New BMW iX1 proves to be a real car for drivers

I hope the rush to electrification of cars pushed by governments issuing quite dramatic statements about banning sales of new petrol and diesel cars is not another ill-thought-out agenda.

There is a growing voice led by knowledgeable experts who have clearly demonstrated electric cars are not as green as they are made out to be. Public charging costs are now on a par with fuelling with petrol and the charging infrastructure is terrible. Furthermore, I’m getting evidence that the residual values of EVs are proving to be quite poor.

Interestingly European legislators have now rolled back on the ICE (internal combustion engine) ban stating cars powered by renewable e-fuels will be exempt.

In my humble opinion this hysteria about rushing to electrification is clearly not thought out by the government so let's see where all this goes.

So as you may have guessed this week's test car is an EV, the new BMW iX1. The X1 is also available in diesel, and petrol hybrid.

First Impressions.
I like its chunky good looks. Its vey much like a scaled down iX3 with the blanked off big black BMW grille adorning the front and the very typical and indeed attractive BMW light clusters front and rear. So overall first impressions are this is a stylish compact SUV.

What’s it like inside?
As one would expect of BMW the cabin is beautifully put together with some very nice design touches such as the door handles, the ambient lighting and the quality and feel of all the materials. The new iX1 boasts BMW’s latest (but quite often criticised ) curved display which has a digital instrument display and a touch screen for the car's main functions.

Two things here. BMW were renowned for its superb dashboards and made much of soft red illumination of the dials claiming in their literature that it was scientifically engineered to allow one adjust easily from the instruments to the road at night. Why then have they binned that for a rather uninspiring-looking digital display?

Go digital but make the display more attractive and intuitive. Mercedes are now the leader here. Furthermore, this newest BMW now drops the brilliant rotary controller which means something as simple as changing the cabin temperature requires numerous prods of the touchscreen. Not very safe while driving!

Stepping past the negatives it is a lovely cabin with superbly comfortable seating and decent room in the back for two adults. The boot at 490 litres is quite good too though it's smaller than the petrol and diesel versions due to the battery under the floor.

What is under the bonnet?
Two electric motors power the iX1, the rear one kicking in only when required for extra traction. Power comes from a 64.7 kWh battery with a claimed range of 440km. However, I found real-world range in these November temperatures here was about 340 km.

Performance like all EV’s is very good. It will charge from 10% to 80% on a fast charger in about 30 minutes. Road tax is €120.

Will I enjoy it?
Absolutely! I really enjoyed the way this iX1 is set up. Despite the mass of that battery it rides and handles superbly and I will go so far as to say it's a real driver's car responding precisely to all driver inputs. The steering is a bit light and lacks feel but it's accurate and the handling whether on wet or dry roads just excellent.

Hugh’s Verdict.
Overall I really liked the iX1. It looks well, it's quite well equipped and there are optional “packs” allowing personalisation of your car. The fit and finish are beyond reproach and it really is probably the best-driving EV I have tested of late. So all in all its a winner and a new benchmark in this class. Prices for the new iX1 start at €65,385 the car as tested including options cost €71,860.