BMW 320d (F30) Test Drive Report
If, at this moment, you are complaining of unreasonable deadlines and impossible goals set by your boss, console yourself with the knowledge that you’ve not been handed the tricky task of designing a successor of the 3 Series, the most important model in BMW’s line-up, accounting for 12 million sales in 35 years over five model generations.
The sixth generation BMW 3 Series, code-named F30 by the engineers, made its global debut in October last year and was officially launched in Malaysia just a couple of months ago. Initial units are fully imported, and come with a choice of three variants. Local assembly will eventually commence, and consumers can then look forward to more variants, better specs, competitive pricing, or any combination of the three.
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| BMW opted a play-safe approach with the F30 design. |
The Test Car
Our first date with the F30 sees it arrive at our office doorstep in its most basic 320d format, and the purchase of one would set your bank account back by RM268,800 before adding an estimated RM7,140 for insurance. Moving further up, your next options will be the 328i with a 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine at RM309,800 and the six-cylinder 335i at RM488,800.
The 320d’s 2.0-litre N47 turbodiesel engine is a familiar one carried over from its predecessor and it is still being used in the X1, X3, and 520d. It spins out a highly usable 380Nm of torque between 1,750 and 2,750 rpm before unleashing a full pelt of 184hp at 4,000rpm. Standard transmission is the ZF 8-speed auto that is currently BMW’s staple gearbox.
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| A proper handbrake – a rarity in this price range. |
Interior & Equipment
The 320d is packed with just about enough equipment to qualify it as a luxury vehicle, but it is by no means generous. Keyless comfort access, satellite navigation, and reverse camera are items notable for their absence, and the Drive Experience Control switch is also scaled down from what we’ve seen earlier in the 5 Series, featuring only three drive modes – Eco Pro, Comfort and Sport. There are no active dampers, so suspension settings remain the same in all three modes.
Cabin design is noticeably improved from the E90’s in terms of build, practicality, and cabin atmosphere. There are properly usable cup holders and storage spaces, but BMW’s choice of materials are not likely to trouble even the Volkswagen Passat, say nothing about the impeccably built Audi A4. Plastic panels are harder than what you would expect at this price range, and some parts of the dash give a tinny sound when knocked.
On a pleasing side note, BMW still fits the F30 3 Series with a conventional handbrake lever rather than the electronic parking brake which European cars increasingly favour. No doubt the latter lends a more sophisticated cabin appearance, but nothing beats the sense of security of yanking the handbrake when you come to a full stop. Then there are those of you who enjoy the occasional handbrake turn.
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| iDrive system in our test car came without sat nav. |
Driving Experience
It may not have a thrumming six-cylinder under its hood, but the 320d’s engine is worth a few words of praise. You’ll have to forgive that it sounds like a Toyota Hilux on idle, but against its petrol-powered rivals, a game of Top Trumps will definitely favour the BMW – comparable power, superior torque, and significantly better economy. Claimed fuel consumption is 4.5 l/100km, and our test average 6.5 l/100km is still a figure many hybrids will die for.
It is one thing to quote fantastic numbers in the specs sheet, but it is quite another to deliver them on the road. Well, I’ll leave you with two anecdotes of my time with the 320d for you to consider; first, the 320d was able to convincingly pull away from a Volkswagen Golf GTI at pull pelt, and second, there was still no sign of the fuel warning light coming on even after clocking 670km from the previous refill. Many cars can do one of the two things mentioned above, not both.
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BMW will attribute this impressive combination of performance and economy to its suite of EfficientDynamics technologies that include, among other things, Auto Start/Stop technology. Just as we experienced in the 520i and 528i earlier this year, BMW’s execution still lacks polish – the engine restarts with an alarmingly violent rattle. This is definitely one area where the engineers have their work cut out for the facelift.
The handling front is another area where BMW has great expectations to live up to, and here is where we see Munich has made some changes in its priorities. Compared to the E90, the F30, without active dampers in our test car’s 320d guise, feels noticeably softer and more pliant. It does not corner as tightly as its predecessor, though it is still pretty competent. Purists will cry foul at BMW for diluting its values, but compare this to the rock-hard E90 320d M Sport, the present-day 320d is a far more attractive prospect to live with on a day-to-day basis.
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| Clean look should age well. |
Verdict
The new F30 3 Series can be seen as a substantial improvement over its predecessor in many ways. The cabin could use a further boost in quality, but overall functionality and practicality are both excellent. At least there are now enough spaces now for your coins, keys, and mobile phones.
Driving experience remains the new 3 Series’ hallmark, but it is no longer as hard-edged as it was with the E90, at least not in the F30’s standard format. We will review the other variants at later dates, but the 320d’s dream combination of performance and economy is the most convincing argument in its case.
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