BMW Alpina D3: Economical Excitement
Let's mull over some numbers.
2.0 liters. 200 horsepower. 302 lb-ft. 7.4 seconds. 6 speeds. 47.9 miles per gallon* combined.
Put them all together in one car, and you have the Alpina D3, a serious diesel performer wrapped up in a BMW 3-series shell and made better by the magicians at Alpina. Packing 100hp/liter, the D3 is more than capable of holding its own against BMW's 330i. Sure the 330 is a second quicker to 60, but we're betting that the Alpina-massaged diesel is the more fun car to drive, thanks to its sizeable torque -- better than the 330's gasoline I6's by 82 lb-ft.
At the fuel pump, the matchup between the D3 and a 330i turns into a rout. The D3's 47.9 mpg rivals the numbers put out by some city cars, and is significantly better than the 330i's 32 mpg in the combined cycle. Consider that the 330 also requires premium unleaded and the economy gap widens even further.
Finally, since it's an Alpina, buyers get the special blue paint, an exclusive aero kit, 19" wheels, and an impressive list of interior upgrades. All that for £26,995? It's a steal. The 330i's pricing starts at over £2,000 more, and while it's undeniably excellent, it lacks the Alpina's cachet.
Powerful, economical, exclusive and fun -- that's the BMW Alpina D3 in a nutshell. We'd love to have one.
*MPG figures are in Imperial gallons. 1 Imperial gallon = 1.2 gallons
(Pics, Press Release after the jump)
[Source: Alpina]
PRESS RELEASE:
The new BMW ALPINA D3 Diesel Saloon
Details of the highest performance 2.0 litre 3-Series diesel announced.
The BMW ALPINA D3 saloon takes the unique collaboration between the two companies into a new market segment. Built alongside the BMW 320d, the D3 derivative raises the bar for 2.0 litre diesel power and performance, with 100hp per litre on tap, and a top speed of 145mph. Yet the car has one of the lowest CO2 figures in the entire BMW range and offers nearly 50mpg on the combined cycle.
2.0 litre diesel engine with 200hp, 302 lbs-ft of torque
Six speed manual transmission
0-62mph in 7.4 secs
Max speed 145mph
Combined consumption 47.9mpg
CO2 rating 156g/km
Price £26,995 OTR
Unmistakable but exclusive
Externally, the silhouette of the new ALPINA D3 is unique, with exclusive aerodynamic front and rear spoilers, 19" ALPINA wheels, and twin polished tailpipes. Inside, the D3 boasts half leather sports seats, trademark ALPINA steering wheel, gear knob, and instruments with red needles over blue dials, and an individually numbered production plaque. The floor mats and door sill trims also bear the ALPINA logo.
History
ALPINA have been working in conjunction with BMW for over 40 years, and before a new BMW model is launched ALPINA have access to BMW's own development programme. Engineers from both companies communicate closely, and this allows ALPINA to add the extra dimensions of performance and handling to BMW cars which already represent the ultimate for most drivers.
However, innovation must enhance 'real world' performance. Hence the D3's dual personality – exciting but economical. Few other cars in any class have the same ability to deliver the consummate open-road driving experience – all with meagre fuel consumption and minimal environmental cost. All this and the £26,995 price add up to an unbeatable combination, but don't expect to see the new D3 on every street corner – ALPINA GB only expect to be able to get around 100 cars for 2006!
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Stumpy 11:11AM (9/02/2006)
I always loved quick cars that can also still get good gas milage... but wow... that Alpina BMW is impressive!
Part Luxury Sports car... Part Prius wantabee.
Great enginering!!
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very nice 11:43AM (9/02/2006)
Note that this is "only" US 39.9mpg, but the combined cycle isn't just highway miles, so it's even more impressive.
Also 100HP/liter, quite a bit hopped up from the 82HP/liter of the regular 320d.
It's spendy though, costing almost £3K ($5K) more than the even the highest-end 320d.
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Louis 12:44PM (9/02/2006)
That fuel economy is very impressive given the HP/torque numbers. Makes a Prius seem unnecessary. I'd love to see this car brought to the states soon. Hopefully we'll start seeing more "oil burners" once the low sulphur diesel is widely available.
very nice, you sound like an Oregonian... "spendy". I haven't met too many people other than Oregonians who use that term.
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Conor 12:56PM (9/02/2006)
dude...thats tight
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asp 1:04PM (9/02/2006)
Autoblog, again this is old news. This has been out in the UK for quite a few months, probably much longer in mainland Europe. What is more significant about this model is that it actually undercuts the price of BMW's own Sport model of the 320D.
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Mina 1:11PM (9/02/2006)
If only they'll sell that in the US. That would be a nice upgrade from a Volkwagon Jetta/Passat TDI with almost as good mileage.
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zeroSignal 1:17PM (9/02/2006)
The reality is that the Prius is unnecessary - and actually, it only works as an image thing, nothing else, and almost only in the US. In Europe it doesn't make the tinyest bit of sence, mainly because we've got modern, quiet, clean-running diesels.
Once the US catches up with modern diesels, you'll realise the obsoliteness of the Prius and its peers.
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TheChaz 1:39PM (9/02/2006)
#6
That's not entirely true. The Prius, and similar gas-electric hybrid vehicles are simply another way to get to the same results. They pollute less than do diesels, so if saving the environment is your concern, you're better off buying a Prius.
One could even make the argument that a hybrid makes more sense in Europe, not less. Hybrids are good at achieving high mileage numbers in congested, small cities, but are bad on long freeway runs. It seems to me that in the US, where we do more freeway driving, the diesel should be king, and in Europe the small roads and stop-and-go driving would favor hybrids.
All that said, I've been waiting for 3 years to buy an oil-burner, ever since the US said 2006 was the year for low-sulphur diesel.
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Tal D 2:49PM (9/02/2006)
What's it gonna take and what kind of a time line can Americans expect before the newest clean diesel technology/fuel will be available for purchase in the U.S. of A.?
Is it just our federal/state regulations?
I'm a diesel and AutoBlog novice; know only of Mercedes and VW in U.S. Any American made deisels for autos on the horizon or are we too far behind in r&d to ever catch the Europeans..we must have pretty decent diesels for trucks...
For the Alpina D3 there is no mention of a turbocharger...is there a way to produce 200hp/2liter engine without a tubocharger?
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foing hosting 2:50PM (9/02/2006)
Perhaps those of you who want to change american's perception of diesel engines, and encorage manufacturers to sell more of them here, should stop calling them "oil burners" :)
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DPC car videos 4:13PM (9/02/2006)
Bravo Alpina, now this is something totaly different for a tuner, this is something I would buy.
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BMWfan 4:05AM (9/03/2006)
The BMW best machines in a world!!! and it is simply
wonderful
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G. Snyder 8:39PM (9/02/2006)
foing....what is inaccurate about that statement? Did you know that Diesel Fuel is pretty much the same makeup as #2 Fuel Oil.
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JoeBlack 8:52PM (9/02/2006)
#11 "Oil Burner" is just bad marketing. But the Alpina D3 rocks.
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goat 12:04AM (9/03/2006)
"They [hybrids] pollute less than do diesels"
For the 1,018,983rd time: NO THEY DON'T.
They emit less of *certain* pollutants (namely, NOx) than clean diesels.
They emit, or are responsible for the emission of *certain other* pollutants (namely, VOCs).
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very nice 12:37AM (9/03/2006)
Hybrids do pollute less than Diesels.
They make less particulates and NOx, that's a given. Also, since the Prius gets 53-60mpg and this gets 40, the Prius also emits a lot less CO2 and H2O (the major greenhouse gases).
The EPA says that a gas car produces 50% more VOCs (1.4g versus 0.9g per mile) versus a Diesel truck, however a Diesel truck produces 1600% of the amount of NOx as a gas car.
http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/aqfactbk/page15.htm
And that's not even a hybrid car, which has 50% lower emissions in all categories simply by being more fuel efficient than a regular car. I don't get how you say that hybrids aren't cleaner than Diesels.
Finally, again as someone who has seen what getting NOx and particulates out of our air has done for people here in California, I'm not ready to give all that up to save a couple pennies at the pump. Diesel regulations are supposed to meet those for gas cars in 2012. If Diesel can do that, can be cost-effective on running costs (including repairs) and they don't make cities smell like European cities do, then I'll be all over Diesels.
Until then, the Hybrid is clearly better.
Tal D: The Alpina D3 is turbocharged. You cannot get anywhere near 100 HP/liter on a Diesel without a turbo. Nowadays, Diesels without turbos (or other supercharging) aren't really built anymore. Diesels take to supercharging very well, in fact there were turbocharged Diesel cars for about 20 years before the first gas turbocharged car.
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Myspace Layouts 2:09AM (9/03/2006)
how did they manage to make it uglier???
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Greg A. 2:42AM (9/03/2006)
"What's it gonna take and what kind of a time line can Americans expect before the newest clean diesel technology/fuel will be available for purchase in the U.S. of A.?"
I recently read that VW will offer a 50-state-legal diesel Jetta for the 2008 model year.
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GhostDoggy 5:54AM (9/03/2006)
This weekend, diesel fuel in my neighborhood is running $0.20 higher than premium unleaded from leading retailers. Considering you have to a) spend US$3,800 to get dielsel and then spend US$0.20 per gallong more at the pump, I wonder how this would be taken in the American market if it could be sold here.
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TDIMeister 6:45AM (9/03/2006)
Now let's see what Alpina can do with the new Bi-turbo-Diesel 335d
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