Road Test: BMW 2 Series 220d SE 2dr

I averaged 48mpg after a week of commuting in the 220d, the middlemost diesel version of the Car Formerly Known As 1-Series Coupe. With the official economy standing at 59mpg, this could be viewed as a pitiful failure.

But, with the exception of weirdy-beardy plug-in hybrid stuff, 48mpg is a record on the Philip combined cycle, which sees even the frugallest 
of superminis struggle to top mid-thirties. This 
is because I drive like a person in the real world, sometimes employing ‘acceleration’ and ‘braking’. This is good, because so do you, and thus you too will manage 50-odd mpg from the 220d. 

In further good news, you’ll discover the 220d does not feel like a fun-sapping eco-warrior. As it shouldn’t, for its 2.0-litre diesel manages 181bhp and 280lb ft of torque. Which means it’s a chunk more torquey than the Ford Fiesta ST (and you won’t get 48mpg from a Fiesta ST unless your legs are too short to depress the throttle more than a quarter) and reasonably fizzy to drive.

Even so, for BMW’s smallest coupe, there’s 
no escaping the fact the 2-Series doesn’t feel especially… small. It feels, in fact, as big as an 
old 3-Series coupe. Which it is. Tiny fuel bills, surprisingly large car.