German Car Forum

MUNICH – I pull into the left lane of the autobahn a few miles north of the Austrian border and put my foot down at about 80 mph (120 km/h).

The U.S.-spec BMW 335d sedan makes a churning, mechanical roar and lunges forward like a runaway locomotive, quickly hurtling to the electronic speed limiter at about 135 mph (217 km/h). The cars in front scamper to the right lane like frightened animals.

Once I'm settled in the passing lane, the cabin quickly becomes hushed, with only a faint thrum emanating from the engine compartment. For a few glorious kilometers, I am the undisputed king of the road, loping down the autobahn at a ridiculous speed in the most fuel-efficient vehicle BMW AG ever has offered for sale in the U.S.

Maybe the auto industry's fuel economy binge won't be so boring after all.

More than 20 new diesel-powered cars and trucks will be introduced in the U.S. during the next two years, but if any vehicle can change America's mind about compression-ignition engines, this is the one.

Preliminary average U.S. Environmental Protection Agency numbers are 23/36 mpg (10/6.5 L/100 km). Yet the car accelerates to 60 mph (97 km/h) in six seconds flat, thanks to BMW's 3.0L twin-turbo inline 6-cyl. diesel that makes 265 hp and a pavement-wrinkling 425 lb.-ft. (576 Nm) of torque in U.S. dress.


Full Article: New BMW 335d May be Diesel’s Best Shot in U.S.


M

What? Speed limiter at 217km/h???

In the U.S. we'll have one. Most non tuner German cars are limited to 130 or so mph here in the U.S. Porsche, AMG, M, S, RS etc. excluded.

M

Yeah, they do, but at 250 km/h (155 mph)... Is this something new or what?

Nothing new, been that way for years for tire reasons. A S550 here in the U.S. is limited to 130 mph or so.

M

Man, f me if i knew that!

Thanks a lot, Marcus!

Oh and btw, that sucks big time!

S600 is limited to 130MPH

Hmmm...loooks like the 3.0 Twin Turbo needs an update. The new 330d single turbo has 245 hp, 520 Nm and does 0-100 in 6.0 flat too...
And even better, it's top speed is 247 km/h, instead of 217 km/h
Then again, the U.S spec 335i is likely downtuned....265 hp is too little, but then again, they might measure in bhp, and not hp.

Well because of the urea system, the car loses 13hp but doesn't lose any torque. Plus in a diesel, those stats are totally acceptable imo.

Cannot wait to see what kind of reaction these things get. I love driving around in an X6 35d... impressive engine

Which 35d you're talking about? 5 or 3? My car (272hp) has an el. limited speed at 250 km/h... 335d too. I don't care for US models, i'm talking about EU models.

Anyhow, 286hp update was and is enough, but sooner or later the 3.0d will reach 270hp and for that reason i'd agree that the TT must reach the 300hp mark.

And i'm sure it will...Another 14 ponnies is nothing, can easily be done, they'll go above that this time.

It's funny how Americans want performance-diesels in order to save gas while here in Europe we're happy with a 318d or 320d.

Absolutely, I adore the 320d. That's definitely the car I'd get if I was on a budget. That thing will destroy a 325i on a highway run.

^ seriously, it's quite pathetic when you think about it. They should start buying smaller engines, rather than big Diesels that still drink a lot compared to 'normal' EU diesels...

Anyways..Tyc: I was talking about the 330d there. Here in EU, 330d does 247 km/h, 335d/535d 250 km/h, and the U.S 335d does 217 km/h.

The 0-100 km/h times for the U.S 335d and EU 330d are both 6.0 seconds.

Pathetic? The diesel market in the U.S. (as small as it is) is way different from Europe as are consumer tastes. The only way diesels are going to make it over here is with bigger engines first. They provide the type of performance Americans want and still get you the right economy over similary sized gasoline engines.

M

I agree, perception is everything when it comes to the American diesel market. But a 2 liter diesel is far from ho hum and like I said, will keep up with a 2.5 liter petrol engine, while returning ridiculous mileage.

There are cars out there will small engines that are quite successful, i.e the Jetta and Beetle. All in due time

OK.

True they've got to build the market first. Even in doing that I don't see a 4-cylinder diesel BMW being a hot item either way. American luxury car buyers have a thing against 4-cylinder engines. The VWs can get away with it for obvious reasons.

M

Actually i know people who are happy with 1.4l small french cars

Same here. A 318d or 320d would be just fine. Fast enough, fuel-efficient enough and FUN ENOUGH too.

Same deal with the C-Class. I find cars like the C180 Kompressor or C220 CDI far more appealing than the C63 AMG when it comes down to everyday running costs.

LOL

Small engines can be fun, especially in the city. I remember when I was doing errands for an advertising firm in Munich (had an internship with them) with a Volkswagen Lupo 1.0. In the city that thing was fun to drive. Zippy and quick, not slow at all. It only got problematic when I was doing Autobahn-Kurier drives. The thing was soooooo slow there...

In the US you are considered more dangerous then waving a loaded gun in the air when you do 150 kph, so I can uderstand why cars are limited even further. The guide on the factory tour made the remark that us spec cars go the fastest they ever will on the test stand leaving the factory (150 kph).
Us spec 335d has 265 hp but I guess the 330d isn't exported to the us, that's why they don't have to worry. A US spec 330d will probably have less power too, so in case they decide to export the 330d there also will be no problems. And a car with 265 hp and 576 Nm will do

Would be more than happy to have the 320D, if for no other reason than the lower entry price, unfortunately it's not at least at this point not being offered. Suspect another angle to this being that with the cost of certification the makers want to get their money back upfront, and are only offering models with higher margins.

kwhiner