The award-winning BMW 3-litre Twin Turbo petrol engine, which made its debut in the 3 Series coupe and cabriolet, is now available in the sedan derivative. This engine is also recent winner of the 2007 International Engine of the Year title.
At the same time, both the BMW 330i and BMW 323i receive a 10 kW power boost, without any price hike.
The Twin Turbo straight-six has a power output of 225 kW and is based on BMW's highly acclaimed normally-aspirated six-cylinder.
With this engine, BMW has combined the qualities typical of its "normal" six-cylinder with the power-boosting effect of two turbochargers and second-generation direct petrol injection.
Not only does this mean better power delivery, but also improved fuel economy.
The power unit of the BMW 335i Sedan develops its maximum torque of 400 Nm at 1 300 r/min. It revs up effortlessly all the way up to 7 000 r/min.
BMW claims a 0-100 km/h acceleration of 5.5 seconds and top speed is limited to 250 km/h.
No turbo lag
BMW chose Mpumalanga to introduce the 335i Sedan to the media. This was to demonstrate that the twin-turbo engine is very much at ease at higher altitudes with virtually no turbo lag setting in.
The brutish power is instantly available and the BMW surges forward with supersonic ease.
Pushing it through the Mpumalanga mountain passes, you could almost think that you are actually driving a sport sedan with a naturally aspirated big capacity engine.
There is no hesitation whatsoever coming from the engine. It is ferocious but swift.
Despite its impressive power and performance levels, BMW says that the 335i consumes 9.5 litres of petrol per 100km.
Our trip computer on the launch route indicated about 11.7 litres, but keep in mind we were not driving as if Miss Daisy was in the backseat.
The 335i engages the driver in every possible aspect of the experience.
New auto
The 335i comes with a 6-speed manual transmission as well as a new responsive automatic transmission only found in twin-turbo derivatives of the BMW 3 Series.
The driver could also change gears by means of paddles on the steering wheel.
This transmission consists of an upgraded hydraulic system, an innovative torque converter and better management software.
Not only does it result in a more spontaneous response to every movement of the accelerator pedal, but also provide a swift selection of gears.
BMW claims that reaction times of this transmission are down by about 40% compared with conventional automatic transmission cars.
More power and torque for 330i, 323i
At the same time, two other six-cylinder models available in the BMW 3 Series Sedan range benefit from increased power and torque and a further enhancement of typical BMW dynamic attrbutes.
Both the 330i and 323i were originally introduced with BMW's normally aspirated straight-six engine.
Now BMW has managed ? through a series of engine management and component changes ? to improve even further on the outputs of these innovative engines with both models boasting an additional 10 kW of peak power and further increases in torque.
Developing maximum output of 200 kW and peak torque of 315 Nm (190 kW and 300 Nm for the previous model), the BMW 330i now delivers even better performance.
Acceleration to 100 km/h now comes in 6.1 seconds (a 0.2 second improvement) while top speed remains electronically limited to 250 km/h.
The BMW 323i ? previously endowed with 130 kW and 230 Nm ? now benefits from a 7.7% increase in power.
With 140 kW and 235 Nm, the new model has also improved its sprint time by 0.1 seconds; the 0 to 100 km/h dash taking just 7.8 seconds.
Top speed has also improved from 229 km/h to 235 km/h
Pricing