2009 BMW 335d - Impressive Fuel Economy - BMW 3-Series Sedan Review

The 335d, like all 3-series sedans and wagons, receives a mild face-lift this year that gives the front a slightly more aggressive look thanks to revised headlights, a new fascia, and more prominent hood ribs. Handsome new taillights address the most controversial aspect of the original 2005 design, and a pronounced character line along the side recalls the brand-new 7-series. Inside, navigation-equipped 3-series models receive BMW's much-improved, second-generation iDrive system (see the 7-series review on page 68 for more information).

If not by its sound, the diesel-powered 3-series is distinguishable from the outside by a round access panel in the driver's-side rear bumper. That door is used to top off the AdBlue, a urea-based additive that's sprayed into the exhaust to reduce enough of the diesel's NOx emissions that the 335d is certified for sale in all fifty states. The 335d can store up to about six gallons of the solution, sufficient for most drivers to make it through a complete 15,000-mile oil-change interval. Refilling the AdBlue tank is included in BMW's four-year/50,000-mile free scheduled maintenance plan. To appease the EPA, the 335d's computers will allow the car to be started only ten times with an empty urea tank-but BMW says that the system starts giving impossible-to-ignore warnings 1500 miles before it runs dry.

The 335d will cost about $1500 more than the 335i's already premium sticker price, but it will be eligible for a $900 federal tax credit. Still, we wonder why BMW didn't choose instead to import its 2.0-liter, twin-turbocharged four-cylinder diesel from the European-market 123d. A 3-series with that engine, which produces just over 200 hp, likely would have cost less than the 335i and returned even more impressive fuel economy numbers. Then again, despite its tire-smoking performance, the 335d is miserly enough to be the most frugal BMW sold here in fifty years. And you've never heard us complain about having too much power.