2025 BMW iX xDrive60 M Sport | UK Review
No, it still isn't pretty. But that doesn't mean you should look away from the updated 544hp iX. Far from it...
Lower price, longer range – a succinct way of summarising the newly designated BMW iX xDrive60. The entire iX line-up has been spruced up after four years on sale with power, flexibility and value each cranked up in the process.
Okay, so maybe a spot of discounting offers a glimpse into the tough sell luxury EVs are proving right now – but evidence suggests the iX is among the more popular of the breed, the things fairly abundant on our roads. Enough to dull the impact of their styling? That’s for you to discern.
I’m more comfortable with its looks than I’ve ever been, though, and the Life Cycle Impulse tweaks include new air inlets and vertical rather than horizontal DRLs, alongside additional colour options – mostly blues and greys, natch – and a handful of new alloy wheels. Go for the monster 22s or 23s and they gain foam absorption for better noise insulation. The interior is more notably updated, with an inevitable advancement for the screens and tech plus – hurrah! – a round, three-spoke wheel for M Sport cars (which make up 95 per cent of UK sales) in place of the ungainly, gurning polygon of before.
The range starts at £75k for an iX xDrive45 that’s a whole 82hp and 125lb ft fitter than the xDrive40 it replaces. That means 408hp and 516lb ft peaks on top of an additional 100 miles of claimed range thanks to its larger 94.8kWh battery; 374 miles is its new best, while 175kW DC charging is up 25kW on before. Meanwhile, the old M60 range-topper morphs into the M70, gaining 40hp and 18 miles of range for new key figures of 659hp, 748lb ft (!) and 366 miles. But a beefy £114k price tag, too.
We’ve gone for the one slap bang in the middle, the xDrive60, which is 21hp and 43 miles healthier than the old iX xDrive50 while costing a few grand less. It’s the new long-distance hero, pairing its 544hp peak output with up to 426 miles of fully charged autonomy thanks to its gargantuan 109.1kWh of usable battery (with 195kW charging capability).
Whisper it, but PH (or Matt Bird, at least) has always harboured a certain fondness for the iX, despite its gulf in size, appearance, and spirit from a Touristenfahrten E36 being beyond preposterous. The facelift does nothing to alter this enthusiasm. The trick pulled by any iX - whether you like the way it looks or not - is leaning fully into the potential of an EV. This is no legacy platform with batteries hoofed clumsily into it; it’s a thoroughly considered reinvention of what a posh family car can be, and you simply never wonder how a twin-turbo V8 or mammoth-lunged 6-cyl diesel might elevate the experience. It feels as naturally plug-in-powered as a Renault 5 – and all the more convincing for it.
Refinement remains its strong suit, and I can’t imagine a better modern BMW to be driven in beyond an i7. Its materials are lavish, and pottering along at 60 mph or so, this feels as close to silent as four-wheeled propulsion can feasibly get, not even a whisper of wind noise whipping around its wing mirrors. But there’s a reasonable chance you’ll puncture the reverent hush with the blare of its Hans Zimmer soundtrack. BMW’s synthesised noise remains some of the best calibrated in the business and a friendly anchor point to intuitively using its one-speed transmission. Some may switch it off, but the way it complements the give-and-take of a flowing B road ought to be enough for most of us to keep it activated.
Then there’s the ride, which is supreme on the air suspension fitted here (a £2,050 option) and a world away from tougher-riding EVs desperately trying to keep their weight in check. The iX rarely feels its full 2,580kg, cornering with precision and tackling a challenging stretch of road with more integrity and authority than you might feasibly expect. It offers a glimpse of the subtly assertive handling that used to be the bedrock of stock BMW saloons, and it makes the iX an easygoing partner whatever your driving style. It’s no sports car, of course, but it expertly avoids any of the clichéd EV accusations of a one-dimensional driving experience. And while whipcrack acceleration is naturally there for the taking, so is a more leisurely, linear throttle response than a swathe of its rivals.
Its sharper dynamic traits are quickly unearthed on command but slip cosily into the background the rest of the time. This isn’t an overtly sporting SUV that stays tautly sprung on the school run – it tucks its handling ability away, hints of its attitude emanating from a steering rack that cooperates from its first degrees of movement. It’s imbued with pleasingly natural weight to provide a real sensation of the iX’s purpose without you having to load the thing up.
It slips surprisingly well down tight lanes or through town, too. It’s clearly bloomin’ massive – a whisker under five metres long and over 2.2 metres wide including its mirrors – yet its expansive windscreen laps close to the A-pillars, and you feel perched usefully forward. Visibility benefits, as does the light, airy vibe of the cabin even when it’s trimmed in black and grey. Factor in up to 1,750 litres of luggage capacity, and this could slip into your life with consummate ease, a car capable of just about anything you apply it to beyond fitting in your garage. So long as the EV lifestyle works for you, of course – now that its claimed range is beyond 400 miles, that may be a smidge more likely than before.
Perhaps it would make sense to consider this car a guilty pleasure, certainly while addressing a group of car enthusiasts as ardent as PHers. But beyond its sizeable price and controversial looks - attributes familiar to most performance SUVs on sale - there really is very little to lay into. If you liked the iX before, you’ll like it even more now.
“Land Rover has yet to show its hand with a fully electric Range Rover, but the iX feels like a good benchmark – cossetting and comfortable but also effortlessly fast," said Mike Duff back in 2021. Well, four years later, and the Rangey EV is still a look-but-don’t-touch proposition. We ought to get our hands on it soon enough, but on this evidence it’ll need to be exemplary to topple Munich’s no doubt cheaper, lighter alternative.
SPECIFICATION | BMW iX xDrive60 M Sport
Engine: Dual electric motors
Battery: 111.5kWh (gross), 109.1kWh (usable)
Transmission: Single-speed, all-wheel drive
Power: 544hp
Torque: 564lb ft
0-62mph: 4.6sec
Top speed: 124mph
Kerbweight: 2,580kg
MPG: 3.4mi/kWh, 370-426 miles range
CO2: 0g/km
Price: £93,115 (£110,995 as tested)
It’s just the crippling depreciation (at least it is in my eyes) would stop me from ever buying one, and as a used proposition I’d take a lot of convincing about the battery and its potential viability for the years I’d run it.
It’s just the crippling depreciation (at least it is in my eyes) would stop me from ever buying one, and as a used proposition I’d take a lot of convincing about the battery and its potential viability for the years I’d run it.
I have actually got more used to the shape of them now to be honest.
This LCI improves the range and performance BUT, downgrades the interior quite significantly. Gone is the individual steering wheel, and bronze metal trim, you now get cloth seats and some of the separate options are now in expensive option packs
This LCI improves the range and performance BUT, downgrades the interior quite significantly. Gone is the individual steering wheel, and bronze metal trim, you now get cloth seats and some of the separate options are now in expensive option packs
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