BMW Announces Pricing on New Diesels

Yesterday, BMW announced pricing on its soon-to-be-released diesel vehicles. The 335d sedan will start at $43,900, with the X5 xDrive35d going for $51,200, excluding an $825 destination charge. That’s a $1,900 price premium by a similar gasoline-powered 3 Series and $4,100 by the standard X5, though both are eligible for tax credits.

Both vehicles feature the same powertrain: a 265-hp, twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter inline-six producing 425 pounds-feet of torque, paired with a six-speed self-moving transmission. BMW says the 335d will accomplish 23/33 mpg city/highway, while the X5 xDrive35d will get 19/25 mpg. The gasoline-powered 335i gets 17/26 mpg, which makes the diesel roughly 30% more efficient
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–>— about equivalent to the difference in price within a gallon of premium and a gallon of diesel. The improved mileage additionally puts the

3 Series on par with most midsize four-cylinder sedans in fuel efficiency, yet it achieves 0-60 mph acceleration of 6.2 seconds. The X5 xDrive35d’s fuel economy is competitive with Mercedes’ Bluetec M-Class.

BMW announced the diesels back in January, and we’ll see
production-ready models at the L.A. auto show next week. The pair marks
the first diesel foray for BMW since the 1983 524td. Like Volkswagen
and Mercedes, that is BMW’s way of combating higher federal
fuel-economy standards and rising gas prices in the States.

The 335d and X5 xDrive35d will be 50-state compliant — passing even
California’s strict standards — by using a filtration system similar to
Mercedes-Benz’s Bluetec, which uses particulate filtration and a
urea-injection system. 

With that sort of performance and fuel economy coming from these
diesel variants, the pair may be a tantalizing alterative to luxury
hybrids from Lexus and Cadillac. When you factor in the IRS’
Alternative Motor Vehicle Credit — which offers a maximum credit of
$900 for the 335d and $1,550 for the diesel X5 — you’re talking about a
slim $1,000 price premium by the regular 3 Series and $2,550 by the
standard X5.

We’ll withhold our final verdict until after the analysis drive, of course.