2014 BMW 328d Quick Drive

Motor Trend fell deeply, rhapsodically in love with its long-term diesel stormer, the 2009 BMW 335d. That 3.0-liter/265-hp/425-lb-ft I-6 hotrod oil-burner was priced near the top of the range and delivered amazing performance (5.8 seconds to 60 mph), while returning quite respectable fuel economy (EPA ratings of 23 mpg city/36 highway, and an observed average of 29.4 mpg over 30,733 miles). The 335d accomplished its mission of completely rehabbing any lingering image problems the technology might have suffered from the slightly wheezy 524td. Today, BMW believes diesel buyers expect highway ratings in the 40s -- as delivered by our current diesel long-termer, the roomy VW Passat TDI. So the next 3 Series diesel, the 2014 328d, will get the latest 2.0-liter TwinPower turbodiesel I-4, codename N47.Output drops to 180 hp and 280 lb-ft or torque (at 1750 rpm), and 0-60-mph times will stretch to about 7 seconds, but we're promised a 4 in highway fuel economy. Final EPA figures are expected any day, but BMW expects a 20 percent improvement over the 2.0-liter TwinPower turbo gas version, with which this engine shares some 40 percent of its parts, including the aluminum block. If that holds true, we'll see 28 mpg city/40 mpg highway in the automatic sedan. With a 16-gallon fuel tank, that adds up to over 640 miles of bladder-busting highway range.When it goes on sale later this summer (production starts in July), the 328d will be offered in both sedan and wagon bodystyles with all options available on the gasoline models (including xDrive all-wheel-drive), with one exception -- no manual transmission. The take-rate was just deemed too small, and it would have presented the conundrum: Bring the super-wide-ratio Euro box that would blunt performance relative to the eight-speed automatic, or bring the performance-oriented ratios that might kill that 40-mpg number?To meet U.S. NOx emissions regulations, the engine uses a selective-catalytic-reduction (urea) fluid. The onboard tank is not expected to require refilling between oil-change intervals (typically 6000-10,000 miles), unless it's being operated a lot in very cold weather or at higher altitudes.On the eve of the New York auto show, BMW offered brief test drives around its New Jersey headquarters, which revealed the new engine's more earnest earth-hugging mission. This 328d sedan seems to strike a better balance between performance and fuel economy, and as such it comes off as better optimized for drivers inclined toward obsessively Tweeting their fuel economy. Nevertheless, floor the throttle in Sport+ mode and it surfs the waves of 280-lb-ft torque, merging smartly with freeway traffic or easily jumping ahead of a line of dawdlers for the right-hand-turn lane when necessary. Yet, it feels more at home in the EcoPro transmission setting. Leave it there, and you'll never feel either edge of the torque plateau as the car wafts from ratio to ratio seamlessly. The four-cylinder's firing pulses are enough farther apart than the six's that it sounds a bit more diesel-y too, but never objectionably so.Pricing has not been finalized yet, but we're told to expect it to fall between that of the 328i and 335i, probably closer to the former (unlike the highway economy, here they're targeting sub-40). The 335d only accounted for about 8-10 percent of 3 Series sales in its day, but given the greater affordability, expanded model availability, and the addition of xDrive, expect the 328d's sales mix to approach that of the X5 diesel, which currently accounts for 20 percent of sales. Will we love it a third less than we did its six-cylinder ancestor? Doubtful, but there's only one way to find out: Deliver one 328d xDrive wagon to Motor Trend headquarters for 12 months.