The F30 BMW 3 Series is establishing itself nicely. Meanwhile, tuners still like messing around with the older E90 version.

Alpina’s B3 S BiTurbo is meant to be an upgrade on the regular 3 Series that doesn’t go all the way up to the racing levels of the B3 GTS.

Further more, the Alpina B3 S BiTurbo is also available as a sedan or a family estate for those who actually have a few practicality concerns.

Alpina sticks to their tradition and they’ve fitted the exterior with a dignified looking body and new alloy wheels.

These are sometimes referred to as outdated. The Alpina look is actually more of a BMW look than fans of the Bavarian brand would like to admit.

Over the years, BMW went off to make quite a few risky choices with styling whereas Alpina have stuck to soft lines and a dignified imposing presence.

It all sounds almost poetic, and then you raise the bonnet to quite the surprise. The B3 S BiTurbo BMW 3 Series is powered by BMW’s 3.0 liter turbocharged straight six cylinder engine.

Once Alpina have done some tuning to it, the final output figures come in at 400 horsepower and 397 lbs-ft of torque.

That’s quite the performance, it seems like a shying moment away from what the big boy BMW M3 develops in the E90 M3 and probably sufficient for anybody who’d be interested.

All that grunt is offered with the promise of a smooth delivery and Alpina have even kept an eye out for fuel economy and emissions.

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We all know BMW makes the some of the finest engines in the business regardless of them being petrol or diesel powered. This is why it’s surprising to see people try to improve on them.

It seems somehow unnatural but then again, the people who put themselves at risk to find new things and explore new places are also unnatural.

Alpina’s crew may be loaded with that kind of people as over the years they’ve constantly kept trying to improve the BMW powerplants for years.

Weirdly, at the moment, the most respected engine BMW is making is allegedly the 3.0 liter diesel they put in the 535d.

I’m a bigger fan of the petrol engine but it really a fabulous diesel. At this point Alpina turn it into the D5 BiTurbo.

Thanks to a couple of new turbos and an ECU remap the powerplant is now producing 350 horsepower and well over 442 lb-ft of torque.

Filter in the close ratio eight speed automatic gearbox and the Alpina D5 BiTurbo can now get from 0 to 62 in just 5.2 seconds and it has an updated electronic top speed limiter at 168 mph.

Despite the added power, the engine is praised as maintaining nearly the same fuel economy levels at 47.8 mpg in the sedan and 44.7 mpg in the Touring version.

There’s a good chance that a bit of turbo lag may happen but seriously, it’s a 5 second to 62 car that does well over 40 mpg.

Is there really that much more that you’d want from a car than what the Alpina D5 BiTurbo has to offer.

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One of our lovely specialist BMW tuners is readying a pretty important unveil for the upcoming Geneva Motor Show. Scratch that, it’s several months away but we know what’s happening.

The Swiss show will be the stomping ground for the unveiling of the Alpina B3 S. The current model has it’s charm, but once it goes F30, it should be even more interesting.

With the new car there’s plenty going to change but apart from the name, Alpina is going to stick with the familiar idea of B3 BiTurbo power.

BMW manages it pretty great but we know that Alpina will churn out some serious extra grunt from that 3.0 liter straight six cylinder engine well beyond the current stages.

400 horsepower was what they were capable of producing with the previous version of the car so the new one should go beyond that with at least some 20-30 extra ponies.

Aside from the fact the performance figures are pushed into M3 territory, the Alpina B3 S will almost certainly stick to the family theme.

That means it will ride brilliantly and the suspension will still be sporty when it’s called upon. That’s something BMW themselves have had a few issues with taming.

It will be interesting to see just how Alpina will do afterwards. Though there’s plenty of customers interested in a great cruiser with some performance on it, the 328i still makes a case for itself.

Seeing an Alpina badge on it, some 300 or more horses under its bonnet and a properly comfy ride should certainly tempt plenty of customers.

Then again, is that what Alpina is really about?

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