BMW iX3 review: New electric SUV sets a benchmark for the future of EVs

BMW's first Neue Klasse model combines exceptional range, performance and technology in a five-star electric SUV package

Read our BMW iX3 review as the Neue Klasse electric SUV delivers impressive range, performance and technology in a five-star package

BMW iX3
Rating	★★★★★
Price	from €77,760 - €90,478 as tested
Power	an EV with an output of 436bhp
Range	Claimed to be 800km and, in reality, not too far from it
The Spec	Pretty spectacular in M Sport Pro spec
Verdict	Astonishing

FIVE-STAR reviews are not handed out willy-nilly here at Examiner Motoring and their granting is something we take very seriously — as should be the case — because it is a benchmark that cannot simply be doled out in any offhand fashion.

This week we are reviewing a car that has caused not just ripples in the still pond that so often is motor industry research and development departments, but a tidal wave of angst and jealousy because it truly is the bee’s knees.

Not only that, but it has sparked a frenzy of interest among the buying public because it is just so revolutionary.

The car in question is the BMW iX3, the first of a series of Neue Klasse machines from the Bavarian powerhouse which are set to not only transform the EV market as we know it, but also the world of cars as a whole.

Just over a year ago, BMW flew an international bunch of hacks — not just the usual bunch of Europeans, but journos from the US, Australia, Japan, and China were there too — to Munich to unveil the car in a static display and allow us interview the main players from within the company who were responsible for designing and building it.

Such was the secrecy surrounding the event that strict embargoes were slapped on all attendees about when they could actually write about it and all of our phones were taken away so that no sneaky recordings of the proceedings — or even mere photos — could be made.

That was July and it was not until September that we were allowed to reveal anything about the car and, by and large, everyone toed the line.

The story we had to tell would — to paraphrase that old US line — cause shock and awe throughout the motoring world.

And, it is only now that we actually got our hands on one here in Ireland and were able to get out the microscopes and the magnifying glass to get under its skin — and more importantly, find out if the car lived up to the outrageous claims being made of it.

Everything about the car is new and while a lot of car makers botched their initial EV contenders — BMW included, it has to be said — the Bavarians were never going to make the same mistake twice.

That being so, the iX3 features new electric motors and battery technologies, completely new design language and a radically rethought interior design and technology package. There’s hardly a bolt on the car that hasn’t had some fresh thinking applied to it.

One of the main joys, however, is the instrumentation, all of which is contained in a digital strip across the bottom of the windscreen (indeed it actually looks like it is in-built into same screen). It is innovative, informative and elegant.

Great. But how is it? Well, fantastic. Look at the bigger picture, though, and you witness the decimation of the once great and all-powerful German motor industry struggling against an Eastern monster they, ironically, helped build.

That’s why the iX3 — and the whole Neue Klasse vibe — are so important, not alone for the European industry, but as some sort of a bulwark against a seemingly endless raft of essentially exact copies of what your own engineers were dreaming about the previous night.

This had to be a statement and that’s exactly what it is.

Okay, in real-world conditions — ie flashing it around various Irish highways and by-ways (while paying due respect to the laws, of course) — it might not match the claimed 800km range, but you won’t be caught short getting to Auntie Maisie’s funeral in Bundoran.

This is the essential guarantee here: You now have an extremely capable EV — and it’s an SUV too — just the thing for the modern, progressive, and environmentally conscious type.

The only downside? It don’t come cheap. However, this is a new benchmark in EV motoring and, as such, it was never going to be sold for two-and-sixpence. This is the sort of car people have been screaming for since the EV revolution began and most will therefore have no difficulty shelling out for one.

But why is it so good? It is so good because it outshines even its ICE siblings — both in terms of performance and efficiency.

It charges quickly and, on the road, it is as good if not better in the critical areas of handling and ride as any contemporaries — be they combustion-engined or otherwise.

The exact model we were given to try was the iX3 50 xDrive M Sport Pro and that means it has a 108 kilowatt battery pack, which feeds two electric motors which power both front and rear wheels.

In turn, that translates into an output of 436bhp, a 0-100km/h time of 4.6 seconds, and a top speed of just over 210km/h.

The claimed range is 800km and its trip from Dublin to Cork City for the purposes of this exercise left it with over 60% capacity remaining and an indicated 470km of range. Onwards to our West Cork lair and, after some stiff driving, there was over 240km left.

Overnight charging, it has a 400kW capacity for this, if you can find a charger to do just that (hint, they’re extremely rare) took about six hours using my elderly charge point, but BMW claims it can get 10%-80% in just 21 minutes.

There’s hardly a bolt on the car that hasn’t had some fresh thinking applied to it.

On the innovation side, it uses cylindrical battery cells instead of the more common design utilising a pouch of prismatic ones; the system is more energy dense than most, even if it is more expensive to manufacture. But let’s not delve too deeply there because we’d be here all day.

Out on the road, the car is a paragon of driving ability; it is on the money in terms of both handling and ride (even on some appalling roads), it is enjoyable to a fault, and — as is the measure of many a great car — can travel fast without appearing to do so.

In fact, it is so easy-going that if you’re not using the excellent adaptive cruise control system, you have to keep a very close eye on the speedo to prevent yourself from being locked up.

Drive is biased towards the rear wheels, meaning you can have fun in it too — you can get the tail out pretty easily if so inclined — but it is only really when in ‘Sport’ mode that it becomes a bit lairy.

Worth mentioning too are the brakes, which are completely unlike most EVs and there’s no sense here that you’re transferring from regen mode to actually stopping. It’s seamless.

The interior too is as polished as the car’s other aspects. There is a large centrally-mounted screen which is a bit Chinese, in that all major controls and navigation and the sound system are routed through it. That said, it is not dangerously distracting to use.

One of the main joys, however, is the instrumentation, all of which is contained in a digital strip across the bottom of the windscreen (indeed it actually looks like it is built into the same screen). It is innovative, informative, and elegant.

There truly is so much that can be said of this beast, and we haven’t got the space to accommodate half of what could be highlighted. But be assured, ladies and gentlemen, that this is the single most outstanding EV that has yet been built.

BMW has put its credibility on the line here — and with further Neue Klasse models which we’ll see in the not-too-distant future — and has not been found wanting.

This, quite simply, is brilliant.