The BMW 330e hybrid just got much more practical

Rejoice, semi-committed eco families, for BMW has answered your calls for a more practical plug-in 3 Series.

Like the saloon, the BMW 330e Touring uses a 2.0-litre petrol engine making 181bhp. It’s married to an eight-speed automatic transmission (awh), which houses the 111bhp electric motor. Total system output is 249bhp, but floor it and the powertrain can deliver a ten-second power boost amounting to 288bhp. 0-62mph takes 6.1 seconds, and the top speed is 136mph.

The e-motor draws power from a 12kWh battery, which can be fully charged in under three and a half hours using a wall-box, or just under six hours using a domestic plug socket. BMW claims 34 miles of e-range, and a top speed in electric mode of 87mph.

You’re looking at 42g/km of CO2 and 166mpg, making the Touring marginally less efficient than the saloon. Prices haven’t been released, but we also expect it to be a bit more expensive. But you do get significantly more boot, which is a very valuable commodity indeed.

Said boot also means you don’t have to get a crossover if you want a practical PHEV. Where once you might have been forced into a Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV – now families have the choice of not just 3 Series, but Passat GTE and Mercedes C-Class plug-ins too.