbo petrol 335i improves from 9.6L/100km to 9.2L/100km.

New technology applied to the 330d includes what BMW calls Brake Energy Regeneration, in which electric power is generated and stored in the battery as the car brakes, and electric power steering that only uses energy when required.

Brake Energy Regeneration is also adopted on the 335i to improve the efficiency of its 225kW 3.0-litre twin-turbo six. It continues with hydraulically assisted power steering.

The 3.0-litre 330d comes off a good base that includes all-alloy construction, twin camshafts and four-valve cylinder heads. It produces a solid 180kW at 4000rpm, along with 520Nm of torque at 1750rpm and BMW claims it will accelerate from zero to 100km/h in a swift 6.2 seconds.

With 225kW and 400Nm of torque, the 3.0-litre 335i also gets BMW's high-precision direct fuel injection system and is among the company's six-cylinder performance leaders with the ability to reach 100km/h from zero in 5.8 seconds (quickest six-cylinder is the identically-engined 135i Coupe which, in manual transmission form, gets to 100km/h in just 5.3 seconds).

The 330d is not the best performer when it comes to fuel consumption in the 3 Series lineup though: That gong belongs to the 130kW/350Nm 2.0-litre four-cylinder 320d that consumes 5.4L/100km on the combined cycle and emits 144g/km of CO2.

BMW's press release details unfortunately did not include a CO2 exhaust emission figure but it can be presumed the readings, in both cases, will be less than before. Prior to the additional technology, the 330d and 335i produced 180g/km and 231g/km of CO2 respectively. [Ed: see below]

EfficientDynamics technology in use across the 3 Series range:
> Brake Energy Regeneration: 320d Sedan, 330d Sedan, 335i Sedan, 320d Touring, 335i Touring, 320d Coupé, 330d Coupé, 335i Coupé, 320d Convertible, 330d Convertible, 335i Convertible.
> Electric Power Steering: 320d Sedan, 330d Sedan, 320d Touring, 320d Coupé, 330d Coupé, 320d Convertible, 330d Convertible.
> High-precision Direct Injection: 335i Sedan, 335i Touring, 335i Coupé, 335i Touring.
> Third-generation Diesel Technology: 320d Sedan, 330d Sedan, 320d Touring, 320d Coupé, 330d Coupé, 320d Convertible, 330d Convertible.
> Optimum Shift Indicator: 335i Coupé (manual), 335i Convertible (manual).

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Ed's note: Post-publication BMW Australia advised new CO2 stats for the 330d and 335i Sedans. The 330d's new combined CO2 number is 164g/km (down from 180). while the 335i emits 221g/km (down from 231).