Coast-to-coast diesel

Having held back until it could offer one in all corners of the U.S., BMW says the time is right for a 50-state diesel.

The experience of climbing the Alps in a cool car can be jaw-dropping from a number of perspectives. No offense to the aesthetic value of a brilliant blue sky carved up by snow-capped peaks intended, but when that cool car is a BMW 3 Series diesel tapped for each and every pound-feet in its store, the car, not the vista, reigns as the awe-master.

The journalists lucky enough to have been given the opportunity to experience a recent test drive across the Alps from Germany through Austria to Italy are likely to keep those memories alive forever. Unfortunately, they weren't allowed to keep their test Bimmers. Or the engines.