24 August 2009 - 12:00
Three range
Good news for the environment - the BMW 320d is now greener than Al Gore's flip-flop. Thanks to the eco wizards over in Germany, the cleanest-ever version of the 3-Series trumps out just 109g/km C02 and delivers 68.9mpg.
That means you'll pay just 35 quid a year in road tax while still enjoying the
car's 163bhp and 0-62mph time of 8.2 seconds.
It's all thanks to the geeks who were let loose on the car - fiddling around with the engine and aerodynamics, doing things we don't understand. But
we're told the new ‘centrifugal pendulum absorbers' and altered rear axle
transmission ratio are big news in the world of boffindom. All we know is that
you'll do far less damage to the planet as a result.
Of course, the marketing people had to go too far and describe the 2.0-litre
diesel as ‘mellifluous', which after a brief consultation with a thesaurus, we
found to mean ‘smooth and honeyed'. We suspect, however, it will sound much
like a diesel engine. Albeit a quiet one.
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You've got to say, good job boys. Thoroughly decent performance and excellent economy with a Beemer badge. Can't really go wrong with it can you? So how many did the reps order then?
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"So how many did the reps order then?" - That is why I'll never be interested in a 3-Series.
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"centrifugal pendulum absorbers"...
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This car is very new!
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i don't care how they accomplished that, but the result is great, one of the driving cars in the world with one of the best engines in the world and Prius rivaling efficiency
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Now how about an economy M3 version :)
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I cant believe I saw one these in India!!!!!!!!! including a Merc, rolls-royce and a porsche!!!
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nah - dont like the styling AND its a diesel.
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Well its either that or a VW lupo blu motion. The beemer have more room in the car and in the boot, faster, and probably quieter than the lupo. Not the best looking 3 series ever though...
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BORING!!!!!!!!
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its not a prius
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Fascinating: Centrifugal Pendulum Vibration Absorbers (CPVAs) are used to suppress vibrations in rotating machinery. They are widely employed in light aircraft engines, helicopter rotors, some high-performance automotive racing engines, diesel camshafts, and other components where vibrations at a given rotation speed are troublesome. Application of CPVAs to bladed disk systems to enhance structural performance is a recent field of interest. These absorbers consist essentially of pendulums suspended to a rotor or a blade such that they can oscillate in a plane perpendicular to the axis of rotation. By proper selection of the suspension point and effective pendulum length, the absorbers can be tuned to address vibrations at a given order of rotation. - http://structdynviblab.mcgill.ca/index.php/en/research/2-non-linear-dynamics/7-centrifugal-pendulum-absorbers
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Diesels put out nitrous oxide which is worse than CO2. Anyhoo why didnt they give it a bright green paint job like Ford and Lambos get?
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^ What self-respecting business bore drives a lime green BMW?
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BMW will do really well with this. Supreme mpg, quiet, and they have a filter so you don't dump a cloud of soot on the guy behind when you accelerate. Nobody now needs a Toyota Pious ... sorry Prius. The Prius uses super thin steel that requires 3 times the energy to produce. It also contains lots of nasty metals in the batteries that have to be mined, and disposed of afterwards. Redundant. Everyone should buy a 320d.
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livvie commented on this article
24 August 2009
its not bad looking either
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