Bmw M340d xDrive Touring, 3 stars in emotion and efficiency

Starred grand chefs do it by mixing (or ‘contaminating’) cultures, teachings of the past and experiments that look to the future. This is how they often arrive at offering dishes that border on perfection and which – in any case – generate unique emotions and memories that are never easy to erase.
This premise is necessary when speaking of an out of the ordinary car, in which several souls coexist and in which many drivers can (provided they can spend 77,710 euros) find an optimal solution to the desire to combine respect for the environment with functionality , performance, practicality and many many emotions. And in which the contamination is that obtained with a latest generation diesel engine combined (even with the complicity of the most up-to-date software) to the car body and other organs in perfect M style.

This ‘starred’ car responds to the name of M340d xDrive Touring and entered the menu of the renowned creator of great ‘top’ BMW proposals in May last year, on the occasion of the launch of the latest generation of the 3 Series. M340d xDrive Touring confirms – and ANSA Motori’s test confirmed it – the topicality and vitality of the latest generation diesel engines as the ideal solution to combine high performance and reduced impact on the environment, already used in the previous 330d generation. In fact, CO2 emissions are proportional to the amount of fuel consumed and this exclusive high-performance wagon allows itself the luxury of being homologated in the Wltp combined cycle with fuel consumption between 6 and 6.0 liters per 100 km.
These are very interesting values ​​for a car that makes 340 HP available and above all a maximum torque of 700 Nm, with electrification that is not invasive in terms of mass and internal spaciousness and does not require recharging. This result was achieved with the introduction of 48 Volt mild hybrid technology and refinement of exhaust gas treatment technologies (including an SCR catalyst with AdBlue injection).
As is appreciated in many driving situations, from slowing down to ‘gallops’ on the motorway, the mild hybrid architecture allows the engine to deliver power more promptly and at the same time save diesel (and therefore cut CO2). The 48-volt generator/starter creates thrust that instantly makes an additional 8 kW/11 hp available.
This additional horsepower increases the power delivery under hard acceleration. Above all, it increases efficiency by allowing the auto start-stop (already from 15 km/h) and cruising. In the latter case, if conditions permit, the car proceeds by inertia on the motorway, with the 48 Volt generator/starter gently re-igniting the 6-cylinder.
A careful ‘tasting’ (to stay on the theme of starred chefs) of this latest generation diesel sports car – which accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in just 4.7 seconds – cannot do without an in-depth study of the dedicated construction care from BMW to the engine. The 3.0-litre in-line six-cylinder diesel has a crankcase and cylinder head both made of aluminum with high-tech solutions that optimize strength and efficiency. Frictional losses in the engine are reduced by measures including a steel coating sprayed into the cylinder liners. The TwinPower Turbo supercharging comprises a two-stage turbine system with optimized thermodynamics and direct charge air cooling, together with Common Rail direct injection via piezoelectric injectors reaching a pressure of 2,700 bar. The integrated pressure sensors allow up to ten injections per delivery And to make the response of the turbocharger even more prompt, the high and low pressure phases of the system both exploit a variable geometry of the turbine. Engine response and efficiency also benefit from an intake system with optimized air ducts, the design of which also improves engine acoustics. Specific encapsulation measures ensure the noise reduction of the in-line six-cylinder is pleasant to the ears and at the same time optimize its heating.
Lastly, the great dynamic ‘sincerity’ of this car should be underlined, which offers performance – especially when cornering – which is comparable to that of a supercar of only about ten years ago. M Sport suspension, variable response steering and M Sport brakes are standard as is the M Sport differential. All this – with the complicity of the optimized aerodynamic characteristics (especially in the flows on the front and under the car – helps to provide the best conditions for making the settings and controls with which the car is equipped work in the best possible way.
The intelligent all-wheel drive in particular ensures a fully variable distribution of drive torque between the front and rear wheels using an electronically controlled multi-disc clutch in the transfer case. Working in tandem with Dynamic Stability Control, xDrive reacts instantly to changes in the driving situation and empowers the driver. With the truly ‘intense’ pleasure – when the control is set to Sport or Sport Plus mode – of having a greater torque on the rear wheels and therefore being able to control the car in power oversteer.