BMW i4 Review

Pricing

Make no mistake, this isn’t a bargain. BMW has always been a premium brand, and that remains so in the electric car market. But as is so often the case in life, you get what you pay for, and while i4 prices start at fifty grand, you’re getting a car that – whisper it – we prefer to the Tesla Model 3.

Trim levels are kept pretty simple and so far, there are just three powertrains to choose from. Things kick off with the eDrive 35 Sport at £49,995, with another £1,500 securing the M Sport package so many buyers can’t resist – it brings more assertive styling, 18in alloys and leather seats. An upgrade to the eDrive 40 will cost an extra £7,895. The full M experience starts with the £65,795 i4 M50.

BMW is a little stingier with the options than some rivals – namely those from Korea, like the packed-with-kit Kia EV6 – but it makes adding options easy by rounding them into Comfort and Technology packs. Though that does mean you end up having to pay over £1,000 if you simply want a heated steering wheel (always handy on a frosty morning…).

Running Costs

A big battery means slightly longer charging times (and thus bigger charging costs) than rivals with smaller setups, so you’re into double figures for a charge – around £13.50 for a complete top up at home, or roughly £24 to boost yourself up to 80 per cent with a public charger. But it’s worth remembering a lot of i4 buyers won’t be cross-shopping with other EVs; they’ll be giving up their beloved petrol BMW sports saloon. And next to those, this is fantastic value. Covering 300 miles in a BMW M340i, for instance, will cost around £60. An M3 will be even more.The i4’s insurance groups are high, but about on par with their internal combustion equivalents, while its three-year main and eight-year battery warranties are right on par for the class it operates in.