BMW is finally getting serious about electrification. Over the past few years, it has released a number of hybrid and electric models, with cars like the BMW i4 at the top of the lineup. The latest i4 model, called the BMW i4 eDrive40, sits in a snag-free zone. It’s more luxurious and more expensive than the Tesla Model 3, Kia EV6, and Hyundai Ioniq 5, but it doesn’t quite reach the heights of a Model S or Mercedes EQS.
You may live in the middle when it comes to price, but they are ultimately closer to the end when it comes to quality. The car is far from perfect — but it proves that BMW is well positioned to compete in the world of electric cars, keeping everything you know and love about modern BMWs, and adding an electric powertrain.
All that said, the BMW i4 still feels like a safe toy from BMW. It’s not reinventing the wheel – and sitting inside, it looks like a modern gas-powered BMW. This, however, is not necessarily a bad thing.
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Positives
- Comfortable trip
- good performance
- steel scale
- modern design
Negatives
- Still not cheap
- Not as fast as some competition
BMW i4 eDrive40 2022 Exterior Design
The exterior of the BMW i4 is almost identical to that of other 4 Series cars. That’s not a bad thing – I really like the exterior design of the latest 4 Series, although I’ll admit I’m still familiar with the oversized grille up front. In BMW parlance, the i4 eDrive40 is a Gran Coupe, and it appears to be a four-door Gran Coupe as well.
Speaking of the grille, it’s of course a little different on the i4 than the typical 4 series, but it still looks the same from afar. While the i4 doesn’t need to be cooled in the same way as a typical 4-Series car, the grille on the front of this car still has a number of sensors and a front camera.
There are a lot of designs about the car that make it look elegant and fashionable. The car also offers a number of elegant blue features – signifying that the car is electric. And on the back, instead of exhaust pipes, you will get an air diffuser.
i4 eDrive40 wheels are usually 18 inches in size, but our review model was upgraded with 19-inch wheels, which look great. You’ll pay for the privilege, but many will be happy to pay for it.
2022 BMW i4 eDrive40 Interior
Much of the interior of the BMW i4 eDrive40 is similar to other 4 Series cars, but as on the outside, there are a few differences to note. However, regardless, the car is still comfortable and luxurious, offering beautiful stitched leather throughout and accessible controls you’ll get used to in a heartbeat.
In the rear of the car, you’ll get plenty of room for passengers, and even adults should be able to sit comfortably in the back with plenty of legroom and headroom. Legroom isn’t huge, but it’s definitely enough for most situations, and this helps make the car a decent choice for the family.
The luggage room in the car leaves little to be desired. The hatchback opens up to 10 cubic feet, however, you can fold the rear seats down to increase space as needed. It’s enough for everyday use and grocery shopping, but not much more than that.
Of course, perhaps the biggest difference between this series model is the large and spacious screen on the front.
2022 BMW i4 eDrive40 infotainment
The BMW i4 eDrive40’s infotainment screen is a beautiful 14.9-inch touchscreen that shines enough for the vast majority of use cases, and houses BMW’s latest infotainment system, the iDrive 8. The screen is larger than its non-electric i4 siblings, highlighting its advanced technology approach.
iDrive 8 is a definite step forward over the previous generation iDrive 7, but it’s still not the beautifully designed interface you might want from your car. The interface is organized into a home screen, with an app grid for the rest of the features. You can navigate the interface using a rotating dial on the center console, or just by touch. It’s fine, and you’ll get used to the overall layout. And the interface was relatively responsive to touch, which is more than many competitors can claim.
Fortunately, you don’t have to use iDrive 8 much if you don’t want to. The car supports both Android Auto and CarPlay through a wireless connection, making it extremely easy to bypass the car’s built-in infotainment system.
Performance of the 2022 BMW i4 eDrive40
One of the best things about electric cars is that they are responsive and able to fly quickly. The BMW i4 is no exception to this rule – it sprints from the start line to 60 in 5.5 seconds. It’s not as fast as some of the other options available, or even the M50, which hits 60 in under four seconds. But it still feels fast and fast enough for a sporty-themed experience.
As you might expect from a modern electric vehicle, you can set the vehicle to use regenerative braking to charge the battery while driving. Some other reviews indicate that regenerative braking is very sensitive – but you can adjust the braking sensitivity in the settings. I generally like single-pedal driving, so I set the regenerative braking to maximum.
The car has three different driving modes: “Eco Pro”, “Comfort” and “Sport”. Given the fact that I wasn’t planning on taking this car on any longer road trips, I kept it in the Sport – which feels noticeably more responsive than the other modes.
Now, let’s get something out of the way. This looks and feels a lot like other BMW sports cars, but some feel more engaging. Part of that is simply about the feel of a high-end gas-powered vehicle — and that’s something of its own. That’s a different thing – but if you can get past that, it’s totally fun.
2022 BMW i4 eDrive40 battery and charging
The BMW i4 eDrive40 has an 80.7 kWh battery, which is capable of powering the car for up to 300 miles – the top electric car in 2022. You’ll get less engine for higher performance, with the M50. You’ll have to decide if it’s worth doing for your needs, but I’d prefer having a larger range.
Other things will affect the range as well. For example, if you take full advantage of Sport mode, you get a little less range than if you kept the car in Eco Pro. Likewise, if you use heavier regenerative braking, you will get a longer range than if you use any regenerative braking.
Car charging is very easy. While it doesn’t reach the 350 kWh heights offered by the likes of the Kia EV6, it does hit 200 kWh. This allows it to charge to 80% in about 30 minutes, which isn’t bad at all. A level 2 home charger, with a charging speed of 11 kWh, will charge the car overnight.
Driver assistance system 2022 BMW i4 eDrive40
The BMW i4 eDrive40 offers a number of safety and driver assistance features that can come in handy – but you will have to pay for the privilege of using some of them. I would argue that a lot of the features require an upgrade, given the fact that more and more cars are offering smart features these days.
On the base model, you’ll get a backup camera and things like blind spot monitoring, which seems to be a bare minimum. You will have to add the Driver Assistant Pro package, which we had in our review form, for some other features. The package will provide you with adaptive cruise control and lane keeping, allowing the car to drive itself on the highway. There’s also the Parking Assistance package, which we also got, which lets the car park itself in certain situations, and gives you a 360-degree camera view, which is very useful.
Conclusions
The BMW i4 eDrive40 is a great middle ground between cheaper electric cars in the sub-$50,000 range, and more expensive luxury options. It features a comfortable ride, an enjoyable driving experience, and more.
The competition
There is a lot of competition in the world of electric cars, but if you want luxury without paying an arm and a leg, the BMW i4 eDrive40 is an excellent choice. If you’re willing to pay more, you can get better performance with the M50, although you’ll sacrifice performance to get it. Alternatively, if you’re willing to pay a lot, you can go buy something like a Porsche Taycan, Lucid Air, or a Tesla Model S.
Should I Buy a BMW i4 eDrive40 2022?
yes. It’s a great compromise between higher-end and cheaper electric cars.
