Test drove the i4 m50i today

[wtwo3]

I posted this in the i4 thread but seems like that part of the forum is kind of dead... so posting it here.


So I guess a lot of dealers have the i4 and iX as demo cars not for sale. I took this opportunity to visit my local dealer and test drive the i4 m50i.

My impressions:

- It looks REALLY good in person. The proportions are great, the stance is good, and it's just a generally very attractive car in person. Granted I have a G80 on order so the grill has never bothered me anyway.

- It's fast. Definitely quicker than my m340i. And of course the typical instant torque of EVs is very noticeable.

- Handling is pretty good especially for such a heavy car. Under 90% of driving it corners pretty flat and holds a great line. It's in the last 10% of hyper aggressive driving where you really begin to see the negative impacts of all that extra weight... It'll begin to understeer at points where my m340i will continue turning.

- The interior is great. I know there's a huge debate going on about iDrive 8, but I like it. Although I wish there was better integration into the dash, I thought the interior was overall a really nice place to be.

- One thing I thought was going to be gimmicky and a bit stupid were the Hans Zimmer sounds. In reality I found them to be awesome. Under hard acceleration in sport mode, the sounds it makes go a very long way to giving this EV a bit of character where other EVs fall short.


Overall I feel it's a huge step up from the Model 3 performance. The model 3 in comparison feels sterile, lacks an interior, and just doesn't look as nice.

All this being said, as soon as I stepped back into my m340i and fired it up... hearing the roar of the engine and then the explosion of the transmission on upshift... I can say I'm definitely still partial to ICE cars. The Hans Zimmer sounds help, but they're no substitute for the joys of internal combustion. But at least now I can say I've finally driven an EV I wasn't disgusted by.

[brettcp]

Thanks for this, been considering this as a replacement for my wife's 440i gran coupe. Guess we'll have to go take one for a test spin soon

From the little looking around I've done, it appears these are several months out after an order is placed?

[wtwo3]

Originally Posted by brettcp

Thanks for this, been considering this as a replacement for my wife's 440i gran coupe. Guess we'll have to go take one for a test spin soon

From the little looking around I've done, it appears these are several months out after an order is placed?

My brother in law is considering ordering one, and the dealer quoted him a delivery timeframe of Q4... so anytime between October-December.

[bmwBRIE]

I test drove the edrive40 version yesterday. Very similar feelings here, this was actually the first time I drove an EV. Even the edrive40 was crazy fast! I also found made up engine sound really natural and it didn't bother me.
The dash was my biggest concern. I'm actually looking to buy the 2 series and it is getting the new idrive 8 soon. I was very surprised how much i liked the idrive 8. i really disliked it when i seen the pictures but it feels normal when you are actually driving.

super impressed with the i4 that made me wonder about the 2 series 😂 but i'm sticking with my petrol for now.

[Adamsleete]

Originally Posted by wtwo3

I posted this in the i4 thread but seems like that part of the forum is kind of dead... so posting it here.


So I guess a lot of dealers have the i4 and iX as demo cars not for sale. I took this opportunity to visit my local dealer and test drive the i4 m50i.

My impressions:

- It looks REALLY good in person. The proportions are great, the stance is good, and it's just a generally very attractive car in person. Granted I have a G80 on order so the grill has never bothered me anyway.

- It's fast. Definitely quicker than my m340i. And of course the typical instant torque of EVs is very noticeable.

- Handling is pretty good especially for such a heavy car. Under 90% of driving it corners pretty flat and holds a great line. It's in the last 10% of hyper aggressive driving where you really begin to see the negative impacts of all that extra weight... It'll begin to understeer at points where my m340i will continue turning.

- The interior is great. I know there's a huge debate going on about iDrive 8, but I like it. Although I wish there was better integration into the dash, I thought the interior was overall a really nice place to be.

- One thing I thought was going to be gimmicky and a bit stupid were the Hans Zimmer sounds. In reality I found them to be awesome. Under hard acceleration in sport mode, the sounds it makes go a very long way to giving this EV a bit of character where other EVs fall short.


Overall I feel it's a huge step up from the Model 3 performance. The model 3 in comparison feels sterile, lacks an interior, and just doesn't look as nice.

All this being said, as soon as I stepped back into my m340i and fired it up... hearing the roar of the engine and then the explosion of the transmission on upshift... I can say I'm definitely still partial to ICE cars. The Hans Zimmer sounds help, but they're no substitute for the joys of internal combustion. But at least now I can say I've finally driven an EV I wasn't disgusted by.

Attachment 2875879

Originally Posted by wtwo3

I posted this in the i4 thread but seems like that part of the forum is kind of dead... so posting it here.


So I guess a lot of dealers have the i4 and iX as demo cars not for sale. I took this opportunity to visit my local dealer and test drive the i4 m50i.

My impressions:

- It looks REALLY good in person. The proportions are great, the stance is good, and it's just a generally very attractive car in person. Granted I have a G80 on order so the grill has never bothered me anyway.

- It's fast. Definitely quicker than my m340i. And of course the typical instant torque of EVs is very noticeable.

- Handling is pretty good especially for such a heavy car. Under 90% of driving it corners pretty flat and holds a great line. It's in the last 10% of hyper aggressive driving where you really begin to see the negative impacts of all that extra weight... It'll begin to understeer at points where my m340i will continue turning.

- The interior is great. I know there's a huge debate going on about iDrive 8, but I like it. Although I wish there was better integration into the dash, I thought the interior was overall a really nice place to be.

- One thing I thought was going to be gimmicky and a bit stupid were the Hans Zimmer sounds. In reality I found them to be awesome. Under hard acceleration in sport mode, the sounds it makes go a very long way to giving this EV a bit of character where other EVs fall short.


Overall I feel it's a huge step up from the Model 3 performance. The model 3 in comparison feels sterile, lacks an interior, and just doesn't look as nice.

All this being said, as soon as I stepped back into my m340i and fired it up... hearing the roar of the engine and then the explosion of the transmission on upshift... I can say I'm definitely still partial to ICE cars. The Hans Zimmer sounds help, but they're no substitute for the joys of internal combustion. But at least now I can say I've finally driven an EV I wasn't disgusted by.

Attachment 2875879

Can't wait to test drive one.

[Germanauto]

Thanks for the level headed and candid review.

[Wheelwright]

Is it true that the full 530hp is only available when battery is at least 90% charged ?

[BMWCCA1]

BMW has advised us to quote 1st Quarter 2023 for any orders not already in the order bank, so as not to disappoint customers with expectations of receiving their cars this year.