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Post by Alanović on Apr 18, 2024 11:28:39 GMT
I shall alert the guards and tax collectors.
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WDB
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Post by WDB on Apr 29, 2024 10:36:32 GMT
We didn’t go to Winchester (or Reading.) We went to Leamington Spa in search of radiators — or at least information to help us choose the new ones we need at home. It’s a town we know and like from our previous Midlands life and offers a nice variety of roads and routes — of which we used a few more than we’d intended. It’s also 75 miles away, so comfortably within day-trip radius while still giving the iX’s battery a decent workout.
So, how was it? The details can wait but the BMW iX eDrive 40 M Sport (iX40 or just iX from now on, as the 50 is out of budget and the M60 is just silly) isn’t perfect but it’s very, very good. And it’s not just me that thought so.
MrsB1 was on the drive as I brought the car home on Friday. Her — remarkably effusive— reaction was, “It’s absolutely gorgeous!” And I’m inclined to agree; the Internet can obsess over the grille but in the right, lightish colour the car looks great. It even does a decent job of disguising its bulk. This one was in silvery Oxide Grey, which works well with the black exterior features to show off the shape. Options-wise, it had 22 inch wheels, which I’m less keen on, the ‘Comfort Pack’, which ought not to be optional on a £70,000 car, and the ‘Skylounge’ electrochromic glass roof, of which more later. The interior was the standard ‘Atelier’ synthetic in black and slightly bluish dark grey. It’s the car I had my little climb on last week.
Even in black, we found the interior welcoming and there’s plenty of space. MrsB1 commented that she’d never seen me look so comfortable in a car, as if I’d finally found one built on the right scale for me. The seats are rather un-BMW — surprisingly soft and with no slidy thigh cushions or radical bolstering — but they support very well, although it took both of us some fiddling with the touchscreen to flatten the intrusive lumbar support bumps. More about that screen later, but I suspect I’d save my money and do without the Comfort Pack, as all that fiddling was effectively just to switch it off. (There was a half-arsed 'massage' feature on the driver's seat too, which I could happily live without.)
I drove us to Oxford up the A4074, then up the A34 to the M40 and through Warwick into Leamington. A nice mix of road types, speeds and (sometimes not so nice) surfaces. Parking was easier to find on a Saturday morning than I’d expected and we completed our radiator mission very satisfactorily (and bought some Warwickshire Wizzers from Aubrey Allen.)
Nice lunch at a country pub I know from my cricket life, then MrsB1’s turn to drive. This is where it got a bit complicated, although it wasn’t her fault. My plan was to take the Fosse Way B-road route south and rejoin the M40 at Gaydon, which I’ve done a hundred times. But I’d reckoned without HS2, which has added new roundabouts since I last went, and I lost count and we turned left too soon. We ended up on the old A423 to Banbury, which turns out to be a lovely drive, but negotiating through the screen to persuade Fräulein Navi to guide us back on course was harder than it should have been, and would have been harder still to combine with driving. I'd hope if it was our car, we'd be able to focus the menus on the few items we actually use and push the profusion-confusion out of sight.
But the three of us found our way to Oxford and onward to Maidenhead in time to return the iX. And driving the CLS home, it felt for the first time a bit rough, noisy and small inside. It’s not really any of those things but it does show how impressive the iX is, and that my near-11-year-old Mercedes is showing signs of age at last.
So, those details... Good points Refinement. It’s amazingly smooth and quiet — probably as good as any car I’ve ever been in — and very comfortable once you get the seat settings right.
Space. It really would take five of me, and four would be very comfortable indeed.
Speed. The 40 is the slowest iX but it’s plenty fast enough. Short slip roads, and the EV driver’s favourite — the squirt away from the lights when you’ve picked the wrong lane — are no bother, and it did a delicious blink-of-an-eye pass of a dawdling Volvo on Friday. It’s effortlessly quick enough but easy to just waft in.
The head-up display: I was ambivalent about the one in the iX3 but this one works really well. There’s more information in the driver’s panel but the basics of speed, prevailing limit and navigational overlay are right there on the road ahead, a surprising effort-reducer.
Sounds. The HK audio system is noticeably better than the merely decent HK audio in the i3. It’s clearly well matched to the car and helped by having such a quiet background, but it let the Philharmonia brass, under Otto Klemperer conducting with his pipe in 1963, create Bruckner 4's full Star Wars effect without the volume bar needing to go past halfway.
The steering wheel, another favourite subject of the Internet. It’s a curious shape but it works and offers several comfortable grip options on a long drive. And the buttons are mechanical and don’t respond to accidental touches. We both liked it.
Visibility. The shorter snout of a pure-EV design means it doesn’t have the enormous bonnet of an iX3, which feels much better, especially in town. Reversing and lane-changing were easy too — and would be better still with plain rear glass.
Adaptive regeneration. The iX has no paddles, just one-pedal B mode and D. Somewhere in the menus you can select fixed levels in D but the default is Adaptive and it’s fantastic. On a clear road, it just rolls smoothly on but if it detects a vehicle ahead or an approaching junction, it applies regen to manage the speed. I still found myself using the brake pedal in the final approach to a roundabout, say, but its remarkably easy to get used to.
Frameless windows. I like frameless windows.
Size. Yes, it’s big. But on the two trips we made, Friday evening to John Lewis to try mattresses (good time to go, incidentally; we had the beds department to ourselves) and Saturday to Leamington, it only felt a little hefty when we had to park it, and that was more a matter of unfamiliarity. We’d be fine with it, as we are with the CLS.
And, last but by all means most, MrsB1 really likes it. She said so in as many words. She has (briefly) driven an iX3 and wasn't a fan; called it ‘a tank’ then and ‘a mummy tractor’ now. The iX is bigger still, of course, but seems to have found a way to her heart.
Question marks The screen. It works very well but it has too much to do, like selecting temperature and seat heating. The little iDrive panel and wheel help a lot but a few more buttons for the basics would help. There's certainly room for them.
The steering. Again, probably a familiarity thing but it felt a bit low-geared at times, sometimes needing a second move to tighten the line around a small roundabout, for example. But the weighting is nice and it’s generally easy to place the car.
The door releases. It has a clever system that won’t open the door if it detects a cyclist or pedestrian outside. But it feels a bit hesitant even when the coast is clear. There are backup mechanical levers low in the doors but they’re probably the only nasty, bendy plastic parts in the entire car.
Reversing. Probably just a matter of getting used to it but its natural reversing speed felt a bit high, leading to some sudden and slightly bouncy stops when parking. I’ve also got out of the habit of selecting reverse with my left hand, but that would soon come back.
That glass roof. Three Thousand Pounds as an option and, to be frank, we didn’t even notice it was there until we decided to have a play with it. From the front seats it’s barely noticeable. Even from the back, I had to look quite hard to distinguish opaque from transparent — although it didn’t help that the sky on Saturday was a pretty featureless grey. If a used car came with this roof, I wouldn’t cry but if buying new, the cheaper Sport model has a pale headlining, which would be enough lightening for me. (Oh, and before you both get in the back of a borrowed car to check it for space, make sure you’ve disabled the child locks. Not a mistake we'd ever make. Obviously.)
And, possibly the biggest apart from affordability, efficiency. The computer credited us with 3.0 mi/kWh for the trip, and we arrived back with 20 percent of the full 71 remaining after 170 miles, which tallies with that and means a full battery range of about 215. Given that we didn’t hustle it (much) I was hoping it would manage a bit more, and maybe on 21in wheels, it would. I have some sums to do to see how well that would work on our long trips compared with, say, an iX3.
You can tell we both liked this car. The idea of a new one to our specification, with blue fabric interior, smaller wheels, plain glass and the electric towbar, is very appealing. We happened to see two others in the spruce-green ‘Blue Ridge’ and MrsB1 decided she preferred our Oxide Grey, so that settles that. And the white car in Leicester that started me down this hole is still available and sliding down in price, so there’s that possibility too.
No doubt my BMW sales elf will call today for a follow-up. I must try not to gush too much, especially about MrsB1’s reaction. I shall tell him it’s a candidate. We probably need to look at an Enyaq now, as the only thing likely to match our space requirements for significantly less money than the iX.
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Post by Alanović on Apr 29, 2024 12:02:54 GMT
Interesting thoughts, thanks for posting.
215 feels like it's a bit light on the miles to justify the purchase price if I'm being frank. But its is a colossal car. Did it feel huge driving it?
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Post by Humph on Apr 29, 2024 12:29:27 GMT
I find myself in an odd (to me anyway) position of late. Due to the recent alignment of a number of personal financial planets, I could easily afford to spend 70+ grand on a car without endangering my future fiscal security in the slightest. However, perhaps it’s selective perception on my part, but I simply couldn’t bring myself to do that for what is after all, just a car. I still like (love) cars, and I still enjoy driving them most of the time, but tooling around in something preposterously expensive (yes I know that’s just my opinion) wouldn’t increase that enjoyment remotely proportionately.
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WDB
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Post by WDB on Apr 29, 2024 12:34:42 GMT
But it is a colossal car. Did it feel huge driving it? Not unduly. We were very careful selecting parking spaces but mainly because it wasn’t our car and, y’know, paperwork. 12 years of parking Mercedes estates have made us reasonably competent with big cars. It doesn’t ’shrink around you’ or any such silly motoring cliché but it doesn’t feel intimidatingly bulky either. I was a bit alarmed by the proximity of the hedges along the Fosse Way but MrsB1’s driving favours the drain covers anyway and there was space to her right she could safely have used. Would I like all that space and comfort wrapped in a package the size of a 3 Touring? Of course — but I’ve yet to find it. The Enyaq is the value for money option but it’s still a biggish unit and I doubt it’s as nice to travel in. As for the 215, yes, I was a little disappointed too. But I’m not sure how many times it would be practically less useful than the 250 or so I might get from an iX3.
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WDB
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Post by WDB on Apr 29, 2024 14:58:44 GMT
…tooling around in something preposterously expensive (yes I know that’s just my opinion) wouldn’t increase that enjoyment remotely proportionately. It’s not for us to sell you anything you don’t want. As we’ve discussed, most new cars today seem expensive. The judgement (‘calculation’ implies more science than it deserves) I’m trying to make is whether the fun factor of a more expensive car justifies the higher cost to me. The CLS has delivered both pleasure and value but I bought it at four years old. There are large four-year-old EVs about today — iPaces, Etrons — but I can’t quite bring myself to buy one. Hence the iX as a possibility, although at a higher price. We’ll see.
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Post by Humph on Apr 29, 2024 16:04:07 GMT
Sure of course, if you would genuinely enjoy something like that then why not indeed. I’m fairly sure it’s also a phase of life thing too. There was a time when I sought pleasure in and from the acquisition of shiny cars but I’m more inclined to appreciate what I actually get to do with vehicles and where I go in them now. I get it though, when you work hard, it’s good to reward yourself now and then or it can all seem a bit of a drudge. I’m getting my kicks in other ways these days! 😉 🚴
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WDB
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Post by WDB on Apr 29, 2024 18:52:12 GMT
I’d agree with all that. It’s just that I need to replace my car, which I don’t do very often. So if I settle for “that’ll do” this time, it’ll be for several years and because I’ve decided not to regret not choosing something more … well, special.
All a bit unnecessary, I know. I was fine with the silver E, although I saw dozens like it on every trip. But I saw a Tenorite Grey CLS estate parked in Leamington and it made my eyes pop out because I don’t think I’d ever seen one just like mine. Now I think there are at least two iXes living round here already but think the distinctiveness will still last a while if I have my own. Or I could buy an Enyaq and a lot of weekend breaks. Either way, I’ll be here next year telling you it was the right decision.
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Post by dixinormus on Apr 30, 2024 0:30:11 GMT
I can’t imagine that an Enyaq will give you the Wow factor WdB? YOLO!
The main issue I have with a nice car that I am attached to these days is that it will soon collect stone chips, dings and scrapes. Would rather spend less and be more ready to accept the inevitable. Silly, I know.
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Post by EspadaIII on Apr 30, 2024 5:34:51 GMT
So assuming you get the specification you want, what sort of price are we talking about or are you going down the PCP or lease route?
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WDB
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Post by WDB on Apr 30, 2024 13:59:22 GMT
I’ll find out on Friday what my elf can do. DTD got down to an equivalent cash price of about £61k, from a list of more like £75k. That’s contingent on incentive money from BMW Finance to use their PCP offer, but I’d be open to that as the interest rate is less than my savings are getting, and it would put a safety net under the value in case the EV market doesn’t rally as I’m expecting it to.
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Post by EspadaIII on May 1, 2024 11:57:16 GMT
Thanks
It is interesting but I think I don't need a car quite so big and the range is a little disappointing. Harry Metcalfe had a facelift Tesla 3 on test and he had a rant at cars which barely reach 2 miles/kWh whereas the Tesla reached 4. After all if you can halves your energy costs why wouldn't you?
But also interesting that Mrs WDB was enamoured of it. Espadrille has rarely liked my cars because they are bigger than her preference. I wonder if the BMW badge would have a positive effect on her.... She exhibits certain snob characteristics...😕
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WDB
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Post by WDB on May 1, 2024 13:45:50 GMT
I was surprised too by MrsB1’s reaction. As she’s since explained, she loves the i3 and likes that the iX looks and (to some extent anyway) feels like it. And (my thinking now) it’s those differences that make it into a comfortable long-distance car, which is what we need to complement the i3.
And we’re a bit of a mind with Norm here. The ‘expensive’ bit is not so much the entire car as the delta from a ‘sensible’ family EV like the Enyaq or a used iX3. Does that buy us enough enjoyment— and trips we’ve been encouraged to plan by the prospect of the journey being part of the fun — to justify the extra expenditure? And if we tried it and found it wasn’t right for us, would that feel like a disaster? If we can answer Yes and then No, then the cost and the risk are manageable.
There’s one consideration I’ve not mentioned yet: insurance. My 3-car nautical policy renewal is imminent, and I’m anticipating something unpleasant. But the iX40 and the CLS are nominally in the same insurance group, so I’m hoping a change wouldn’t make too big a difference. (The iX3 is three groups below, which adds marginally to its Sensible credentials.)
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Post by Alanović on May 1, 2024 14:00:38 GMT
See my post in the insurance surprise thread about nautical insurance this year. May not be as bad as you're fearing.
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Post by EspadaIII on May 1, 2024 16:10:03 GMT
Indeed
I have moved three cars over to the Admiral so that there now five cars on the fleet, saving £000s in the process.
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