Report: BMW still adamant about offering diesel for 3-Series in US
The year 1986 marked the end of BMW’s first ever attempt at diesel offerings in the United States. That diesel came in the form of the E28 generation 524td turbodiesel, which ended up taking the title of the world’s fastest production diesel at the time. But after BMW pulled the plug, it wasn’t until 2008 that BMW offered another diesel for the US in the form of the X5 3.0d.
Following the X5’s diesel offering came the 3-Series version, the 335d. And because America is beginning to cast a more positive and open-minded light on oil burners, word is that BMW is still adamant about offering a 3-Series diesel for the new generation that comes out in just a few short months.
“The X5 diesel doing well in the U.S.,” said BMW’s head of sales and marketing, Ian Robertson, in an interview. “From month-to-month it accounts for a third or half of sales. It is still an issue of getting bums on seats. U.S. buyers are still astonished by how good a modern diesel is.”
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Click here for our original post on the 2012 BMW 3 Series.
And it seems like history is repeating itself. Back in 1984, when BMW brought about the 524td, at the time Bavaria Motor Works was trying to hold off on for diesel as long as possible since they viewed it to be counterintuitive to their corporate philosophy of “The Ultimate Driving Machines.” But, it was a push-come-to-shove situation because the 1970s fuel crisis literally forced BMW to seek alternatives to meet the CAFE regulations of that time period and the 524td was their answer.
So is the case today. The threat of increasing gas prices and pressure from President Obama’s CAFE regulation mandate has everyone pushing for higher fuel economy figures. And to have BMW to continue offering the 3-Series—and potentially other models—with a diesel will certainly help their cause.
Check out the updated high-res gallery above and visit our Facebook page for other pictures of the 2012 BMW 3 Series.
Refresher: The 2012 BMW 3 Series three trim levels including Sport Line, Luxury Line and Modern Line – of course, an M Sport Package will follow. The 2012 BMW 328i is powered by a 2.0 liter TwinPower Turbo 4-cylinder engine making 240-hp at 5,000 rpm and 260 lb-ft of torque between 1,250 and 4,800 rpm. That allows 0 to 60 mph to come in just 5.7 seconds with a top speed of 130 mph (155 mph with Sport Line package). Power for the 2012 BMW 335i comes from the same N55 3.0 liter 6-cylinder TwinPower Turbo engine making 300-hp at 5,800 rpm with a maximum torque of 300 lb-ft between 1,200 rpm and 5,000 rpm. 0 to 60 mph comes in 5.4 seconds with a top speed of 130 mph (and 155 mph with Sport Line package).
– By: Chris Chin
Source: Inside Line
