2016 BMW 330e iPerformance Sport first drive

The BMW 330e is currently one of the smartest ways for the company car driver to make his monthly car allowance go that bit further. It’s a car that feels at once like a really authentic BMW sports saloon as well as a visionary chunk of the electrified motoring future: two concepts you probably weren’t expecting to find executed on the same set of four wheels.

The car is a ‘plug-in hybrid’ petrol-electric saloon of a familiar type, driven primarily by BMW’s 182bhp 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine, which sends its power to the car’s rear wheels via an eight-speed automatic gearbox. But in place of a conventional automatic saloon’s torque converter is an 87bhp electric motor and an additional clutch, the former drawing power from a 7.6kWh lithium ion battery located under the boot floor.

When both power sources team up, the 330e can summon 249bhp and 310lb ft and hit 62mph from rest in a whisker over six seconds. And yet it can also cover up to 25 miles on battery power alone, according to BMW, and emit only 44g/km of CO2 on the EU emissions test, which means it qualifies for benefit in kind tax at just 7% of its showroom price. This, therefore, is a 250bhp, £35k BMW 3 Series that costs less on company car tax than an £18k Fiat Tipo diesel, and even bought privately, with the government’s £2500 grant in the mix, it can be snapped up for considerably less than the list price of either a 330i or 330d.

Above and beyond that, the 330e’s selling point is very much typical BMW-brand performance and dynamism. And so those familiar with the handful of plug-in hybrid saloons, hatchbacks and estates already on the market will note that the car offers markedly better peak power and accelerative pace than the likes of the Volkswagen Passat GTE, Audi A3 eTron and Volvo’s Volvo V60 D5 Twin Engine, while being trumped on paper only by the Mercedes C 350e.

Having already had a taste of the 330e abroad, we knew to expect both sporting verve and outstanding refinement from this powertrain. And on UK roads, it doesn’t disappoint. The petrol portion of the car’s propulsion system is very well isolated, so you barely hear it when operating at low crank speeds, but it’s also nicely gruff and spirited when working hard.

There are three powertrain modes to choose between - Auto eDrive, Max eDrive and Save Battery – as well as the usual Sport, Comfort and Eco Pro modes selected via the Driving Experience Control toggle switch adjacent to the gear lever. All that may sound like the sort of complication likely to put many off a car like this but, in fact, it’s easily negotiated. You’ll leave the powertrain in Auto eDrive mode 99% of the time, allowing the car to manage its own battery condition and run in range-extended mode when it needs to.

BMW’s claim for a 25-mile electric-only range was made to look optimistic during our testing, when, on a chilly November morning on mixed roads and in mixed traffic conditions, we only managed 14 miles on a full charge. That’s not great. Still, that’d be enough to transform your real-world economy return on a fairly short-range commute. If you live about 30 miles from where you work, you can expect to better 80mpg after a full at-home charge. When touring, once its electrical resources are idling, the 330e will return around 45mpg at typical motorway pace – and that’s a return that, predictably enough, doesn’t deteriorate much in heavy traffic or on urban roads.