BMW 3-Series news - Three range - 2009

Good news for the environment - the BMW 320d is now greener than Al Gore's flip-flop. Thanks to the eco wizards over in Germany, the cleanest-ever version of the 3-Series trumps out just 109g/km C02 and delivers 68.9mpg.

That means you'll pay just 35 quid a year in road tax while still enjoying the car's 163bhp and 0-62mph time of 8.2 seconds.
 
It's all thanks to the geeks who were let loose on the car - fiddling around with the engine and aerodynamics, doing things we don't understand. But we're told the new ‘centrifugal pendulum absorbers' and altered rear axle transmission ratio are big news in the world of boffindom. All we know is that you'll do far less damage to the planet as a result.
 
Of course, the marketing people had to go too far and describe the 2.0-litre diesel as ‘mellifluous', which after a brief consultation with a thesaurus, we found to mean ‘smooth and honeyed'. We suspect, however, it will sound much like a diesel engine. Albeit a quiet one.