It's hard to make up your mind, really. Is the BMW iX an attractive car, or is it a bit leaden and lumpy? To be honest, I haven't really come to a conclusion. In black, it looks a bit sombre and flabby, but in other colours, when the sun picks out some of the finer lines and indents, it's actually rather nice.
No matter what the colour, though, the effect is deadened by the plasticky grille, which is as overbearing as that mate in a pub who insists on beginning every story with: "C'mere, this will give you a laugh", when the yarn is about as funny as getting Covid.
Unlike others, I don't entirely lament the disappearance of the BMW kidney grille of old, because the very nature of car design is and must be evolution. The newer style, more pair of lungs than kidneys, works well on the likes of a 4 Series coupé, but a great deal less so on a car as bulky as the iX.
Because big it is, at almost five metres long, albeit slightly lower than the X5, which is its ICE sibling. Despite that, and due to the size of the batteries, the boot space is not exceptional, at 500 litres, but the fact that it is expandable to 1,750 litres with the rear seats folded flat tells another story - passenger space.
Even the back seats are roomy, with more than enough room for three adults. Because there's no transmission tunnel, the flat floor allows for legroom even for the middle seat passenger, not least because the centre storage stack also has clear space below.
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It's clever and, despite a roof that's lower than the X5, you never feel it, with plenty of headroom for all.
Up front, new seats with integrated headrests are very comfortable indeed, and the cabin overall is a step up from previous BMWs. This largely is down to the new curved display that incorporates a 12.3-inch instrument screen and a 14.9- inch infotainment touchscreen. It really is glorious, especially for the satnav, offering a crisp and easy-to-interpret interface augmented on some models by front facing cameras over which an arrow can be superimposed to show you exactly which turn to take, very useful at complicated junctions.
And, of course, because this is an all-wheel drive car with powerful motors working both axles, you get oomph by the bucketful.
Hit the accelerator and, from a standing start, you'll be sailing through 100kph in just 6.1 seconds (or 4.6 seconds in the range-topping xDrive 50), which is a bit thrilling in a car of this bulk.
The weight keeps it very stable and there is a solid feel to the drive, without it ever feeling awkward or unresponsive - and while the entire point of any all-wheel drive car is to keep you out of trouble offroad, I have to say I most enjoyed it on the motorway cruise, where the noise, vibration and harshness are at the bare minimum, making for a pleasantly quiet driving experience. My only quibble is that the power is so immediate, you really do have to keep an eye on the speed limit and lock it in on cruise control.
As for range, this is advertised at between 372 and 425km. On a 100% charge, the most I saw predicted was 363km, but it was a fairly accurate assessment. I drove it from Dublin to north Wexford, from there to Clontarf, where I was staying over to attend the Ed Sheeran concert in Croke Park, and back to Sandyford, with a few local runs in between. After driving roughly 250km, I still had about 30% battery left when I dropped it off. That's impressive.
Of course, the iX is not cheap. The base price of this M Sport trim level is €88,630. Extras included the Black Sapphire paint job, Comfort Pack (heated steering wheel, keyless access and front electric sports seats), Sky Lounge Pack (panoramic sunroof and sun protection glass), 22-inch bi-colour Aero Alloy wheels, and parking assistant plus with bird's eye view camera.
That brings the total to €98,656, perilously close to 100 grand.
If I had it, would I spend it on the iX? I don't know. I loved it more when I was in it rather than looking at it, and that's always going to be an issue for me, because I like a car that makes me swoon.
On a long drive, though, with great power and predicable range, I could make an exception.
BMW iX XDRIVE 40 M-SPORT
PRICE €88,630
MODEL DRIVEN (without options) €98,656
MOTOR OUTPUT 200kW(front), 250kW (rear)
COMBINED POWER 326hp
BATTERY CAPACITY 71kWh
TRANSMISSION Single-speed automatic
CO2: 0g/km €1,200 tax
RANGE 372-425km
TOP SPEED 200kph
ENERGY CONSUMPTION 20kWh/100km
DIMENSIONS 4953mm (L); 1967mm (W); 1695mm (H)
BOOT CAPACITY 500-1,730 litres
