An EV that offers traditional Bavarian driving pleasure? BMW: ‘Hold my half liter for a while’
At our Awards, we never really bother with tiresome things like ‘accuracy’ or ‘sticking to definitions’. We like to leave that to others. It should come as no surprise, then, that our Sedan of the Year this year is, er, no sedan. the i4 has it’s a hatchback, but we wouldn’t say it’s a hatchback is. It fulfills the task of a sedan, albeit with more style and versatility. Does that make him less eligible for the 2021 Sedan of the Year Awards? Well no.
The i4 requires a little more explanation. At first glance you can see it as an electric BMW 4-series Gran Coupé. The six-cylinder music and the eight-speed automatic transmission are
replaced by seamless and silent electrical power. But otherwise the driver imagines himself mainly just in a 4-series, and that’s fine. However, not everything is what it seems. Most of the floor structure and suspension is unique to the i4, leaving room in the construction for large e-motors and a good-sized battery.
The M50 is pretty fast
So far we’ve spent most of our time in the M50 version, which has four-wheel drive and the kind of face-distorting acceleration that has become the standard for sporty EVs: 0-100 km/h in under 4 seconds, overtaking do you with two fingers in your nose. The WLTP range is 520 kilometers, which is already quite impressive. Until you realize that the rear-wheel drive i4 eDrive40, with 340 hp less powerful but still seriously smooth (from 0 to 100 in 5.7 seconds), on a single charge should be able to go 590 kilometers.
Those are the numbers people want to know about EVs, but we love the i4 because it could have been any other richly equipped BMW. The structure of the interior around the driver, the way he steers and drives. He’s low and sporty and he has a certain consistency that makes everything just right. The placement of the battery in the floor ensures that the center of gravity of the i4 is just 53 millimeters lower than that of a 3-series sedan, and the weight distribution between the front and rear axles is almost optimal.
Those are definitely things that benefit his driving dynamics. While the M50’s AWD drivetrain isn’t necessarily meant for playful fun, it all adds up to a smoother ride than you’ll find with its Tesla and Polestar competitors.
The 2021 Sedan of the Year is also a good EV
But even if you consider the i4 purely as an electric car, not so much as a driving machine, it scores highly. It charges with a maximum of 200 kW, which means that you can charge its battery from 10 to 80 percent in 31 minutes on the correct fast charger. Or, if you’re short on time, you can get an extra 164 (eDrive40) or 140 kilometers (M50) of range in 10 minutes. You can even tow up to 1,600 kilos with it, so the caravan can also be taken along.
Said what that really? quickly the TGglasses back on: this is an EV that in its base version is a traditional rear-wheel drive BMW. ‘EV’, ‘traditional’ and ‘BMW’ in one sentence? Well, BMW also makes crassly powerful SUVs and seven-seat front-wheel drive MPVs; then the i4 can be called a lot more traditional. He gets our hands together for sure.
