BMW was an early leader in electric vehicles, with the ground-breaking i3 capturing the hearts and wallets of many early adopters.
The i3 even gathered fleet business, a rare win for a premium brand.
But then nothing. For nearly seven years, BMW didn’t launch a new full battery electric car in New Zealand, other than the arguablynot-BMW Mini EV.
During that time their European brethren, and of course Tesla, passed them by. Mercedes, Audi and Jaguar have all landed and done well with electric SUVS.
BMW is ready to catch up, racing ahead with what is set to be the largest range of EV options in market.
An i7 large sedan has been confirmed, with the smaller i4 sedan also set to arrive.
Most importantly as Kiwis are SUV mad, its two SUVs – the the iX3 and BMW iX – have landed and are reaching customers’ hands.
The question for many will be which one do you buy? And that choice is harder than you think.
IX A TECHNOLOGY POWERHOUSE
The iX is a large SUV and matches up best to the ICE X5. It’s priced from $163,900 for the xDrive40 Sport and $197,900 for the xDrive50 Sport.
The xDrive40’s 77kWh battery provides enough juice for the all-wheel drive system’s 240kW combined output, 630Nm torque and 425km range (WLTP).
And the xDrive50’s 112kWh battery has 385kW combined output, up to 765Nm torque and 630km range.
Not enough? An M60 with 455kW and 1100Nm of torque is coming later this year.
Charging speed is at up to 150kW on the M40 and up to 200kW on the M50.
In our tests, the latter high peak charging speed on a ChargeNet 350kW unit showed a high start of 190kW with a gradual ramp down.
Charging near full is not as strong as the Audi Etron, but far better than Tesla, Jaguar and Mercedes options. Onboard charging is 11kW giving a 10-hour charge time at best.
While we are talking about ChargeNet, all BMW iXs are offered with a complimentary ChargeNow membership which, in cooperation with ChargeNet, provides access to the largest network of public fast charging stations nationwide with a single ChargeNow card.
The iX launches a lot of new tech for the brand, including a new BMW Curved Display and the newest generation iDrive system with the latest technology and connectivity, including 5G.
It does a lot but takes some getting used to. Can’t be bothered?
The wireless CarPlay and Android Auto option is excellent and you can do a lot of set-up and customisation through the excellent BMW app. This also allows for digital keys to share with friends and colleagues.
The interior feels very futuristic, with floating screens, minimal dashboard buttons, and touch control surfaces, and a crystal iDrive controller on the centre console (which annoyingly reflected sun into my glasses at times).
Though the pleated leather and soft touch surfaces say luxury, the fibre-reinforced body structures and recycled material are a nice contrast.
Space, particularly in the rear, is excellent for passengers, but the boot at 500 litres felt small and narrow for such a large vehicle.
Space expands to 1750 litres with the second row down. You do, however, have the option of towing up to a healthy 2500kg braked.
How does it drive? This is a tricky one to answer. As a large SUV it feels great, with a comfortable ride and great performance. For instance, the 0-100km/h sprint is sub five-seconds.
The driver assistance features are very solid, making for relaxed highway cruising, and the range easily exceeds 400km, even with a full family on board.
But even though it’s dubbed an M50, aside from the brutal performance, the iX doesn’t feel particularly engaging as a sporty drive.
For that, you may need to wait for the M60. Or, should you be looking at the iX3?
THE BMW, IN EV FORM
If there’s an EV that could be a gateway for BMW owners who love the brand for its rear-wheel drive history, driving dynamics and overall feel, the iX3 potentially is it.
That’s unless you look at the i4 sedan, which is just starting to touch down.
EVs & Beyond has already tested the iX3 in our October issue in the United Kingdom, and in that issue writer Dave Mcleod called the car “just like a BMW”. Having now driven it in NZ we can reinforce that.
The iX3 is barely distinguishable from the petrol-powered versions aside from a blocked grille and a few blue highlights.
It’s very stealth, and I think looks great. Size-wise it’s a small-to-medium SUV, but the joy of the X3 is that interior space is excellent,and it’s like a medium-to-large SUV to live with.
For example, the boot is 550 litres, a full 50 litres more than the iX.
The interior is a little ‘last-generation” compared to the iX’s, but again that can be a good thing.
It’s spacious, luxurious and tactile. There are buttons for things like the air conditioning and infotainment system, which still has excellent software and appconnectivity, and a similar transmission shifter to the petrol models.
Even back seat space is competitive, behind the iX and Etron, but to me better than a Mercedes-Benz EQC or Jaguar iPace.
The iX3 is rear-wheel drive only, with the drive unit providing 210kW and 400Nm of torque.
The 0-100km/h time of 6.8 seconds underplays that the car feels perfectly speedy on the road, particularly when overtaking.
The 80kWh battery DC charges at up to 150kW and the onboard charger is an 11kW unit.
Though that charging speed may be market standard, where the iX3 gets ahead is efficiency.
We saw numbers consistently in the low-tomid 20kWh per 100km range, giving a real world 330 to 360km range.
That means less time charging in spite of the same charging speed on a longer trip.
And you will want to take trips, as this thing is a delight to drive.
The steering is crisp and responsive, the ride compliant yet it corners like it’s on rails. It hides its battery weight brilliantly.
It’s all-round a great car.
Pricing is pretty good too, coming in two trims with comprehensive levels of standard equipment, available as the Inspiring ($114,900) and Impressive ($124,900).
DECISIONS, DECISIONS
Both the iX and iX3 are exceptional vehicles, but the question is which one should you get?
For me, unless you really want the extra performance and technology, I believe the iX3 is the better vehicle as a daily driver, and for weekends.
And for people not considering a BMW, even those considering options like the Hyundai Ioniq or Kia EV6, it could be worth a look too.
It’s that good.
