BMW iX3 Positively Surprises In Bjorn Nyland's Range Test

It beats its closest competitors like Mercedes-Benz EQC, Jaguar I-PACE and Audi e-tron.

By: Mark Kane

Apr 22, 2021 at 10:17am ET

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The all-new BMW iX3 once again performs very well in EV tests - this time the Made-in-China electric BMW achieved strong range result in Bjorn Nyland's range test.

The WLTP rating for this model is up to 458 km (285 miles) and in a very good weather conditions, the BMW iX3 almost achieved it at 90 km/h (56 mph)! Even at 120 km/h (75 mph) it was able to cover 318 km (198 miles).

That's a really great result for a 80 kWh battery pack (74 kWh usable), considering the size and shape of the vehicle. In other words, the rear-wheel-drive iX3 is quite efficient for what it offers.

Results at 90 km/h (56 mph):

range of 442 km (275 miles)
energy consumption of 168 Wh/km (270 Wh/mile)

Results at 120 km/h (75 mph); up 33% compared to 90 km/h:

range of 318 km (198 miles); down 28%
energy consumption of 235 Wh/km (378 Wh/mile); up 40%

To put it into perspective, the BMW iX3 achieved a similar range to previously tested Volkswagen ID.4 (RWD) - 449 and 297 km, and Polestar 2 (AWD) - 435 and 305 km!

The results are slightly better than in the case of its closest European competitors: Mercedes-Benz EQC (420 and 296 km), Jaguar I-PACE (417 and 304 km), and noticeably better than Audi e-tron 55 (370 and 270 km.

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Comments

Gallery: BMW iX3 (2020)

A small quirk found during the test is that you can't use the climate control at a low battery state of charge (SOC) - below 10%, even if you are DC fast charging at 150 kW so there is no threat of running out of electricity.