The German tuner Alpina has been creating BMWs with an extra level of performance and luxury since 1965, forging such a close relationship with the Munich automaker that its cars are sold in BMW dealerships and covered by factory warranties. But unlike tuners that improve a car by shoving the biggest engine they can find under its hood, Alpina has always looked to power-to-weight ratios and tweaking existing equipment to gain extra speed. Keeping with this philosophy, the automaker is introducing a new model that emphasizes both speed and efficiency -- the D3 Bi-Turbo Coupe.
Working with the diesel mill originally found in the European-market 123d, Alpina's adjustments only manage to boost output by 10 horsepower (from 204 to 214), but are good for a whopping 37 lb-ft. of additional torque, making 332 lb-ft. in total. With the powerplant installed in BMW's larger 3 Series coupe, the D3 Bi-Turbo can reach 62 mph in 6.9 seconds and manage a 152-mph top speed -- admittedly not supercar fast, but unlike other Alpinas this car is meant to strike a balance between performance and fuel economy, an increasingly important issue given the rising cost of gas. Despite the added power, with a combined 52.3 mpg (for the manual transmission model) the D3 suffers only a two mpg penalty against the smaller 1 Series diesel coupe. A comparable 330d coupe from BMW makes 231 horsepower and 369 lb-ft. of torque from its diesel, but with Alpina's goal of "added lightness" both cars have a similar power to weight ratio, and the 330d is only .3 seconds faster to 62 mph (at 6.6 seconds). In addition with the 330d managing just 43.5 mpg on the EU combined cycle, the Alpina gets an impressive 8.8 more miles per gallon with little more than a slight penalty in speed. Though some Alpina-tuned cars are available in the U.S. (in very small numbers), unfortunately the D3 Bi-Turbo won't be one of them. A limited number of cars will be produced, with only 100 going to the UK market. However as more American drivers begin to value good fuel-economy as much as raw power, the time could soon be right for a tuner that can perform at the pump as well as the track.
