Real-world fuel economy

BMW 3 Series Real MPG: what owners actually get

The official figure is what a BMW 3 Series managed in a laboratory. These are the figures owners report from the road, engine by engine, for every generation we hold. Add your own at the bottom and the averages get better for the next buyer.

42.9mpg

Real-world average, all engines

80%

of the official combined figure

19–72

Range reported by owners (mpg)

11,570

Owner submissions

BMW 3 Series

2005–2012 · real average 40.7 mpg · owners report 21.0–59.0 mpg · 1,758 submissions

Engine	Official (NEDC)	Official (WLTP)	Real MPG	% of official	Owners report
316d	62.8	–	52.1	83%	–
318d	53.3–62.8	–	47.8	82%	–
318d Automatic	53.3	–	43.8	82%	–
318i	42.8–44.8	–	33.6	77%	–
318i Automatic	42.8	–	28.7	67%	–
320d	53.3–68.9	–	48.0	79%	–
320d Automatic	53.3	–	42.3	79%	–
320i	41.5–44.1	–	32.8	77%	–
320i Automatic	41.5	–	30.8	74%	–
325d	49.6	–	40.2	81%	–
325d Automatic	46.3	–	39.5	85%	–
325i	39.2	–	29.4	75%	–
325i Automatic	38.2	–	27.4	72%	–
330d	49.6	–	42.5	86%	–
330d Automatic	45.6	–	37.6	82%	–
330i	38.2	–	27.3	71%	–
335d	42.8	–	35.6	83%	–
335i	31.0–33.6	–	26.3	81%	–
335i Automatic	32.5	–	26.3	81%	–

BMW 3 Series Touring

2005–2012 · real average 41.9 mpg · owners report 20.0–60.0 mpg · 996 submissions

Engine	Official (NEDC)	Official (WLTP)	Real MPG	% of official	Owners report
318d	52.3–62.8	–	48.7	85%	–
318d Automatic	52.3	–	43.7	83%	–
318i	41.5–44.8	–	34.6	80%	–
318i Automatic	41.5	–	35.8	86%	–
320d	52.3–58.9	–	47.1	85%	–
320d Automatic	52.3	–	44.0	84%	–
320i	40.4–44.1	–	34.7	82%	–
320i Automatic	40.4	–	32.6	81%	–
325d	48.7	–	42.8	88%	–
325d Automatic	45.6	–	40.1	88%	–
325i	38.7	–	31.5	81%	–
325i Automatic	37.2	–	26.7	72%	–
330d	47.9	–	40.7	85%	–
330d Automatic	44.8	–	38.1	85%	–
330i	37.2	–	27.9	75%	–
335d	42.2	–	34.6	82%	–
335i	30.4–33.2	–	29.1	92%	–
335i Automatic	32.5	–	26.5	81%	–

BMW 3 Series Coupe

2006–2012 · real average 36.6 mpg · owners report 20.0–58.0 mpg · 733 submissions

Engine	Official (NEDC)	Official (WLTP)	Real MPG	% of official	Owners report
318i	44.8	–	29.3	65%	–
320d	58.9–60.1	–	48.5	81%	–
320d Automatic	53.3	–	44.0	82%	–
320i	42.8	–	33.1	77%	–
320i Automatic	41.5	–	29.6	71%	–
325d	49.6	–	44.7	90%	–
325d Automatic	46.3	–	38.5	83%	–
325i	39.2	–	28.6	73%	–
325i Automatic	38.2	–	28.4	74%	–
330d	49.6	–	41.7	84%	–
330d Automatic	45.6	–	39.3	86%	–
330i	38.9	–	29.9	77%	–
330i Automatic	37.7	–	28.1	74%	–
335d	42.8	–	35.1	82%	–
335i	31.0–33.6	–	26.6	82%	–
335i Automatic	33.6	–	25.8	77%	–

BMW 3 Series Convertible

2007–2012 · real average 34.2 mpg · owners report 19.0–57.0 mpg · 375 submissions

Engine	Official (NEDC)	Official (WLTP)	Real MPG	% of official	Owners report
318i	36.2	–	32.7	90%	32.0–34.0
320d	44.8–55.4	–	47.5	95%	38.1–57.0
320d Automatic	50.4	–	42.0	83%	31.3–47.8
320i	30.1–41.5	–	32.1	90%	25.2–40.2
320i Automatic	38.7	–	28.6	74%	22.0–35.0
325d	46.3	–	40.0	86%	31.0–47.2
325d Automatic	44.1	–	38.6	88%	32.0–44.5
325i	29.4–37.7	–	27.0	81%	–
325i Automatic	35.8	–	28.4	79%	21.4–34.4
330d	40.4–46.3	–	40.9	94%	–
330d Automatic	44.1	–	36.5	83%	27.0–44.1
330i	29.4–36.2	–	25.2	77%	–
330i Automatic	34.4	–	26.5	77%	22.0–32.0
335i	29.7–32.1	–	27.4	89%	23.4–31.7
335i Automatic	32.1	–	24.3	76%	18.7–29.7

BMW 3 Series

2011–2018 · real average 44.6 mpg · owners report 22.0–72.0 mpg · 3,372 submissions

Engine	Official (NEDC)	Official (WLTP)	Real MPG	% of official	Owners report
316d	60.1–62.8	–	51.6	84%	38.8–64.0
316d Automatic	61.4–64.2	–	45.1	72%	–
316i	47.9	–	35.3	74%	27.5–42.0
316i Automatic	47.9	–	33.8	70%	28.0–39.0
318d	61.4–64.2	–	51.2	82%	38.1–62.0
318d Automatic	61.4–64.2	–	48.3	77%	–
318i	45.6	–	37.4	82%	29.0–46.5
318i Automatic	47.1	–	39.5	84%	29.0–44.4
320d	58.9–64.2	–	51.1	83%	–
320d Automatic	60.1–64.2	–	49.5	80%	–
320d EfficientDynamics	62.8–68.9	–	58.2	88%	43.4–71.7
320d EfficientDynamics Automatic	61.4–68.9	–	56.4	86%	42.8–69.0
320d xDrive	57.6–62.8	–	45.5	76%	34.1–56.0
320d xDrive Automatic	54.3–60.1	–	44.3	77%	33.3–55.0
320i	43.5–47.9	–	33.0	72%	25.1–41.1
320i Automatic	47.1–48.7	–	35.3	74%	27.0–42.5
320i EfficientDynamics	53.3	–	40.5	76%	31.8–50.0
320i EfficientDynamics Automatic	52.3	–	43.5	83%	35.0–53.8
320i xDrive	41.5–42.8	–	31.4	74%	–
320i xDrive Automatic	43.5–46.3	–	31.7	71%	25.0–39.5
325d	57.6	–	48.8	85%	39.0–58.0
325d Automatic	61.4	–	49.4	81%	45.0–56.5
328i Automatic	44.8	–	32.0	71%	–
330d	57.6	–	43.1	75%	32.5–53.5
330d Automatic	51.4–56.5	–	43.5	81%	33.6–54.0
330d xDrive	54.3	–	42.1	78%	32.5–52.0
330d xDrive Automatic	48.7–53.3	–	38.9	76%	–
330e	134.5–148.7	–	50.7	36%	–
330i	43.5	–	32.5	75%	25.0–39.0
330i Automatic	46.3–48.7	–	35.6	75%	–
335d	52.3	–	38.5	74%	29.0–48.0
335d xDrive Automatic	45.6	–	39.9	88%	30.0–49.0
335i	35.8	–	28.9	81%	22.0–34.0
335i Automatic	39.2	–	31.6	81%	24.8–36.0
340i	36.7	–	28.1	76%	21.5–35.4
340i Automatic	38.2	–	27.8	73%	21.8–34.0
ActiveHybrid	47.1–47.9	–	31.0	65%	25.0–35.0
ActiveHybrid 3	47.9	–	35.2	73%	30.0–45.0

BMW 3 Series

2012–2019 · real average 45.0 mpg · owners report 22.0–71.0 mpg · 2,587 submissions

Engine	Official (NEDC)	Official (WLTP)	Real MPG	% of official	Owners report
316d	60.1–62.8	–	51.6	84%	–
316d Automatic	61.4–64.2	–	45.1	72%	–
316i	47.9	–	35.8	75%	–
316i Automatic	47.9	–	33.8	70%	–
318d	61.4–64.2	–	51.5	82%	–
318d Automatic	61.4–64.2	–	47.9	76%	–
318i	45.6	–	37.9	83%	–
318i Automatic	47.1	–	42.9	91%	–
320d	58.9–64.2	–	51.4	84%	–
320d Automatic	60.1–64.2	–	49.9	80%	–
320d EfficientDynamics Automatic	61.4–68.9	–	56.4	87%	–
320d xDrive	57.6–62.8	–	45.5	76%	–
320d xDrive Automatic	54.3–60.1	–	45.0	79%	–
320i	43.5–47.9	–	33.1	73%	–
320i Automatic	47.1–48.7	–	36.0	75%	–
320i EfficientDynamics	53.3	–	41.8	78%	–
320i EfficientDynamics Automatic	52.3	–	42.6	81%	–
320i xDrive	41.5–42.8	–	31.4	75%	–
320i xDrive Automatic	43.5–46.3	–	31.7	71%	–
325d	57.6	–	48.3	84%	–
325d Automatic	61.4	–	49.4	81%	–
328i	44.1	–	31.3	71%	–
328i Automatic	44.8	–	32.3	72%	–
330d	57.6	–	42.9	74%	–
330d Automatic	51.4–56.5	–	43.3	80%	–
330d xDrive	54.3	–	42.8	79%	–
330d xDrive Automatic	48.7–53.3	–	38.8	76%	–
330e	134.5	–	51.9	39%	–
330i	43.5	–	29.8	68%	–
330i Automatic	46.3–48.7	–	34.6	73%	–
335d	52.3	–	37.9	73%	–
335d xDrive Automatic	45.6	–	39.9	87%	–
335i	35.8	–	29.5	82%	–
335i Automatic	39.2	–	31.6	81%	–
340i	36.7	–	28.4	77%	–
340i Automatic	38.2	–	28.5	74%	–
ActiveHybrid	47.1–47.9	–	34.0	72%	–
ActiveHybrid 3	47.9	–	35.2	73%	–

BMW 3 Series Touring

2012–2019 · real average 44.4 mpg · owners report 24.0–68.0 mpg · 1,022 submissions

Engine	Official (NEDC)	Official (WLTP)	Real MPG	% of official	Owners report
316d	58.9–60.1	–	45.6	77%	40.0–54.1
316d Automatic	60.1	–	51.3	85%	–
316i	45.6	–	45.0	99%	–
316i Automatic	45.6	–	–	–	–
318d	58.9–61.4	–	48.8	81%	39.0–59.1
318d Automatic	58.9–62.8	–	50.9	84%	43.6–59.0
318i	44.1	–	36.0	82%	31.8–40.0
318i Automatic	45.6	–	33.8	74%	28.0–40.0
320d Automatic	55.4–62.8	–	48.0	81%	36.0–58.0
320d EfficientDynamics	60.1–65.7	–	57.4	91%	43.0–68.0
320d EfficientDynamics Automatic	58.9–65.7	–	54.1	87%	–
320d xDrive	55.4–57.6	–	46.0	81%	38.0–58.0
320d xDrive Automatic	52.3–57.6	–	45.1	82%	35.0–55.0
320i	40.9–44.8	–	37.3	87%	29.0–45.8
320i Automatic	42.8–47.9	–	36.6	81%	28.0–41.8
320i xDrive	38.7–40.9	–	29.9	75%	24.0–36.2
320i xDrive Automatic	42.2–43.5	–	31.1	73%	–
325d	55.4	–	44.3	80%	39.5–49.7
325d Automatic	58.9	–	43.9	75%	–
328i	41.5	–	31.1	75%	28.4–33.8
328i Automatic	43.5	–	32.8	75%	26.0–41.6
330d	52.3–55.4	–	42.8	80%	–
330d Automatic	49.6–53.3	–	42.9	83%	–
330d xDrive Automatic	47.1–51.4	–	40.0	81%	–
330i	42.2	–	36.8	87%	33.0–38.9
330i Automatic	44.8–46.3	–	31.5	69%	25.0–36.0
335d xDrive	50.4	–	39.6	79%	30.1–46.4
335d xDrive Automatic	44.8	–	40.4	90%	31.0–50.0
335i	34.9–41.5	–	28.8	75%	–
335i Automatic	37.2–43.5	–	28.6	71%	27.0–30.1
340i Automatic	36.7	–	31.4	86%	24.4–38.0

BMW 3 Series Gran Turismo

2013–2020 · real average 42.4 mpg · owners report 23.0–64.0 mpg · 286 submissions

Engine	Official (NEDC)	Official (WLTP)	Real MPG	% of official	Owners report
318d	61.4–62.8	–	51.8	83%	–
318d Automatic	57.6–64.2	–	55.2	91%	–
320d	56.5–60.1	–	49.0	84%	–
320d Automatic	56.5–62.8	–	49.1	82%	36.9–56.8
320d xDrive Automatic	60.1	–	42.4	71%	35.0–51.0
320i	42.2–45.6	–	35.6	81%	26.6–41.0
320i xDrive	39.2–41.5	–	30.7	76%	25.0–34.3
320i xDrive Automatic	42.2–44.1	–	30.1	70%	–
325d	54.3	–	53.7	99%	–
325d Automatic	55.4	–	43.7	79%	–
328i	34.9–42.2	–	33.3	86%	–
328i Automatic	36.7–44.1	–	30.9	76%	23.0–36.0
330d	48.7–54.3	–	42.6	83%	32.0–51.0
330d xDrive	47.1–51.4	–	42.5	86%	36.9–50.0
330i Automatic	43.5–47.1	–	36.5	81%	35.7–38.0
335d xDrive	49.6	–	39.5	80%	29.0–44.0
335i	34.9–41.5	–	–	–	–
335i Automatic	36.7–43.5	–	38.4	96%	–
340i Automatic	37.2–40.4	30.1–31.7	–	–	–

BMW 3 Series GT

2013–on · real average 42.7 mpg · owners report 23.0–64.0 mpg · 240 submissions

Engine	Official (NEDC)	Official (WLTP)	Real MPG	% of official	Owners report
318d	61.4–62.8	–	51.9	84%	–
318d Automatic	57.6–64.2	–	54.0	89%	–
320d	56.5–60.1	–	49.3	85%	–
320d Automatic	56.5–62.8	–	49.0	82%	–
320d xDrive Automatic	60.1	–	43.1	72%	–
320i	42.2–45.6	–	35.7	81%	–
320i Automatic	44.8–47.9	–	30.2	65%	–
320i xDrive	39.2–41.5	–	30.1	75%	–
320i xDrive Automatic	42.2–44.1	–	30.0	70%	–
325d	54.3	–	53.7	99%	–
325d Automatic	55.4	–	43.7	79%	–
328i	34.9–42.2	–	33.3	86%	–
328i Automatic	36.7–44.1	–	30.9	76%	–
330d	48.7–54.3	–	42.0	81%	–
330d xDrive	47.1–51.4	–	42.6	86%	–
330i Automatic	43.5–47.1	–	36.6	81%	–
335d xDrive	49.6	–	40.0	81%	–
335i	34.9–41.5	–	–	–	–
335i Automatic	36.7–43.5	–	38.4	96%	–

BMW 3 Series

2018–on · real average 45.4 mpg · owners report 26.0–66.0 mpg · 174 submissions

Engine	Official (NEDC)	Official (WLTP)	Real MPG	% of official	Owners report
318d	–	57.6–62.8	50.9	84%*	–
318d Automatic	–	54.3–55.4	47.1	86%*	46.1–48.0
318d MHEV Automatic	–	57.6–62.8	–	–	–
318i Automatic	–	44.1	30.5	69%*	–
320d	62.8–64.2	55.4–57.6	52.2	92%*	–
320d Automatic	65.7–67.3	54.3–55.4	52.1	95%*	–
320d MHEV Automatic	–	56.5–61.4	59.1	100%*	59.6–60.0
320d MHEV xDrive Automatic	–	54.3–57.6	–	–	–
320d xDrive Automatic	61.4–62.8	51.4–52.3	46.6	90%*	38.0–58.5
320i Automatic	–	41.5–44.1	41.0	96%*	32.2–48.0
320i MHEV xDrive Automatic	–	40.9–42.2	–	–	–
320i xDrive Automatic	–	39.2–42.2	–	–	–
330d Automatic	–	47.9	–	–	–
330d MHEV xDrive Automatic	–	51.4–53.3	–	–	–
330d xDrive Automatic	–	51.4	47.3	92%*	43.0–49.6
330e	–	201.8–217.3	48.4	23%*	40.0–59.4
330i Automatic	47.9	41.5–43.5	37.8	89%*	30.0–45.1
340i	–	34.9	33.5	96%*	30.5–36.0
M340d xDrive	–	36.7–47.1	46.6	111%*	37.0–53.0
M340i xDrive	–	35.3	31.9	90%*	29.0–32.2

BMW 3 Series Touring

2019–on · real average 47.8 mpg · owners report 31.0–62.0 mpg · 27 submissions

Engine	Official (NEDC)	Official (WLTP)	Real MPG	% of official	Owners report
318d Automatic	–	49.6–58.9	–	–	–
318d MHEV Automatic	–	57.6–58.9	–	–	–
318i Automatic	–	42.2	–	–	–
320d	–	52.3–55.4	–	–	–
320d Automatic	–	50.4–52.3	49.2	96%*	46.9–48.0
320d MHEV Automatic	–	54.3–58.9	51.5	91%*	–
320d MHEV xDrive Automatic	–	48.7–57.6	–	–	–
320d xDrive Automatic	–	48.7–51.4	–	–	–
320i Automatic	–	40.4–42.2	42.5	103%*	–
330d Automatic	–	42.8–54.3	–	–	–
330d MHEV Automatic	–	52.3–56.5	–	–	–
330d MHEV xDrive Automatic	–	48.7–51.4	–	–	–
330d xDrive Automatic	–	43.5	–	–	–
330e	–	188.3–217.3	61.0	30%*	60.0–62.0
330e xDrive	–	156.9–201.8	–	–	–
330i Automatic	–	39.2–40.9	–	–	–
M340d xDrive	–	35.3–45.6	47.5	117%*	43.0–55.0
M340i xDrive	–	34.0	33.3	98%*	–

All figures in miles per gallon (UK). “Owners report” is the spread of individual submissions for that engine. * Measured against the WLTP figure rather than NEDC.

Add your BMW 3 Series Real MPG

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BMW 3 Series fuel economy questions

What is the real-world MPG of a BMW 3 Series?

Owners report an average of 42.9 mpg across all BMW 3 Series engines with data, about 80% of the official combined figure. The engine tables on this page give the figure for each engine and generation.

Why is the BMW 3 Series real MPG lower than the official figure?

Official figures come from a laboratory test cycle, not the road. Cold starts, short trips, hills, load, tyres and driving style all cost fuel the test does not see. A gap of 10 to 30 per cent is normal; a much bigger gap on one engine usually points at a fault, a heavy right foot, or a diesel that never gets warm.

Where did the Honest John BMW 3 Series Real MPG page go?

Honest John closed in August 2026 and its Real MPG section went with it. This page is where the BMW 3 Series figures now live: rebuilt from the archived Honest John dataset, with the official figures kept alongside, and reopened for new submissions. CarAdCheck is not affiliated with Honest John or Volkswagen Financial Services.

Where the BMW 3 Series figures come from

If you used the Honest John Real MPG section before the site closed in 2026, this is where the BMW 3 Series figures now live. The owner-reported averages above were rebuilt from the archived Honest John dataset (archived page, 2026-08) alongside the official NEDC and WLTP figures and new submissions from CarAdCheck readers, and the section is open so they keep improving. Real-world figures also feed the running-cost estimate in our free advert check.

CarAdCheck is not affiliated with Honest John or Volkswagen Financial Services. How we rebuilt Real MPG.

Other BMW models

BMW 1 Series42.2 mpg BMW 2 Series40.7 mpg BMW 4 Series39.2 mpg BMW 5 series41.0 mpg

Before you go and see it

Fuel economy is one line on the BMW 3 Series running-cost sheet. These guides cover the checks that stop you buying the wrong one.

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