2022 BMW iX xDrive40i Sport review: A thoroughly useful, liveable car

Eight years ago BMW launched the i3 — it was Singapore’s first EV sold to the public, the first EV we really trusted not to strand us with range perfidy. It was ahead of its time, but also the sort of technological eye-opener that made a perfect convincer for the EV skeptic.

Eight years on and BMW got lost by not making another EV until last year’s iX3, followed by this — the iX flagship EV. In many ways, it’s the true successor to the i3, and finally takes the BMW i experience and magnifies it in an era it fits into perfectly.

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The iX debuted late last year at our very own EV Weekend — Singapore’s first and largest EV showcase — and if you read our launch story you can see the model variants and price breakdown (before the ARF increase).

We got a brief hands-on with the Sport model in our first impressions story, so we’ll not rehash what we’ve said there too much, and instead focus on how the iX performed in real Singaporean life, over a longer distance during our multi-day test drive.

Appearance and design: Joy division?

We think the most potentially divisive aspect of the iX is its design. It does have a few awkward angles, since to our eyes it’s what would happen if you crossed an i3 with an X5. The grille isn’t a problem, we’re thoroughly used to the new kidney grille by now.

But we suspect also, given the size, that a lighter colour might look better — and we’re also partial to the non-Sport model which has less gloss black that’s so hard to photograph here.

At the same time we understand why BMW’s done it this way: This is a new flagship, so there’s no mistaking the iX for anything else. Trend-breaking, eyebrow-raising design is something of a BMW signature by now, anyway.

Personally, we quite like the iX’s quirky appearance. We can also say it looks better in person than in photos, and also very much appreciate that this isn’t a coupe-SUV (though the inevitable iX Coupe may not be far off).

Interior and features: The crystal method

The reason for that is the inside of the iX is, from the first time you open the handle-less door, both spacious and inviting — there’s also the visible carbonfibre in the doorframes, another link to the i3.

The amount of wide open space is refreshing, especially the vertical space, thanks to the flat floor, open-concept dash/screen layout, and the floating centre console. BMW’s ‘widescreen’ looks great in person, it’s one of the more elegant ways of cramming screen-estate without making the rest of the interior look like a giant tablet-holder.

BMW’s new OS 8 infotainment approach debuts in the iX, and it looks very sleek and modern, especially with its fancy new animations. However, it also represents a rather large evolution from the previous iteration, certainly far more than a smartphone OS update.

From the homepage, things are slick and presented with appropriate scale. So things aren’t usually where we expect, and getting to grips with it took longer than usual, and it was the same with the digital instrument panel. Another gripe — BMW’s gone with an icon based menu layout, but the icons are all smartphone-sized rather than car-infotainment sized, and the lovely-feeling crystal iDrive knob doesn’t work as well with such a layout.

Then there’s the furniture: Crystal, rich quilted leather, wood — that all adds to the luxe-lounge ambience of the car. The i3 had a little of this feeling, but it was less posh and less spacious. BMW took seven years to double down on its approach, but the iX vindicates it thoroughly — the iX feels like a properly novel experience.

Space and practicality: Stretching it

With the lack of a transmission tunnel and a flat floor, the iX can fit five adults with comfort. The rear gets AC vents, and four USB-C ports, and also extra airiness from the frosted-at-a-button-push glass sunroof.

The boot is a decent 500-litres, though it isn’t the best for a large SUV, but there is a sub-compartment, as well as remote rear seat release buttons — engaging those brings the space up to a big 1,750-litres.

Again, it’s like the i3 — an obviously new way forward, but one that is rooted in usability than just flights of fancy. In practicality terms, you no longer have to sprain your arm reaching for your bag in the backseat — you can put a decent-sized backpack on the floor next to your left foot.

Driving Experience: Go 'far' it

The iX is easy to drive thanks to a tall seating position, wide-open view, thin A-pillars, and outboard side mirrors. So while the iX is a large SUV, it doesn’t feel big on the road, and even better, navigating tight spaces with tall kerbs is not a nerve-wracking experience like it is in the low-slung and very wide Taycan.

Reinforcing the lounge ambience of the cockpit is the sheer quietness of the car. It’s an extremely refined machine, even more so if you turn off BMW’s Zimmer-concocted soundtrack for the car. In an urban environment, the loudest sounds you will hear are the whirr of the steering wheel, or the shadow of a HGV’s unsightly diesel roar if it’s next to you.

It is a little stiffly sprung — normal for an EV — but there’s no harshness when it crests road bumps or ruts. Pair that with the ease of the drive, and you have a car that even Rolls-Royce’s engineers might admit to learning something from. 

Overall, the car’s dynamics are excellent — it is a BMW in this respect — with tidy, sporty handling handing over no slack or excess weight to the driver. It’s a heavy car, as all EVs are, but doesn’t feel it, nor intimidating to drive. Summon up the 326hp/630Nm and the car gets going fast — even quicker in Sport mode. 

BMW’s Driving Experience Control’s mode switch is a victim of the war on buttons — it’s now become a singular ‘My Modes’ button on the wooden console panel, which brings up the three modes — Personal, Sport, and Efficient — on the screen. 

All of that is impressive enough, but we can add another key plus to the iX’s list: It’s very, very efficient. We know that BMW’s fifth-gen electric drive tech is in our drive of the iX3, but we were very impressed that the iX was able to score sub-17kWh/100km without too much effort.

That was over almost 200km, with largely smooth, steady work, but also inefficient photo shoots and some dynamic driving thrown in. Given that score, the iX could easily top 400km on a single charge, which is more than enough for even higher-mileage drivers here. 

Conclusion: X times 

As a large, fully-electric SUV, the iX doesn’t have any direction competition on the market. There’s ostensibly the Tesla Model X, but the official model hasn’t gone on sale, while cars like the Mercedes-EQ EQC and Audi E-Tron are a size down. They also feel like ‘current’ cars with electric drivetrains, whereas the iX feels like something else altogether.

The takeaway is here that the iX might be a tech flagship, but it’s a thoroughly useful, liveable car day-in, day-out. The parallels we can draw with the i3 are very clear, but it’s far more luxurious, even more technologically-able, and it can go more than twice as far as its ancestor despite being much larger and heavier.

Eight years ago, BMW proved that a practical and cool EV experience was possible with the i3. With the SUV bodystyle, a luxurious but also practical daily experience, and a drive that’s not just enjoyable, but appropriately efficient too, the iX deserves the success the i3 never had in Singapore. 

BMW iX xDrive40i Sport

*Range and efficiency from official LTA homologation figures
**Last listed price in February 2022 before 2022’s ARF increase 

This article was first published in CarBuyer.