► Need a plug-in hybrid? Look no further
► Up to 289bhp, 0–62mph in 5.9 seconds
► Update increases EV range to 61 miles, too
Are you an automotive engineer? Are you racking your brains, trying to come up with a good design for a plug-in hybrid saloon? Well, pay very close attention because you’ve just stumbled across the very best the market currently has to offer. The BMW 330e.
Why do we like it so much? Well, it’s great to drive for a start. It’s not perfect, but the way it toes the line between efficiency and driver engagement is masterful. It’s also fabulously well-made and, for all you Need For Speed fans, it has an amusing push-to-pass mode called XtraBoost that cranks the powertrain’s combined output up to 289bhp.
BMW revised the 330e in mid 2024 to keep it competitive with the newer Mercedes-Benz C 300 e. The headline change is it now has a larger battery pack with a longer maximum electric range. That means you should now be able to do a couple of days’ worth of commuting without burning a drop of fuel.
If that’s not enough, the 330e has all the features we love about the standard 3 Series – namely its supportive seats, excellent driving position, smartly understated styling and user-friendly infotainment system. You can also have it in BMW’s Touring body style which, unsurprisingly, is one of our favourite hybrid estate cars.
Keep reading for our full BMW 3 Series hybrid review.
What’s new?
Loads of incremental tweaks, but they add up to make a great car even better. The biggest difference is a new, more energy-dense 19.5kWh battery pack that’s increased the 330e’s maximum electric range from 37 to 63 miles.
When you’re not trying to do an impersonation of a Tesla, BMW reckons that new battery can net you between 256.8 and 353.1mpg (which, spoiler alert, it won’t – but it is more efficient than before). And, because it had the tech lying around its workshop, BMW has chucked an 11kW on-board charger at the 330e to speed up recharge times.
Apart from that, the car’s basically unchanged from when it was last updated in 2022. There’s a slightly tweaked steering wheel design, some new seat upholstery finishes and updated materials for the centre console. And that’s your lot. But why would BMW mess with a formula that’s already perfect?
What are the specs?
The 330e teams the same 2.0-litre, four-cylinder petrol engine you’ll find in the regular 320 with an electric motor. And, because this is BMW, it’s neatly integrated into the car’s eight-speed automatic gearbox.
The packaging is so good that the casing is just 15mm longer than the standard eight-speed auto fitted elsewhere in the 3-series range. Having the motor in this position is great for efficiency, too – particularly when it comes to brake-energy regeneration.
The petrol engine provides 181bhp and 221lb ft, while the electric motor gives up to 111bhp and an instant 195lb ft – although as is usually the case with hybrid systems, you can’t just add those two figures together to get the car’s total power output.
Rather, the 330e’s official max figure is 249bhp without resorting to the cringingly named XtraBoost function. Combined system torque is 310lb ft – and that adds up to a 0–62mph time of 5.9 seconds in the saloon and 6.0 seconds flat in the estate.
Just remember not to take BMW’s fuel economy figures at face value. Sure, if you charge it up religiously and never drive it more than 50 miles at a time, you’ll never use any fuel. But once you’ve drained the battery, you’ll only get around 40mpg from it. That’s good considering the performance on offer, but it’s a long way behind BMW’s claims.
It can reward you with diesel rivalling efficiency on longer journeys if you’re prepared to plug it in. We took a 300e on an 800-mile motorway jaunt, where we managed a couple of charging sessions – and we averaged 50mpg. So, the moral of the story is to use the car how it was intended. And don’t complain about your naff fuel economy if you don’t.
How does it drive?
It’s fast. But the XtraBoost function is a little disappointing to use. We were hoping for a big nitrous-style button, like Porsche’s Sport Response mode. But it’s just an additional element of the 330e’s Sport driving mode settings, activated by stamping on the accelerator. It’s also fired up by kickdown in the S or M transmission settings. Boo.
But we’ll set our juvenile modified car fantasies aside and focus on the performance. Because the jump to 289bhp is delivered entirely by jolting an extra 40bhp out of the electric motor, the response is quite impressive. So much so, BMW reckons that, from 12mph, it’ll give you twice the ‘vigour’ of a similarly powerful conventional car within a second – and after three seconds you’ll be a full car length ahead. Exactly the sort of performance environmentally conscious BMW buyers are probably looking for.
While BMW’s application of PHEV tech might be questionable, you can’t argue with the results. The 330e lurches forward with real purpose – it squirts of with fiery determination to get to the next corner before everything behind it. And, because it’s a BMW, it has the chassis composure to carry the speed through the corners without sailing into the scenery.
Its 0–62mph time doesn’t do justice to how quickly it gathers speed on the move, either. Out on the motorway, it builds speed quicker than the 330d. And even though the XtraBoost effect only lasts for 10 seconds a time, it’s available even when you’ve rinsed the main hybrid batteries of all their electric driving range. Besides, how often do you accelerate for longer?
There’s a catch, though. That exhilarating performance doesn’t necessarily translate into fun. Sure, the 330e is quick. But the four-cylinder engine sounds dull – with or without the extra-dynamic acoustics activated in the Sport settings – and the weight of the hybrid’s big drive battery hampers the athleticism of the chassis. Drive the 330e back-to-back with the 320, and you’ll understand what we mean.
Don’t get us wrong, this is still a car that will swallow a series of bends without blinking and come back hungry for more. But some of the joy has gone missing from the process, as exhibited by the slightly light and artificial feel to the steering (again, even in the heaviest Sport setting), and a stuttering chop when laterally loading the suspension.
In fairness, this updated model is better than the old one. BMW has tweaked its adaptive dampers to try and make the car more comfortable in Sport mode, but mid-corner bumps will still upset the handling. You simply can’t get around the car’s extra gravity and, as a result, the 330e is fast but not especially satisfying. It always feels like a slight compromise.
What about the interior?
It’s the same as the standard 3-Series, which is no bad thing. You get the same larger infotainment system and digital gauge cluster introduced on the facelifted version of the standard saloon – and they’re a joy to use thanks to their simple menu design and clear graphics. BMW’s iDrive system is still fantastic, too. Using the rotary controller instead of the touchscreen means you can spend more time focusing on the road rather than the screens.
You pay a penalty for the hybrid system, though. Boot space has suffered. There’s a large hump in the floor, which chops maximum capacity down from 480 litres to 375 litres. It’s the same story in the 330e Touring, which gets just 410 litres with the seats up and 1420 with them stowed – a long way behind the 500/1500 litres you get in any other 3-series estate car.
At least BMW has been clever about the 330e’s packaging. That hump in the boot floor is actually the fuel tank, which has been moved backwards from its usual position beneath the rear seats to make room for the battery pack. The battery was placed closer to the centre of the car because it’s heavier; mounting it there is better for weight distribution.
Before you buy
The 330e is only available in two specifications – Sport and M Sport. The former is priced from £46,985 and comes as standard with LED headlights, automatic three-zone air conditioning, cruise control and front and rear parking sensors.
M Sport models are a little more expensive, starting from £48,235. For the extra money, you get 18-inch alloy wheels, a racy M Sport body kit and model-specific seat upholstery with M Sport tricolour piping. In other words, you’re getting more show and no extra go.
It’s also worth remembering that there are some plug-in hybrids that can go further on electric power than the 330e. The Mercedes C 300 e, for example, has a claimed EV range of 71 miles, while the recently updated Volkswagen Golf eHybrid can cover a whopping 88 miles on battery power. The Golf is also about £10,000 cheaper than the 330e. But neither drive as well and neither are screwed together with the same care.
Verdict
The word that springs most readily to mind here is ‘impressive’ – BMW’s big-selling plug-in hybrid certainly isn’t just a box-ticking exercise, with plentiful performance, extended electric range and some clever tricks. That new battery has made it a little more efficient, too. No wonder it’s so popular.
If you’re buying one to save on your tax, then you can rest assured that it’s a BMW through-and-through and drives as it should. Just bear in mind that, if you’re stepping out of a 330d or 330i, it’ll feel marginally less agile.
And while the 330e does the whole PHEV thing perfectly well, it still isn’t the kind of car that gets under your skin. This is a well thought-out and enjoyable tool, rather than the kind of genuinely emotional experience an outstanding BMW can be. Still, it’s much better than its plug-in hybrid-powered rivals – so, if you’re shopping for a PHEV, start your search here.
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