The BMW iX is a surprisingly efficient car. You wouldn’t expect nearly three ton electric SUV with a brick-like shape to be particularly efficient but it is. When running at its best, the iX is capable of about three miles per kWh, which isn’t the top of the market but it’s pretty dang good for a big luxury SUV. And that’s proven now by its 2023 EPA ratings, which show a max range of 324 miles.

All BMW iX models use the same battery, a 111.5 kWh pack. It’s the iX xDrive50, riding on 20 inch wheels, that is capable of getting 324 mikes, which puts its efficiency right at 2.9 miles per kWh. If you hyper mile it, you’d even be able to get over three.

Different wheels change the range of the BMW iX rather significantly. The standard 20 inchers are the wheels that net the iX the most mileage. The top spec 22 inch wheels will allow a total of 315 miles. While the middle ground 21 inch wheel, only allows 305 miles. Why does the wheel choice change so significantly. Well, the other wheels are more aerodynamic and tire rolling resistance might play a factor.

However, the BMW iX M60 does struggle a bit. Its power bump, from the 516 horsepower in the iX xDrive50 up to 610 horsepower in the M60 seems to make quite the significant different in efficiency. Where as all xDrive50 models can crest the 300 mile range mark, the iX M60 can only do 288 miles with the 21 inch wheels. Fitting 22 inch wheels drops the range to 274 miles. Admittedly, that’s not terrible but under 300 miles of range at this point feels pointless.

What’s interesting about electric vehicles is that range is far more important to premium customers than fuel economy was. Wealthy people can afford high gas prices, and even high energy costs, however, what they can’t always do is find a charging station. All the money in the world doesn’t mean that there are suddenly more charging stations, so the BMW iX can become hassle on longer journeys. So range is far more important than fuel economy ever was.

During my range test of the BMW iX xDrive50, I was able to drive a couple hundred miles, without a full battery to start with, and while driving like me, and I still have about 40 miles left. The BMW iX really surprised me with how efficient and easy to drive it was. It might not be the best looking SUV on the market but it’s a great luxury car and even a pretty good sports SUV.

[Source: InsideEVs]