As BMW’s M division continues to celebrate its 50th anniversary, BMW Ireland invited Irish journalists down to Mondello for a preview of not only the M3 Touring but the i7, iX1 and a cross section of the current line up including the M5, M4 and M3 Competitions which we got to take out on track. We also experienced the i4 M50 which uses Hanz Zimmers soundtrack to give a very surreal video game-like aural experience.
First up of course is the incredible 3 Series Touring which has the Audi RS 4 firmly in its sights. It uses the same 503bhp twin-turbo 3.0-litre engine as the saloon, and gets four-wheel drive to make sure not an ounce of all that power is wasted. The result is 0-100 km/h in 3.6sec, which is just 0.1sec slower than the saloon and half a second quicker than the Audi.
Meanwhile, top speed is electronically limited to 250 km/h (unless you option the M Driver’s Package). It’s got beefier wheel arches and bumpers, quad exhausts and a huge, vertical front grille. Inside there’s a long curved display, made up of two adjoining screens similar to what Mercedes have done with their dash.
There’s a 12.3in screen instead of a driver’s binnacle and a 14.9in touchscreen for infotainment. With the seats and luggage cover hiding the boot, there’s around 500-litres available for gear (only slightly smaller than the RS4’s) and with all seats down there’s 1,510 litres. The seats fold 40/20/40 and the powered tailgate can be opened separately.
Competing against Mercedes EQS, the i7 is initially available in Drive60 guise. Featuring dual electric motors, one on each axle building a powerful 598 hp and 745Nm of torque. An i7 M70 will join the range in 2023 with around 651bhp. There’s a 101.7kWh battery pack, which is integrated under the floor, and this allows the i7 xDrive 60 to get from 0-100 km/h in just 4.7 seconds.
The i7 can be charged at up to 11kW AC, while the maximum DC charge rate is 195kW. Where possible, this means that just over 160 km of range could be added in 10 minutes. Prices in Ireland start from €133,085.00 and the range is approximately 623 km. BMW’s i7 is based on the latest version of BMW’s ‘CLAR’ (cluster architecture) platform currently used on multiple platforms including pure combustion, PHEV and the all-electric drivetrains.
The entry-level BMW IX1 starts at €63,995.00 and when fully charged it’s possible the range can eek out 438 kms of range. It’s possible to get up to 120 kms of range in around 10 minutes or go from 0 up to 80% charge in just 29 minutes at public high-speed charging stations with a charging speed of 127kW. As we know, if available, these are few and far between. With a pair of motors, one on each axle, the combined power is around 308bhp and 494Nm of torque, which results in a 0-100 km/h time of just 5.7 seconds. Range is approximately 438 km with a maximum charging capacity of up to 130 kW. Launched in premium trim with plenty of spec, a front-wheel-drive version of the iX1 will probably be available down the line which will have an increased range with less performance.
Having facelifted the 3 Series and introduced the next-generation 7 Series, BMW is also now hard at work putting the finishing touches on the 5 Series. Set to debut early next year, the eighth generation may not come with a V8. We’ve had some fun with the latest M5 on track at Mondello and if we had to say anything during our short run, it’s that if this is to be peak combustion engine M5, they’ve gone out with a bang.
BMW XM Debut
And finally, also new for BMW will be the XM performance crossover which debuted on September 27th. Power comes from a 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8 with a plug-in hybrid. It makes 644 horsepower (485 kilowatts) and 650 pound-feet (884 Newton-meters) of torque. The setup provides an estimated electric driving range of 48 kilometres. The engine runs through a ZF-sourced eight-speed auto box. The M team ensures us this crossover will have sports-car-like handling so they’ve added active anti-roll bars and up to 2.5 degrees of rear-wheel steering. Apparently an even more powerful version could be on the cards, the ‘Black Label’ could come with 740 hp (552 kW) and 737 lb-ft (1,000 Nm).