[Mark]

BIMMERPOST NEWS

MotorWeek reviews the new BMW 330e iPerformance

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[hoyasaxa]

Yeah, I just don't get this car. But I guess there are buyers out there or they wouldn't make it. It's heavy, slow, expensive, has a very short EV range, and handles worse. <shrug> just my 2¢

[clbmw]

Originally Posted by hoyasaxa

Yeah, I just don't get this car. But I guess there are buyers out there or they wouldn't make it. It's heavy, slow, expensive, has a very short EV range, and handles worse. <shrug> just my 2¢

Have to agree, it's a step in the right direction but there's a long way to go yet

[E90 Skye]

Originally Posted by clbmw

Have to agree, it's a step in the right direction but there's a long way to go yet

Looks like 1 step fwd and about 3 steps back. No point in paying the premium for this.

[raysspl]

Motorweek keeping it old school

[RPiM5]

500lbs for only 14 miles of range? We've got a long way to go.

[Vegetable]

Originally Posted by RPiM5

500lbs for only 14 miles of range? We've got a long way to go.

I got 17 miles once in EV before the engine came in to assist.. I don't own a 330e, but did have one as a loaner, didn't feel faster than the 328i IMO even with its "instant torque." Also only averaged 25-26 MPG (about the same as my 435i) when driven in least battery saver mode or whatever it's called, aggressively. That's kinda lame. I drove the hell out of a 328d once and still got 39 MPG.

[Rupes]

(Shouting) Hi, I'm John Davis!

[zamboni]

Originally Posted by RPiM5

500lbs for only 14 miles of range? We've got a long way to go.

On top of that it only makes 240 BHP and carried 500 lbs extra weight.

[DeeKay]

Must be target for countries with tax discount for cars like this and people who would love to do the daily commute with electric alone - the days I don't have customer meetings I could do all my daily driving with the electric motor alone. At least that's pretty nice

[clbmw]

Originally Posted by zamboni

On top of that it only makes 240 BHP and carried 500 lbs extra weight.

I don't know why they didn't pair it with the 330i engine instead of the 320i engine, would have made it more appealing

[paddyrx8]

I have a 330e M sport. They are freakin awesome. It's very fast off the line and the handling is very similar to the 320d M sport i had before, it's sporty and engaging as a 3 series should be. I do 70% of my daily commute solely on electric but can beat practically anyone off the lights when needed. As a company car it costs 25% of what a 320d Eff Dyn costs. It's like two different cars in one and comes highly recommended. I have an E46 M3 manual and in a drag race the 330e would certainly keep up.

[clbmw]

Originally Posted by paddyrx8

I have a 330e M sport. They are freakin awesome. It's very fast off the line and the handling is very similar to the 320d M sport i had before, it's sporty and engaging as a 3 series should be. I do 70% of my daily commute solely on electric but can beat practically anyone off the lights when needed. As a company car it costs 25% of what a 320d Eff Dyn costs. It's like two different cars in one and comes highly recommended. I have an E46 M3 manual and in a drag race the 330e would certainly keep up.

That's reassuring to hear, but for folks like me who commute up to 110 miles per day it doesn't look anywhere near efficient enough, compared to the diesels anyway.

[Meast]

Originally Posted by clbmw

That's reassuring to hear, but for folks like me who commute up to 110 miles per day it doesn't look anywhere near efficient enough, compared to the diesels anyway.

The 330e is great technology. It gives you the ability to drive most casual distances on pure electric. This is for people who drive about 10ish miles to work, or use it to drive to the supermarket, or common errands. It's not the car for long commutes like 50+ miles a day, or road trips. Diesel wins that hands down.

It's kind of how you wouldn't get an M3 for city driving, or an i3 for track days. This 330e is primarily for getting around without having to use gas for short commutes, and yet if you want to drive 1,000+ miles you can by just filling it up with gas.

It's the best of both worlds, but there's still loads more room for improvement down the road.

[clbmw]

Originally Posted by Meast

The 330e is great technology. It gives you the ability to drive most casual distances on pure electric. This is for people who drive about 10ish miles to work, or use it to drive to the supermarket, or common errands. It's not the car for long commutes like 50+ miles a day, or road trips. Diesel wins that hands down.

It's kind of how you wouldn't get an M3 for city driving, or an i3 for track days. This 330e is primarily for getting around without having to use gas for short commutes, and yet if you want to drive 1,000+ miles you can by just filling it up with gas.

It's the best of both worlds, but there's still loads more room for improvement down the road.

They need to make a tourer/estate version next so it's practical

[PandaM3]

They need to get better electric range out of this.

At least 30 to 40 miles all electric can cover the majority of commuters.

There are a few plug in alternatives with better electric range already. Such as the Volt which gets 40 miles electric or a Hyundai Sonata plug in which gets 27 miles all electric before the gas motor kicks in.

The best alternative is to just have 2 different cars rather than a single do it all car. For example an electric chevy Volt or Bolt for the m-f commute + used e90 M3 for the weekends. This combination is probably cheaper monthly than a fully loaded 330e.

[SteveinArizona]

Originally Posted by clbmw

That's reassuring to hear, but for folks like me who commute up to 110 miles per day it doesn't look anywhere near efficient enough, compared to the diesels anyway.

I also have a 330e. It is clearly not as fuel efficient as a diesel for folks with such long commutes. I drive fairly aggressively and always in sport mode. In my two most recent refuelings, one was a trip to another city 110 miles away for a two night stay. Only used electricity before I left and drove most of the way at 84 mph (clearly not a fuel efficient speed) and got 33 mpg. On the more recent refueling I was doing mostly local driving with some highway driving. I got just over 50 mpg.

But I had two very good reasons to get a 330e instead of a 330i or 340i. I am grandfathered into using the car pool lane so long as I purchased a plug-in hybrid and I determined that I wasn't going to buy a VW company product at this time because of the default device scandal so that eliminated the Audi A3 E-Tron and several Porsche models and I wasn't going to spend for the MB S550 (and I don't want a large car). The MB C350e is similar the BMW but isn't being sold in the US at this time.

The second reason is that I do want to minimize my carbon footprint (I know that this isn't a popular reason on this forum but so be it). So I do try to end the day at 0 remaining miles if I can reasonably do it.

There are many different cars made by the various manufacturers. There is a reason for that. Different customers have different desires -- some want low cost, some want more power, some want fuel efficiency, some want handling, some want cushioning, etc. And there are many of us who care about the air quality but still want a vehicle that handles well and has plenty of get up and go. If you are judging the car solely by its fuel efficiency...it can't compete with a diesel for anyone doing a significant amount of miles per week. But as I said, there are many other reasons as well.

[Danddd]

I like the comment about the steering, it's odd and makes us miss the numb steering of the regular 3 series.

[Luca Riffer]

Originally Posted by paddyrx8

I have a 330e M sport. They are freakin awesome. It's very fast off the line and the handling is very similar to the 320d M sport i had before, it's sporty and engaging as a 3 series should be. I do 70% of my daily commute solely on electric but can beat practically anyone off the lights when needed. As a company car it costs 25% of what a 320d Eff Dyn costs. It's like two different cars in one and comes highly recommended. I have an E46 M3 manual and in a drag race the 330e would certainly keep up.

Did UK gov't incent you to buy this PHEV model, vs a pure gas-guzzler? If so, how much? Most jurisdictions subsidize pure EV's but there's limited govt $$ for purchasing a hybrid car.

[Luca Riffer]

Originally Posted by clbmw

They need to make a tourer/estate version next so it's practical

Mini Countryman PHEV built on the X1 platform, coming to North America in June 2017. Its v nicely packaged (2017 LCI) and very practical.

[Bosozoku]

Originally Posted by Rupes

(Shouting) Hi, I'm John Davis!

He always does that weird finger flick for emphasis.
Bizarre, but kind of a signature MW flourish.

[antzcrashing]

This car is more depressing than the usa presidential election, well not quite, but its close