BMW iX electric SUV: two variants for Oz this year

BMW Australia has confirmed the pioneering BMW iX electric SUV will touch down in local showrooms in the fourth quarter of 2021 in two different grades.

Currently undergoing its final phase of development, the BMW iX will be available in Australia in xDrive40 and xDrive50 guises, said the German brand today.

BMW Australia is yet to announce final pricing and specifications for the all-new battery-electric SUV. These details are being kept under wraps until mid-2021.

However, order books are now open for the BMW iX, as well as the smaller Chinese-built iX3, which is due to touch down in the third quarter of this year.

As we’ve previously reported, the BMW iX3 and iX will both be priced lower than the Mercedes-Benz EQC 400 ($139,700 plus ORCs).

The BMW iX xDrive40 will comprise a 240kW electric drivetrain apportioning its power to all four wheels via a 70kWh battery. The BMW xDrive40 boasts a 0-100km/h time of approximately six seconds, according to BMW, and a claimed WLTP range of 400km.

Meanwhile, the flagship BMW iX xDrive50i will offer an all-wheel drive powertrain boasting 370kW, a claimed 5.0sec 0-100km/h time and a range of 600km.

Set to debut BMW’s new iDrive 8 infotainment system, the BMW iX five-seat luxury electric SUV mimics the size and footprint of the evergreen BMW X5, and will to compete against the Audi e-tron, Jaguar I-PACE, Mercedes-Benz EQC and Tesla Model X.

“The new BMW iX redefines the successful Sports Activity Vehicle (SAV) concept and is the first model based on a new, modular and scalable toolkit on which the future of the BMW Group will be built,” the car-maker said in a release.

Both versions of the BMW iX will also be capable of fast-recharging, says the manufacturer: “The new charging technology of the BMW iX enables DC [direct current] fast charging with extremely high charging power.

“The BMW iX xDrive50 can replenish its high-voltage battery at up to 200kW, while the maximum charging capacity of the BMW iX xDrive40 is 150kW.”

BMW says that means that a 10-minute plug-in time adds more than 120km and 90km of range respectively, and that high-voltage battery in both models can be charged from 10 to 80 per cent of capacity in less than 40 minutes.

The BMW iX shares much of its powertrain technology with the BMW X3-sized iX3 electric SUV, but it doesn’t share its mostly steel platform.

Instead, the BMW iX shows its affection for the seven-year-old i3 by using an aluminium spaceframe architecture and a carbon-fibre cage (Carbon Cage in BMW-speak), which is visible when the doors are open, as in the discontinued BMW i8.

While expensive and extravagant, it’s not as overtly done as the i3’s chassis and body.

There’s no frunk, either, and because the washer fluid is topped up via a neck beneath the BMW badge on the nose, BMW has opted to give it a fixed clamshell bonnet.

The batteries are modular and at least 96 per cent recyclable, with each individual cell able to be accessed easily.

The all-wheel drive BMW iX uses a pair of the modular integrated power packs that debuted on the iX3, with the electric motor, power electronics and the single-speed gearbox all squeezed inside a single housing and mounted on the driven axle.

With the iX, that means one at the front and a more powerful one at the rear to retain a sportier, rear-biased feel in cornering.

With no rare-earth minerals in the lithium-ion batteries (and Australian- and Moroccan-sourced lithium), BMW has forced its suppliers to use green power to produce its batteries, saving a claimed 10 million tonnes of CO2 a year.

Inside, the omission of a centre tunnel delivers an airy cabin, with generous legroom and all the displays are stripped to their bare essentials.

BMW says it will hold rocker switches for gear selection and to control the information in the new 14.9-inch curved instrument cluster that’s hidden from the front passenger. It even has three-stage steering wheel heating.

There is also a 12.3-inch touch-screen multimedia screen in the centre of the dash, along with an enormous head-up display.

It’s governed by a next-generation operating system that tilts in favour of simplicity and minimalism, even down to the operation of its 2.5-zone automatic climate-control system.