Discussion
Friend is looking to lease a new car, fancies BMW 3 or 4 series but can't afford anything above a 20 or 20d. Reviews say forget the petrol unless you are doing a very low mileage, his 15,000 a year is hardly 'very low' but still seems too low to justify a diesel. Are the petrols that bad?
How does refinement compare between the two engines? From what I hear neither is as good as the Audi equivalent.
How does refinement compare between the two engines? From what I hear neither is as good as the Audi equivalent.
There’s nothing objectively wrong with the 20i petrol engines currently offered. When the E90 was out, the 20i was an N/A engine that was notoriously unreliable, but the current turbo unit is seemingly quite robust. Can’t comment on smoothness as I haven’t driven it myself.
I do however own the 320d, and can say that the diesel engine is plenty smooth, and pulls well. It is also quite linear in its power delivery, which sets it ahead of many other turbo diesels which behave in a boosty fashion. The 320d suits the autobox very well, mine is a sport auto with paddles and I would urge your friend to at least consider the auto if it’s not much more expensive.
I’ve not driven the current Audi A4 range, so can’t comment on those.
I do however own the 320d, and can say that the diesel engine is plenty smooth, and pulls well. It is also quite linear in its power delivery, which sets it ahead of many other turbo diesels which behave in a boosty fashion. The 320d suits the autobox very well, mine is a sport auto with paddles and I would urge your friend to at least consider the auto if it’s not much more expensive.
I’ve not driven the current Audi A4 range, so can’t comment on those.
My Dad has an F30 320i Touring and I'm on my second E90 320d, a 2010 ED. In terms of refinement, the 320i wins hands down below about 20mph, where the diesel engine is very noisy and introduces a fair amount of vibration into the cabin. Above 30-40mph though, there's really not much difference at all.
Smuler said:
The 20i in F Series are not woefully bad.
I had a long drive of one in 220i. I did prefer the diesel 20d, found it a little more responsive, which I eventually got with expectation of 30k miles p/a but for 15k see no reason why your mate doesn't go for petrol.
I had a long drive of one in 220i. I did prefer the diesel 20d, found it a little more responsive, which I eventually got with expectation of 30k miles p/a but for 15k see no reason why your mate doesn't go for petrol.
I prefer everything about petrol engines, other than the top of pedal response on many of the DBW petrols I've driven. In that respect, I prefer diesels, or at least BMW ones.Gassing Station | BMW General | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff