320D

Manual Magazine - January 2008

How would you define sheer driving pleasure?

Is it the way your car hugs the road on long straights and sweeping curves? Or is it the comfort you feel even after long hours behind the wheel? Or maybe the peppiness of the accelerator pedal reacting to your right foot’s every twitch?

Spending nine hours behind the wheel in a single day may not be everybody’s cup of tea. But for me it was heaven on earth especially since I was driving a spanking new BMW 320d.

Driving pleasure from a diesel? Why yes! And I say that with full conviction. Diesel technology has come a long way from our homegrown “silver stainless” haulers. Yes diesel chatter is still there, but luckily for the 320d, it all resonates outside the cabin. Otherwise, you wouldn’t even feel you were driving a car motivated by a diesel engine. Everything else inside and out is BMW technology and 3-Series refinement at its best.

Among the tricks this car had up its sleeve was the Start/Stop button. A trend that is getting common nowadays is the elimination of the insert and twists the key procedure of starting a car. What BMW has is a key that doesn’t look like a key and a slot for a keyhole. Lock the “Key” and push the red dot and the turbocharged diesel engine purrs into life. No disconcerting vibrations or black smoke, just a gentle hum and the willingness to accelerate. And accelerate it did!

Despite having only 5,500 revs displayed on the dial, the 320d blasts off as soon as you reach 1,700 revs! Brutal is the word that comes to mind when speaking of acceleration. There is just so much torque oozing out of the four cylinder, common-rail, variable geometry turbocharged diesel motor that I certainly appreciated it being mated to a six-speed automatic transmission. In the city, I hardly argued with the gear selection. The car was at the right power band at any given time. On the highways it was the same story. It was an effortless run up to the North Luzon Expressway’s 100kph speed limit. And cruising at 100kph pegged the tachometer at only 1,700 revolutions per minute. And then I knew that I wasn’t going to empty the 320d’s tanks any time soon.

Negotiating the back roads of Tarlac and Pangasinan allowed me to utilize the 320d’s muscle to the hilt. Overtaking tricycles and unidentified slow moving objects were a cinch. Confidence certainly wasn’t lacking when you have the 320d’s power at your toes. The brakes were likewise at their game. I knew stopping power would never be lacking with the grippy 225/40/18 run flat tires and ABS at my disposal. The suspension was firm but not stiff, just the way I liked it. This allowed the car to remain surefooted over the cemented farm to market roads and the sweeping bends common to this area of the countryside. And despite its sporty character, the 320d’s ride remained comfortable, not at all jarring despite having those standard 18” wheels. This made me realize why one might buy a 320d for the equivalent of three Japanese cars… saying the ride is three times better would just be an understatement.

Creature comforts inside the cabin were what you would expect from a BMW. As in earlier models, the controls, switches and gauges were all oriented towards the driver. One can position himself in the cockpit properly with the adjustments available to the seat and steering wheel. Information was literally at my fingertips as I toggled-in data on fuel efficiency, range, temperature, and other vital vehicle parameters with just a press of a button at the steering wheel stalk. Climate control and radio knobs and buttons were all within easy reach and their size just made them so easy to fiddle with, definitely Euro. There was even an air conditioning vent that allowed cold air to chill my drinks in the cup holder while another cup holder popped out just in front of the dashboard air vent. Another one of those “Why didn’t I think of that?” innovations from the company that doesn’t seem to run out of them.

Authentic Euro feel interiors.

Going up Baguio allowed me to explore the handling limits of the 320d. It was time to put the pedal to the metal so to speak. With the cheesiest of love songs blaring inside the cabin I pushed the 320d close to the edge. And it never disappointed. With the transmission now in Manual mode, I climbed up Kennon road going up the six available gears at my own discretion. Naturally acceleration was always direct. But it was at the braking while downshifting moments when disillusionment set in. Yes, the transmission program will allow you to downshift to M1 or first gear if you have to just before a corner, but even before you can step on the accelerator to keep your speed through the turn the transmission goes up to M3 (3rd gear) without you knowing it. No more momentum, slightly less fun. It is probably one of those “idiot-proof” features hotwired into the car. Just for drivers who think they’re better than Nick Heidfeld on his worst day at the track. But there was still the Dynamic Stability Control (DSC) feature to contend with anyways. And no matter how much you want to drift this baby, the computer will bog you down to reality together with a flashing pilot lamp telling you DSC is intervening (but only if you kept the switch in its default on position of course).

Yes, this was indeed the closest I’ve been to driving heaven. Four hours after I left Manila I was in Baguio already. A steak lunch, a trip to the carwash and some pictures followed. But what really kept me up and awake was the fact that I’ll be driving back home again. And who will argue with more time behind the wheel of the ultimate driving machine?

They may have left the brand to the local partners, but the BMW ultimate driving machine experience lingers on.

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