BMW iX3 2022 review

Cost-of-entry to the BMW iX3 club is $114,900, before on-road costs, which is a match for the high-performance, six-cylinder powered X3 M40i at the top of the mainstream X3 range, with the bonkers X3 M another $45K above that. 

For that money, aside from the performance and safety tech we’ll get to shortly, you should expect a lengthy standard features list, and the iX3 does well.

Standard are, adaptive LED headlights, adaptive suspension, 20-inch aero alloy wheels, keyless entry and start, an auto tailgate, three-zone climate control, active cruise, a head-up display, a 12.3-inch digital instrument screen, a 12.0-inch multimedia touchscreen, electrically-adjustable and heated front seats (memory function on driver’s side), leather trim (choice of three colours), rain-sensing wipers, Harman Kardon audio (16-speakers, 464W), ambient lighting, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, sat nav, a panoramic glass roof, wireless smartphone charging, and parking assistant.

Aside from the performance and safety tech, you should expect a lengthy standard features list with the iX3. (Image: James Cleary)

There’s also heated and folding exterior mirrors, metallic paint (six colour options), the ‘M Sport’ body kit (aero package with dark metallic exterior elements) BMW even stumps up for a five-year unlimited use subscription to the Chargefox network. 

The BMW iX3's have 20-inch aero alloy wheels. (Image: James Cleary)

Yes, you heard that right. You can juice up free-of-charge for the first five years, and it’s worth noting the iX3’s claimed range, another important factor in terms of whole-of-life value, lines up well with its prime competitors (BMW iX3 - 460km / Audi e-tron - 446km / Jaguar I-Pace - 470km / Mercedes-Benz EQC - 434km).

Any way you cut it, the iX3 is a pretty sharp deal for the dollars.

In terms of space, there’s plenty of head and shoulder room up front and lots of storage, including a pair of cupholders in the centre console, big door bins with a separate section for large bottles, a decent glove box, and a medium-size storage cubby which doubles as an armrest between the seats.

There’s a 12-volt outlet, wireless smartphone charging and a USB-A socket in the console, as well as a USB-C jack in the centre storage box. 

The big media screen is easy to use with logical screen progressions accessed via direct touch, a rotary dial on the console, the writing pad on top of it, as well as gesture control or ‘Hello BMW’ voice control.

Move to the back and again there’s heaps of space. Over successive generations the X3 has quietly crept up in size to match that of the original X5.

Getting in and out is easy thanks to wide opening doors with big apertures, and sitting behind the driver’s seat set for my 183cm position there’s good head and legroom.

Again, there are big door bins with room for large bottles, individual climate control is a win for back seaters, and there are two USB-C outlets to keep devices powered up. 

There are netted map pockets on the front seat backs, and a fold-down centre armrest contains a shallow flip-top compartment and a pair of fold-out cupholders, adjustable for different size cups, which is a thoughtful touch.

A relatively low loading height and no lip into the boot space makes life easy, and with the rear seat upright the iX3 has a capacity of 510L, enough to swallow our three-piece suitcase set, or the bulky CarsGuide pram with room to spare.

Lower the 40/20/40 split-folding rear seat, and load space increases to no less than 1560 litres. And as long as you have the key with you the tailgate’s hands-free open and close kick function is a welcome addition. 

Those volume figures are down only slightly on petrol and diesel powered X3s (550L/1600L).

Multiple tie-down anchor points, a 12-volt outlet, as well as pop-out hooks and netted pockets are handy, but don’t bother looking for a spare of any description, your only option is a repair/inflator kit.

A small lidded space under the boot floor is designed for the on-board charging cables, and the tyre inflator canister.

A missed opportunity appears to be the lack of storage space under the bonnet. The combined motor/transmission unit is relatively small and mounted low in the chassis.

Peel back the plastic cover over the ‘engine’ bay and there’s plenty of room for a ‘frunk.’ Seems like a no-brainer, but the bean counters, engineers or some other link in the development chain must have knocked it on the head.

Under the bonnet is a ‘current-excited’ synchronous electric motor, single-speed auto transmission and the power electronics bundle placed together in a single housing.

Driving the rear wheels, the motor produces 210kW/400Nm, which is enough to propel the iX3 from 0-100km/h in 6.8 seconds.

The motor produces 210kW/400Nm, which is enough to propel the iX3 from 0-100km/h in 6.8 seconds. (Image: James Cleary)

The ‘current-excited’ bit means the motor doesn’t make use of magnets to induce the rotor, rather the feeding in of electric power.

It spins up to a maximum of 17,000rpm, and BMW says the design means the use of rare earth elements (the mining of which is increasingly controversial environmentally) is avoided.

Worst case charging scenario is a 1.8kW AC single-phase domestic connection which has you staring down the barrel of a 44-hour charge time.

But using the latest BMW three-phase wallbox, the car's AC maximum rate of 11kW equates to charge time from 0-100 per cent is 7.5 hours. While DC fast-charging at a rate of up to 150kW means 10-80 per cent charge in 32 minutes.

The ports behind the not-fuel flap are a Type 2 for AC and Type 2 CCS (Combined Charging System) Combo for higher powered DC charging. And the car comes with two cables covering domestic and public scenarios.

Worth noting the single recharge point is on the right-hand side. Our driver’s side, but kerb side for left-hand drive countries. No problem at a dedicated charging station. But if you’re street charging, a connector poking out on the traffic side of the car could be risky.

BMW claims energy consumption for the combined cycle of 18.9kWh/100km, and over a week of city, suburban and highway driving, mostly in the default Comfort mode (with A/C on) we recorded an average of 19.1kWh/100km.

Worth noting the car features a regenerative braking system feeding energy back into the battery, but this one’s adaptive, able to read what’s ahead and determine the appropriate intensity of the regen function.

But underneath all this is that complimentary five-year Chargefox membership. And for reference, the current Chargefox network includes 1400 plugs, mainly along the East Coast, Tassie, Adelaide and Perth with the intention of 5000 by the end of 2025.

That’s across standard AC (22kW), fast (50kW) and ultra-rapid (350kW) units, with all of the latter powered by 100 per cent renewable energy.

The iX3 is covered by BMW’s three-year/unlimited km warranty (including paintwork), as well as 12-year/unlimited km anti-corrosion cover.

That main warranty’s off the premium market pace now with Audi, Genesis, Jaguar-Land Rover, Lexus and Mercedes-Benz at five years/unlimited km. 

The battery is warranted for eight years/160,000 kays, which is on par with Audi, Jag and Merc, but lagging behind Tesla at eight years/240,000km.

Service is condition-based, the car telling you when maintenance is required, and a range of service packages are available.

The ‘Basic’ plan covering an iX3 for four years/unlimited km comes in at $1200, appreciably less than for an equivalent combustion X3, as it should be for a car with far fewer moving parts.

A four year ‘Plus’ package adds brake pads and rotors as well as wiper blades, upping the price substantially to $4605. While six year/unlimited km Basic and Plus plans come in at $1650 and $5500, respectively.