Neue Klasse: BMW’s tech-filled iX3 electric SUV is unveiled
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If it's anything like previous BMW platform introductions, additional trims come the following year. So 2028 model year.
I hope they move production to SC...
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Is there going to be a version for the USA market with a big door in the front so people can just shovel in charcoal and wood?
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I find my HUD useful but I had to minimize how much info it throws up, I found myself looking at it too much otherwise. It’s nice, but given the option I’d be just as happy without it. But if you want x you must get y these days.
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True aficionados know the best way to roll coal is to use literal coal
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"BMW says we can expect the iX3 50 eDrive to arrive in the US next summer, starting at around $60,000."
If Felon45 notices that it does not run on fossil fuel, we can expect a sudden large tariff to occur.
If Felon45 notices that it does not run on fossil fuel, we can expect a sudden large tariff to occur.
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Wild that you thought this was a contribution to the conversation. If you hate the topic, find a topic you can contribute to without being an asshole.
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Nothing stops you from driving it in Germany or West Virginia ...
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Really love the exterior. Really surprised at the buck tooth comparisons, they remind me of the grills from the 80s, some of the best looking BMWs IMHO. Shame the sedan concept doesn't have the kidney grill.
The interior though is a kind of a miss to me. The clear smoked plastics on the steering wheel and drive selector look super cheap. Maybe it looks better in person? Plus putting a volume knob directly adjacent to the drive selector seems like a bad idea.
The panoramic screen looks good though. I've fallen out of love with HUDs after using the Mercedes one that puts up detailed maps, pretty much blocking the road surface out to about 2 car lengths.
Some videos of the panoramic screen show how customizable it is which is much better than Mercedes' "smart" UI that's supposed to figure out what you want but never actually does.
Overall, seems like a big step in the right direction, after the last generation which just completely turned me off and drove me away from the brand.
The interior though is a kind of a miss to me. The clear smoked plastics on the steering wheel and drive selector look super cheap. Maybe it looks better in person? Plus putting a volume knob directly adjacent to the drive selector seems like a bad idea.
The panoramic screen looks good though. I've fallen out of love with HUDs after using the Mercedes one that puts up detailed maps, pretty much blocking the road surface out to about 2 car lengths.
Some videos of the panoramic screen show how customizable it is which is much better than Mercedes' "smart" UI that's supposed to figure out what you want but never actually does.
Overall, seems like a big step in the right direction, after the last generation which just completely turned me off and drove me away from the brand.
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What trim package / size of wheels do you have?
- Dual motor / AWD is less efficient than single motor / RWD but maybe worth it depending where you live. I can't imagine winter driving without AWD.
- Wheels above 19" are purely cosmetic, but have a negative effect on efficiency and range.
- The speed you drive has a major impact too. Eg. in our Ioniq 6, if we keep our average speed below 110km/h (~ 70mph), it makes a big difference on efficiency and max range.
- The level of regen braking you have set also matters. Max braking (iPedal) puts you in AWD mode, which has a slight continuous drag and decreases efficiency. If you are on a highway anyway, use cruise control as it turns regen braking off when not in use.
Hyundai has also arguably focused on making their EVs more aerodynamic and efficient too (I6 more so than the I5 though), as that allows smaller battery packs (~ 77 - 84kwh for depending on year and make) to get ranges comparable or better than EVs with larger ones.
Happy motoring.
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Fair enough. I will say, having sat in a number of BEVs, that BMW interiors are still nicer. $30K nicer? Meh.
It's a strange thing to get hung up on, but I just can't seem to get over BMW making adaptive cruise control an optional extra on their i4 that you have to pay $500 to get. You can get ACC standard on vehicles that are half the price.
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"Instead of hundreds of discrete black boxes, each with a single electric control unit (ECU) performing a single job, the iX3 uses four high-performance computers, each in charge of a different domain."
I get the weight savings, but is this not going from micro services-like architecture to DC-based (somewhat monolithic one)? Are the tides turning?
I get the weight savings, but is this not going from micro services-like architecture to DC-based (somewhat monolithic one)? Are the tides turning?
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Thank you!
It's wild that people are actually praising the design when they've finally gone full buck teeth.
Personally, I see this failing spectacularly.
BMW will claim "there's no appetite for EV-first vehicle platforms" when in reality people don't want to be seen driving around in Alvin
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Exterior looks better than previous BMW EVs, which isn't saying a lot I know. Not convinced about the interior though. I'll have to see if it looks as bad in person. Then there's this:
So if I'm distractedly looking to the left and the car veers onto the left shoulder (or into the opposing traffic lane) then the car won't try to correct? No thanks.
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Tell me you’ve never seen a 2002 or E21 3-series without telling me.
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So weirdly consolidating the hardware allows you to run something more like micro services. With a distributed architecture you functions at those remote ECUs are fixed and very limited and might only provide basic status. When you consolidate you can create those same concepts as the ECUs but gain flexibility in how they are implemented and how they interact with other functions in the car all while not being restricted by very limited and ECU hardware and CAN bus.
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It's absolutely hideous, IMO. Does not look better than the massive grill
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They do not look the same. The cut corners at the top of the buck teeth make it look significantly worse, IMO
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I get arround 14.3 myself averaged over the past 3 years in my Ioniq 5. It really depends on your mix of driving, your typical speeds, and how much you stomp it.
I tend to drive efficiently as unless I am in a hurry, I gamify my driving to get it as efficent as possible. I also have a Mazda 3 I drive so I try not to pick up bad habits while driving EV that would ruin my ICE effiency. While I do have a mix of speeds, my drives are slightly more city biased overall. Lastly, I do have the standard range model which is a bit lighter.
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They have gotten rid of the rotary dial and most physical buttons in the refreshed CX5. Which is actually a shame imo as I quite like the dial for everything other than text entry. Ideally you would have it and a touchscreen which really should add little cost. Not sure why Mazda mostly forced us to pick one or the either.
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Inofficial timelines (those are start of production dates, not model years or market introduction) for additional models:
07/26: 40 and M60 xDrive added
11/26: 40 xDrive added
2027: X3 M (BEV)
Apparently, north american production will be done in the SLP plant in Mexico (where the 2 and 3 series are already producted) starting in the second half of 2026, while the Spartanburg plant in SC while retain the CLAR-based SUVs.
source: https://g20.bimmerpost.com/forums/showpost.php?p=14820299&postcount=1
The 40 models will apparently have a smaller (80 kWh?) battery, as BMW NA says "The iX3 40 sDrive and iX3 40 xDrive will be available in early 2027, with an MSRP starting under $55,000 and estimated ranges slightly over 300 miles" (source: https://www.bmwusa.com/vehicles/x-series/ix3/bmw-ix3.html)
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Not at all. The old world had one physical computer for each function like cruise control or climate control or driver behavior monitoring. Each of them having a diferent kind of operating system and a different type of CPU.
The new world has the logic for each function implemented in software on a central computer. Some may be microservice-like, but definitely we are talking about processes and containers running on the same machine in the same OS.
Software is decoupled from hardware. It's easier to have updates after the car is manufactured, easier to write and install new apps. The PC world did that in the '80s and '90s, the phone world in the 2000s and '10s, now it's the car world turn.
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The front does nothing for me.
It just screams we tried to remove "the teeth" but went at it half baked. Maybe it's because I've got used to it, but I'd take the bigger grille on the M series sedans over this. The current design may grow on me, the beaver teeth did in the end.
Now, take the front of that iX3, rotate the smaller teeth 90 degrees so it's really reminiscent of the BMWs about 2 generations ago which had pretty good front end designs if you ask me.
Yes, I know that if you go back far enough the current orientation is definitely a throwback but I was not really a fan of those front ends either.
In the end, it's all personal preference.
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I dunno, I think the new butterfly wings add a nature-oriented light touch.
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It's not the only color option, there are regular black wheels as well.
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Overall I like the design and I’m glad to see them moving away from the direction they were taking with the X3 and the 5 series.
Although I am a bit afraid the iX3 is going to dig up my garden.
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at the interior.Agreed! For all the tech, improvements, range, charging, styling... I expected much higher. This looks like a Tesla killer to me! Bring it on BMW!
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I'm looking at that shifter. Why does every car maker feel compelled to make shifting into a puzzle? I think the only really sensible one I've seen is on my 2010 Tesla Roadster. It has buttons labeled P and R and N and D. They do exactly what you think when you push them. But of course even Tesla couldn't stick with that; it was too straightforward, made too much sense.
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My Model S does something like this, and I hate it. When I touch the brakes or move the wheel it should kick out of cruise control entirely, not put the car into some kind of ambiguous state where CC is "on" but not doing anything, just waiting for a chance to unexpectedly retake control from me or nag/punish me for going too fast, etc.
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Gorgeous car with a lot of impressive substance (although I hope that all-while interior will be optional).
I decided to give BMW the time they need to apply all the new tech and design language to non-SUVs and compact models so I just entered a 2y lease of a ID.3.
After that contract runs out, nothing in the world will stop me from going Neue Klasse.
I decided to give BMW the time they need to apply all the new tech and design language to non-SUVs and compact models so I just entered a 2y lease of a ID.3.
After that contract runs out, nothing in the world will stop me from going Neue Klasse.
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If that's where your mind goes, sure. I see rabbit/rodent teeth.
Almost anything is better than yet another monster grille, though. The Neue Klasse design gives me hope that bloated effing car beasts may soon be in the rear view mirror.
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I wonder whether there is any redundancy baked into such a system. If it's truly multifunctional computers, if one fails (as computers do from time to time, especially in a car environment) - can the remaining 3 just take over the tasks of the faulty one? That would be one major upside in that approach.
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I like the looks and love the (expected) range. If the pricing holds, BMW's biggest problem will be keeping up with demand.
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