BMW AUSTRALIA has announced that its efficient 118d hatchback will be brought to our shores later this year, bolstering the brand’s expanding range of economical offerings.

Sipping just 4.5 litres of diesel per 100km and emitting a scant 119g/km of carbon dioxide, the 118d is the most environmentally-friendly BMW to ever go on sale in this country - and it does it all without any sort of hybrid drive system.

Using a detuned version of the 120d’s all-alloy 2.0 litre turbodiesel four-pot, the 118d’s motor produces a handy 105kW and 300Nm of torque and channels it all through a six-speed manual gearbox.

The 118d employs the full range of BMW’s EfficientDynamics tricks, including aerodynamic air diversion panels, a start-stop system, on-demand ancillaries such as the air-conditioning compressor and power steering pump, and a battery-charging regenerative braking system.

All of these components combine to reduce mechanical drag on the engine and aerodynamic drag on the car, and help the 118d stretch each drop of diesel a little bit further.

The 118d will join the 730d and soon-to-launch 330d in BMW’s local line-up of diesel-drinking passenger cars, while the BMW Group’s MINI Cooper D is already making strong progress in the Australian market.

Pricing and specification details for the BMW 118d have yet to be released, however expect more information to surface before the car’s national launch in the final quarter of this year.

GALLERY » 2010 BMW 118d