BMW iX Electric SUV Detailed, Will Start At $83,295

The automaker is targeting a 300-mile EPA range and the US launch is planned for Q1 2022.

BMW iX

Photo by: BMW AG.

Andrei Nedelea

By: Andrei Nedelea

Jun 2, 2021 at 4:00am ET

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BMW iX is the Bavarian automaker’s first electric high-rider designed as an electric vehicle from the start. It already offers the iX3 in Europe, but that’s just an electric X3 and it’s not outstanding in any area. The iX, however, promises a lot more and it will surely prove more talented.

In America, you will be able to order an iX from $82,300 (plus a $995 destination charge) and you should expect it to be delivered in the first quarter of 2022. This is the price for the xDrive 50 model, since the lower-powered xDrive 40 won’t be offered in the States

The more powerful powertrain pairs two electric motors (from BMW’s fifth-generation eDrive range) that together produce 516 horsepower; peak torque is not mentioned. With all-wheel drive, the iX xDrive 50 sprints to 60 mph (96 km/h) in 4.6 seconds and tops out at 124 mph (200 km/h).

BMW says it is expecting the iX to get an EPA range of 300 miles, although the figure is not yet final. This impressive range comes courtesy of a 111.5 kWh liquid cooled lithium-ion battery pack whose usable capacity is 106.3 kWh. Part of the reason why it is capable of delivering such competitive range figure has to do with its low drag coefficient, a claimed 0.25 Cd.

Charging the iX from 10 to 80 percent will take a claimed 40 minutes if you find a charger quick enough to provide the maximum 200 kW that it needs. If you rely on its 11 kWh on-board charger, the manufacturer estimates that you will need 11 hours for a full charge.

Gallery: 2022 BMW iX

BMW iX

BMW iX BMW iX BMW iX BMW iX BMW iX BMW iX

The specs are certainly competitive, but the iX still needs to make people want it, in order to be successful, and with such polarizing design, it may divide opinions. The front end features a massive faux twin-kidney grille (where the car houses most of its autonomous driving sensors), it has slim headlight clusters, very clean sides with door handles that retract into the doors and frameless side windows.

The pop-out door handles are there to make the car more aerodynamic, and the side mirrors were also designed with the utmost care for airflow, as are the special wheels (20-inch standard, or 21- and 22-inch optional) that not only improve airflow, but they are also around 15 percent lighter than a set of traditional wheels of the same size.

Other noteworthy BMW iX features include the special lift-related shock absorbers (that have extra built-in hydraulic damping), the optional two-axle air suspension, 5G connectivity, BMW Digital Key and the latest generation of the manufacturer’s proprietary infotainment system, iDrive 8, which promises to be better and simpler to use. It will also come with a full slew of advanced safety features as standard, but optionally ou will be able to add systems such as adaptive cruise control with stop and go, as well as lane keep functionality.

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The car will even come with what BMW calls Uneven Road Surface warning that will alert the driver of potentially bad roads ahead. The data that makes the system work was collected by a fleet of dedicated vehicles and it has been uploaded to the cloud; it is reportedly constantly updated. BMW also says the iX will have over-the-air update capability.

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