BMW was one of the first German carmakers to step in the EV revolution and the first outcome was in the form of the i3. The i3 didn't really do well, BMW considered the i3s for the Indian market but its steep price never let that happen. And we all are also aware of the end of production of the versatile i8. But then what next? After a long silence, BMW i is back in business and has revealed the new iX3 - first Electric SUV by the Bavarian carmaker.
The BMW iX3 is just your regular X3 SUV (SAV in BMW's speak) and one cannot really tell the differences. One obvious element of EVs which is hugely popular - blue inserts where ever the carmaker can possibly stick, the iX3 is no exception. The front kidney grille is flat and comes with gloss black and blue inserts. The bumper is plain, also gets blue inserts and vertical air dams. The wheels are EV specific too and sport a design which reduces drag coefficient by five per cent. The side skirting gets blue inserts and that goes to the very end and meets with the rear skid plate.
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The interiors of the BMW iX3 are precisely similar to its IC counterparts. It's all very conventional - just like the exteriors. However, we don't see much blue inside, just some blue sprinkle on the BMW logo, gear lever and power on/off button. The iX3 get all the safety and feature kit we see in the X3 which includes park assist, digital driver's display, heads-up display, gesture control, front sports seats and many more features.
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Talking about the propulsor of the BMW iX3 which is an electric motor. The electric motor lies under the hood and it drives the rear wheels only. BMW has revealed the iX3 with single motor option and it hints no possibility for the dual-motor xDrive powertrain which rivals offer. The electric motor belts out 282bhp and 400 Nm of torque and it does 0-100 km/h in just 6.8 seconds. However, the top whack is limited to a meek 180 km/h - similar to the Mercedes-Benz EQC.
The electric motor is mated to a 74 kWh battery pack which sits under the floor. Thanks to the advanced battery pack, the iX3 offers a claimed range of 459 kilometres. The BMW iX3 offers up to 150 kW fast charging which translates to 0-80% charging time of around 34 minutes. On top of that, whilst emergency situations, iX3 can offer up to 100 kilometres of range with just 10-minute charge.
