Until 2015, big diesels had the sole dominance in the business segment for a long time. The BMW 3-series, in the form of the M340d xDrive, belongs to the old school. Electric newcomers like the Nio ET5 are lurking on the throne. A direct duel!
Power and torque
The electric Nio ET5 attracts power junkies with an impressive 489 hp and 680 Nm. If you want that power permanently under your right foot, you will always have to drive in Sport +. If the Comfort or Eco mode is activated, you only get a part of that power. With the BMW M340d xDrive with its blown six-cylinder inline engine, it doesn’t matter which mode you choose. At full throttle, 700 Nm and 340 hp are always at your disposal.
Acceleration times Nio ET5 vs. BMW M340 xDrive
With a 149 hp advantage in power, it is not surprising that the Nio ET5 accelerates even faster than the BMW M340d xDrive. The Chinese blasts to 100 km/h in 3.8 seconds, the BMW needs 4.4 seconds for this exercise. The fact that the difference is not that big has everything to do with weight: the Nio ET5 with the large battery pack (100 kWh) weighs 2160 kilos.
The fat Dreier keeps it at 1775 kg. From 0 to 150 km/h the Nio is more than a second faster than the BMW, but above 190 km/h the German takes over. The sprint to 200 km/h is already over after 17.7 in the BMW, with the Nio we press the stopwatch on stop 0.7 s later.
At top speed, the BMW rolls up the Nio
Although the BMW overtakes the Nio late, it is impressive how smoothly it delivers its power and how light-footed it is during spontaneous overtaking manoeuvres thanks to its generous torque. The fact that the perfectly tuned eight-speed automatic transmission also takes the 3-series to 250 km/h in no time is a small but nice bonus of the classic drive configuration.
Especially in your head, because in the Netherlands and Belgium you basically never drive that fast. And also on the increasingly busy German autobahn it is often impossible. The top speed of the Nio (200 km/h) is therefore much more than enough.
Nio ET5 Actual Range
On paper, the Nio ET5’s 100 kWh battery capacity (net 91 kWh) sounds like a guarantee for a considerable range. But with an average test consumption of 23.9 kWh/100 km, only 384 kilometers remain of the stated 560 kilometers. Note that this is the consumption including the test measurements. In addition, the test car is equipped with optional 20-inch wheels, which also reduce the range by 46 kilometers.
If you really try, the Nio ET5’s consumption will remain at 18 kWh/100 km and a range of 505 km is in the offing. That is very close to the WLTP range of 514 km on 20-inch wheels. Under normal Dutch conditions, the battery pack will usually take you more than 400 kilometers away.
This is how far the BMW M340d xDrive can go on one tank
During the test, the BMW makes do with a meager 6.3 liters of diesel per 100 kilometers (1 in 15.9). That gives it a range of 937 kilometers. On our economy lap, we even used only 4.7 liters of diesel per 100 kilometers. Those with parents from Zeeland can therefore count on a range of 1255 km. A great value, but there are days when we drive less …
Nio ET5: rent or buy battery?
Considering the Nio’s meager 125kW maximum charging speed, ET5 makes fast autobahn rides more likely to be frustrating than fun. The Nio Power Swap stations, where you can swap the empty battery for a full one in about five minutes, don’t offer any salvation either.
The infrastructure is simply not yet sufficient to offer this service widely. Moreover, you can only swap if you have opted for battery rental. With a purchase price of over 20 grand lower, that sounds more attractive than it is. Because for the 100 kWh rental battery you pay 289 euros per month. That is even more than the 210 euros in road tax that the M340d driver has to cough up every month.
The BMW M340d xDrive is so much more expensive than the Nio ET5
So we go for the purchase battery. With that, the – for the time being road tax-free – Nio ET5 costs 74,200 euros in the tested version. A bomb of money, but a bargain compared to the BMW, which we equipped with, among other things, sports seats and 19-inch light-alloy with extra wide tires at the back. As tested, the M340 xDrive is listed for 102.80 euros. A difference of almost 30,000 euros. Gulp …
The full comparative test can be found in Auto Review 8/2024. Order nowboth in print (€6.99) and digital (€5.99)!
Source: www.autoreview.nl
