2023 BMW iX

The BMW iX serves up a design statement that’s challenging, to say the least. The proportions and floating-roof look are pleasant enough, but from a few feet away the details and surfacing tend to distort it all in unbecoming ways. The farther away you step from the iX and don’t try to pick apart all of its odd trim choices—or the gigantic patterned plastic faux-grille, covered with a self-healing material, or the seemingly random, blocky taillight design—the more acceptably it all fits together. 

Inside, the iX is a lot easier to love. The design is radically different from that of previous BMW SUVs, and while there are some button and menu details we’d prefer done differently from a functionality standpoint—and overt wildcard items like the hexagonal steering wheel design—it’s welcoming, well thought-out, cohesive, and uncontroversially luxurious.

All versions of the BMW iX have dual-motor all-wheel drive.

How fast is the BMW iX?

In the xDrive50i version, the iX makes a combined 516 hp and 564 lb-ft of torque from its motor system—enough to enable a 0-60 mph time of 4.4 seconds. 

The other version of the iX, the M60, cranks up the power for the dual-power setup, bringing 532 hp and 749 lb-ft of torque, or in its launch mode, 610 hp and 811 lb-ft of torque—and a 0-60 mph time of about 3.6 seconds. In addition to a range of dressed up trim items and features, the M60 gets M Sport brakes and its own suspension tune, including the adaptive air suspension. 

The BMW iX weighs more than gasoline SUVs its size, but its aluminum-space-frame and carbon-fiber construction helps enable more battery capacity—and thus more range—than most electric SUVs this size. 

The suspension is all-aluminum—front double-wishbone, rear multi-link—with its own subframes, and you can opt for a rear-only air suspension, electronically controlled shocks, and rear-wheel steering. With this optional setup, the iX can accommodate just 1.2 inches of height adjustability—lowering the iX 0.4 inches from normal in Sport mode or when passing 87 mph, or raising it 0.8 inch for more clearance. 

The iX is satisfying in pretty much every aspect of forward performance. It’s gentle and precise when you need it, and downright sprightly in Sport mode. The brake pedal feels a little remote, but the iX stops exactly where intended. And there’s a choice between four modes of regenerative braking, including low, medium, and high—for what’s essentially one-pedal driving—plus an adaptive mode that matches (mostly) the deceleration of vehicles ahead. 

Where’s the iX disappointing? Despite all the weight savings, the low center of mass from the battery pack, and the available suspension and rear-wheel steering wizardry, the iX feels disconcertingly light and nimble, and not in ways that channel the dynamic magic of BMW sport sedans. With little useful steering weighting or seat-of-the-pants feedback in corners, the iX simply isn’t rewarding to drive fast. 

Although stepping up in wheel size typically means some sacrifice of driving range, it doesn’t detract from comfort here; even on the showy 22-inch Air Performance bi-color wheels, as we experienced the iX, it has perhaps the quietest, most serene ride quality in this class of luxury SUV.

From the jewel-like seat adjustment controls and clear shift selector to the haptic console-top buttons and button-release doors, the collective newness of all the interface pieces in the iX will either seem special and eye-catching or a little too different for the sake of being different. The iX is also the first BMW SUV to have frameless doors—a feature the brand has previously only offered in coupes. While they offer an excellent seal from wind noise, their mechanisms—like a few other elements around the iX’s cabin—can feel more finicky than luxurious.

That said, because it’s an expensive niche vehicle—and unlikely to share its body structure directly with other models—the federal government is unlikely to test one, and it could be some time before the IIHS does.

The iX includes automatic emergency braking, blind-spot warning, and rear collision and rear cross-traffic warning systems. An Evasion Assistant, also included, actually helps direct the driver to a clear adjacent lane if a collision is imminent. An available Driving Assistant Professional adds full-range adaptive cruise control and active lane control, as well as a system that maps out surrounding vehicles and potential safety situations on the cockpit display. 

Outward vision through the windows and mirrors is quite good in the iX, thanks to the low beltline and relatively thin pillars.

BMW’s iDrive controller banks less on its jewel-like rotary controller—to the point where you might as well get your finger out and reach for a tiny icon on a screen. There are shortcuts and redundancies, but at face value it feels busier than previous versions of iDrive.

As such, we give the iX two points above a midline 5 for its excellent base feature set, then another for its options. While we add a point for its screen size and built-in tech, we also dock it a point for iDrive’s more cluttered direction, then add a point for the combination of its good 3-year/36,000 maintenance warranty and 8-year/100,000-mile battery warranty, arriving at an 8. 

There are two different looks to the iX—Shadowline and Sport. The former serves as the base model for the lineup, at $86,545, with the feature set including the panoramic roof (with electrochromic shading), a Connected Package Pro with data and telematics services, and the Active Driving Assistant (active cruise control with lane keep assist)—which helps make sense of the rounded/hexagonal steering wheel. Step up $2,800 to the Sport and you get 21-inch Aero bi-color wheels plus dark trim and taillights.

A $2,300 Convenience package adds a head-up display, a surround-view camera system, Harman Kardon surround sound, gesture and voice controls, and supplemental propulsion sounds. A $4,000 Premium package adds those items plus multi-functional massage front seats, an interior camera, and 30-speaker Bowers & Wilkins sound. A $950 radiant heating package is a standalone option, although four-zone climate control is included across the lineup. 

The iX M60 starts at $109,720 and adds a series of features that are optional on the xDrive50i. Examples include the panoramic roof, laser headlights, and the B&W sound system. Showier 21-inch wheels are included, with 22-inchers available.

A remote parking feature controlled by an app on your smartphone shows off some of BMW’s more advanced technology, and it can store up to 10 starting points and complete all the driving moves within about 650 feet to get in and out and back to that starting point without driver intervention.

Which BMW iX should I buy?

Go for the xDrive50i, because it feels more luxurious than any other electric SUV costing well under $100,000. The M60 offers neither the three-motor dynamic delight of the Audi E-Tron S nor the all-out assault of the Model X Plaid.

How much is a fully loaded BMW iX?

With one of the premium colors, upgraded 22-inch wheels, the perforated-leather interior, the Driving Assistant Professional Package (automated parking and partly automated driver support), and the Luxury Package (self-close automatic doors and glass-and-wood controls, with open-pore walnut finish), plus bronze trim and blue seatbelts, the BMW iX M60 adds up just short of $120,000—and that’s before accessories.

With an efficiency of about 2.6 miles per kwh in its xDrive50i form, the iX earns a 9 out of 10 here. It’s not in the upper echelon of EV efficiency, but it’s not a guzzler of electrons.

If efficiency and range matter, you should focus on wheel size. Go with the most efficient combination and you’ll get 324 miles out of its 106.3-kwh battery pack—better than all but the Tesla Model X. 

The xDrive50 is offered in three different wheel sizes, while the high-performance M60 is offered in two sizes, and they each yield slightly different range and efficiency ratings. With the smaller 20-inch wheels you’ll get the most miles out of your energy, with 324 miles of range and 86 MPGe combined. Versions with 21-inch and 22-inch wheels are rated at 305 and 315 miles, and 83 and 86 MPGe, respectively. The M60 achieves 288 miles of range and 77 MPGe with the 21-inch wheels, or 274 miles and 76 MPGe with the 22-inchers. 

The iX includes two years of complimentary 30-minute charging sessions on the Electrify America network.