Not long from now, the idea of a luxury fuel-efficient vehicle will most probably become ubiquitous. As the US government slowly raises the Corporate Average Fuel Economy rating, in a 5 percent annual ramp up to 35.5 mpg by 2016), automakers will need to manufacture more fuel frugal cars and trucks.
And that of course includes luxury cars. But luxury cars buyers don't want to sacrifice comfort, performance or technology to save at the pump—or to save the planet. Who says they have to? Here, we take two forward-looking, fuel-efficient vehicles—one, a hybrid; the other, a diesel—from Lexus and BMW for a 390-mile test drive.
Both BMW and Lexus have launched new cars this year that offer two very different approaches to delivering luxury and fuel economy. BMW has brought its potent 335d to the states, packing a mammoth 425 lb.-ft. of torque. The BMW is rated to return 23-mpg city and 36 mpg on the highway. Lexus has built its first dedicated hybrid, the HS250h—a car that offers only modest accelerative performance by comparison, but delivers 35-mpg city and 34 on the highway in a much less expensive package, with about the same level of tech as the BMW. Let's see how they stack up in a fuel economy face-off.
The Specs
Economy Comparison Test Drive
The HS250h may be a new Lexus hybrid, but it shares a powertrain with the Toyota Camry hybrid. The Atkinson-cycle 2.4-liter four-cylinder is linked to a 40 hp electric motor and CVT transmission. The hybrid system generates 187 total system horsepower and Lexus says that's good enough for a 0-60 mph time of 8.4 seconds. Like most hybrids, the Lexus has an Eco mode and a pure EV mode that allows the car to be driven under electric power for short distances. The BMW 335d in comparison uses a twin-turbo 3.0-liter inline six-cylinder with 265 hp and 425 lb.-ft. of torque that peaks way down at 1750 rpm. It's paired to a six-speed automatic and will produce 0-60 mph sprints in less than 6 seconds.
The BMW 3 series is perhaps the sports sedan benchmark. And our $50,895 335d test car was equipped with the $2,150 Sport Package that includes 18-inch summer tires and an even more aggressive suspension than the standard car. The rear-drive chassis is tuned to balance handling with a supple ride with MacPherson struts upfront and a multilink design in the rear. Lexus's HS250h is based on a front-wheel drive chassis that shares components with the European Toyota Avensis sedan. Our 3740 pound Lexus came with the $1600 Tuning Package that includes sportier 18-inch tires and a firmer suspension as well as the $2125 Navigation Package bringing the sticker up to $38,800—or $12,095 less than the BMW.
Inside, the 3835-pound BMW was trimmed with beige leather and dark burl walnut wood. And our test car had plenty of technology, including adaptive light control, dynamic cruise control, an iPod adapter and satellite radio. But strangely—for a $50,000 car—the 335d did not have a navigation system. Our Lexus wore a darker leather two-tone interior (part of the sport package) and absolutely no wood. But it did have heated seats and Lexus' wonderfully easy-to-use Remote Touch haptic controller behind its intuitively brilliant navigation system.
The Drive
It takes only one brief prod of the right pedal to know the BMW has an incredible motor under its hood. The rush of diesel torque is not unlike an old-school big block V8. Merely toeing into the throttle produces a smooth rush of acceleration. But boot that pedal hard, and you'll leave whisps of tiresmoke in your wake. Reeling in lesser cars, is effortless. In fact the inline-six is so potent, its difficult to maintain 65 mph on the freeway without cruise control—this car prefers 80 mph or more and feels great doing it.
The Lexus, does not beckon to be driven hard. Instead, this is a car that encourages you to hypermile. And that's especially true around town, when creeping in EV mode. The driving experience is not unlike a slightly more posh, more powerful Prius. However on the highway, the Lexus can easily maintain reasonable cruising speeds without the engine revving quite as much as the Prius. And when the BMW is driven with an eye on the fuel gauge, the Lexus has little trouble keeping up.
Our drive took up through the Santa Monica Mountains high above Malibu to test the handling of these two sedans. And no, it doesn't take long to realize the BMW is in another league, with fluid, organic steering and a chassis that encourages you to press on just as hard as the road and your bravado will allow. You settle deep into the BMW's cabin and sporty seats—creating a cocoon of driving capability. The HS250h has all the sporty boxes checked off. The chassis calibration on our Touring model is firm, with little body roll. And the steering is quick with good grip from the 18-inch tires. The Lexus can handle corners at a surprisingly good clip. But the driver and the machine do not meld into one seamless unit like the BMW. The steering is more artificial, almost digital in its feedback. The HS250h's suspension is not as supple or quiet over pavement irregularities as the 335d. And when pushed near BMW speeds, the Lexus will eventually understeer—while the 335d keeps piling on the cornering forces without a peep from its tires.
Once we returned to the task of driving on flat, trafficked highways—like ninety-nine percent of America drivers—the virtues of the Lexus began to shine again. The HS isn't quite as plush as the other sedans in the Lexus lineup. But the seats are extremely comfortable for long journeys. And the visibility from those perches is much better than the BMW. The Lexus Remote Touch system for controlling the car's functions is so good it makes every other system seem outdated. The Lexus dash layout is equally forward looking and provides a fun and futuristic vibe. The driver's information center is clever and easy to use too. And on our journey, it was the Lexus that served as our command center searching the best routes and best lunch stop.
Climb into the rear seats and the Lexus offers more comfort and better legroom too. However both offer nearly identical trunk capacity—12.1 cu-ft. for the Lexus and 12.0 cu.-ft. in the BMW.
The Bottom Line
Our fuel economy test took us from Santa Monica up through the mountains to Santa Barbara and on the 101 freeway to San Luis Obispo before returning home for a total of 390 miles. Over this route, the BMW returned 33.6 mpg and the Lexus delivered 34.7 mpg—just about 1 mpg better. If this test had been skewed more toward city driving, we expect the Lexus would have provided a more serious fuel economy advantage.
The personality and price point of these two cars are markedly different. But they both offer solid fuel efficiency numbers wrapped in packages that don't force the buyer to compromise luxury, comfort or sportiness. Cost no object, we'd probably choose the BMW and its addictive diesel thrust. But if performance is less important than price or fuel efficiency—and $12,000 is a lot in this economy—the Lexus would be our pick.
