2022 BMW i4: Famed platform adds a green twist

The i4 is billed as BMW's first battery-powered car dedicated to driving dynamics. And it brings formidable DNA to the task.

Based on BMW's flexible CLAR modular platform underpinning models such as the 3 Series, the four-door i4 coupe-style sedan features shorter overhangs, slim pillars, doors with frameless windows and a roofline that flows into the rear.

Because it uses the famed 3 Series platform, it has been engineered much closer to a combustion-powered vehicle even as the 83.9-kilowatt-hour battery pack and electric motors replace either a four- or six-cylinder engine.

The standard eDrive40 model uses an electric motor mounted in the rear that produces 340 hp and a range up to 301 miles.

The M50 sits at the top of the i4 family — the first electric car from BMW's high-performance M division. It adds a second electric motor at the front axle for a combined 536 hp and will zip from 0-60 mph in 3.7 seconds, with a range up to 270 miles.

The all-wheel-drive system on the M50 is mostly rear-biased to retain BMW's traditional pushed-from-the-back feel, but hard acceleration brings the front engine into play.

Rear-wheel drive is best suited for relaxed driving and increased range in the M50, while in hard turns the mode allows the front wheels to absorb more cornering forces, BMW said.

BMW offers just a couple of option packages — a black exterior trim pack and a heated seats and steering wheel pack.

A planned entry-level version of the i4 will start at $52,395, including shipping. The single-motor 2023 BMW i4 eDrive35, debuting in U.S. stores early this year, delivers 281 hp and has an EPA range of about 260 miles.

The i4 launched in the U.S. in the first quarter of 2022 and we've rounded up some reviews.

"Purists need not worry about BMW's legendary performance pedigree since the i4 accelerates from 0 to 60 mph in a respectable 5.5 seconds and rides as if it's on rails. We took it for hot laps on our favorite stretch of curvy country road and were so enamored with its seat-pinning, road-hugging prowess that we repeated the run several more times.

In its Sport settings, the i4 rivals anything we've driven from BMW short of the M-brand vehicles. The only thing missing is the roar of the engine—you can add artificial sounds, though we found them to be too phony (sorry, Hans Zimmer). There are also Eco Pro and Comfort modes onboard. Individual settings within Sport and Eco Pro modes allow you to mix and match various performance attributes.

The range is good despite our aggressive driving, but the charging speed at Level 2 chargers was a bit longer than advertised. We like that the driver can adjust the amount of brake regeneration, although it's not enough for true one-pedal driving."

— Doug Newcomb, PCMag

"To anyone who was concerned that electrification would ruin BMW's core sedans, all we can say is this: You have nothing to worry about. The future looks bright, even at the single-motor end of the spectrum where the rear-drive 2022 BMW i4 eDrive40 resides.

As its designation suggests, the i4 is an EV take on the 4-series Gran Coupe. Its sleek four-door sedan-esque body is indistinguishable from its gas-powered counterpart's and features the same longer roofline, frameless door glass, and rear liftgate rather than trunk. This absolutely works in the i4's favor, as the Gran Coupe offers superior rear-seat space and better cargo access than any 3-series sedan. And it looks fantastic to boot. Besides, the name i3 was already taken.

We've previously tested — and been mightily impressed with — the high-performance variant of the i4, the M50, calling it "an EV M3" because, among other things, it outaccelerated the last M3 Competition we tested. The eDrive40 is the more mainstream, less expensive version, but in many ways that makes it an even more compelling EV, not to mention a serious alternative to its gasoline-powered counterpart, the BMW 430i Gran Coupe.

In contrast to the M50, with dual motors making 536 horsepower and powering all four wheels, the eDrive40 has a single rear-mounted motor that sends 335 horses to its rear wheels. Still, that easily outclasses the 430i, whose turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-four puts out just 255 horsepower. At the track, our eDrive40 scampered to 60 mph in 4.8 seconds and dusted the quarter-mile in 13.4 seconds at 106 mph. That makes it quicker than a rear-drive Tesla Model 3 Long Range, which reached 60 mph in 5.0 seconds and crossed the stripe in 13.8 seconds at 101 mph. Meanwhile, the last 430i we tested (admittedly a convertible, not a Gran Coupe; their engines are identical, and weight differs by little more than 100 pounds) achieved 60 mph in 5.5 seconds and covered the quarter-mile in 14.1 seconds at 98 mph. Bottom line: The single-motor i4 is sufficiently quick."

— Dan Edmunds, Car and Driver

"The infotainment system has improved by leaps and bounds since the bad old days of BMW iDrive. Now you can touch the screen, twiddle the dial, or just press a button and speak your commands. Once you gain even a passing familiarity with the system, it's easy to use. Oh, speaking of things you can take for granted, the optional Harman Kardon stereo sounds great.

One sad trombone moment: We just got a new iPhone 13 Pro Max and in its protective case, it doesn't fit into the wireless device charging cubby in the i4. That would really be a peeve if we owned this car.

The 4 Series is one of the best driving experiences you can get from BMW. The 2 Series is my favorite, but the 4 comes close. It's lively, fast, stable, and the suspension handles rough roads with great aplomb. With the i4, the center of gravity is about 2 inches lower than the rest of the 4 Series because of the battery location in the floor, which helps with ride and handling.

Then on top of that, the electric drive experience is surpassing quiet and smooth, so you really get the best of all possible worlds with the i4. Only the lane-departure warning kept my joy from being complete, and that was soon fixed."

— Jeff Zurschmeide, The Detroit Bureau

"The i4 — along with the more futuristic iX electric SUV — is part of the second generation of BMW EVs. After years of promising to deliver an architecture that would accept multiple powertrains, BMW has handily pulled it off. While there's the tendency to think that this means the i4 is a compromised EV, the German automaker did something slightly amazing. The i4 drives like a proper BMW sport sedan while delivering impressive efficiency. They did all this in a package that, at the factory, could have easily been outfitted with a gas engine.

The automaker is already planning for the next stage in its EV evolution. The third phase is called the Neue Klasse. The first vehicle of the dedicated EV platform should arrive in 2025. Ahead of that, the automaker plans to have a dozen fully electric vehicles on the road globally by 2023, including EV versions of the 5 Series and X1 compact SUV.

On the road, the i4 presents itself as a grand tourer. Fortunately, it has the range for most road trips. On 18-inch wheels, the EPA reports that the sedan will cover 301 miles before depleting its battery. The review vehicle offered by the automaker was sporting the larger 19-inch wheels, which the EPA states bring the range down to 282 miles. Larger wheels typically reduce a vehicle's range.

In my real-world range test that included 50 miles of highway driving at 70 miles per hour and 50 miles of backroad and suburban driving, the i4 delivered a range of 303 miles. That's a 21-mile increase over the EPA's estimated range.

The battery pack itself has 83.9kWh of capacity gross and 81.5kWh of capacity that the vehicle can tap into on a daily basis.

While the vehicle is sitting on a 400-volt platform, it still manages to accept up to 200kW of power via DC fast charging, according to BMW. In our test, the i4 bested that number, charging at 210kW — again defying expectations."

— Roberto Baldwin, The Verge

"I can't begin to understand why BMW chose to electrify the 4 Series Gran Coupe over the benchmark 3 Series Sedan (although I bet the squandering of the i3 name on a frumpy tall hatchback had something to do with it), but it does mean some tradeoffs. The cargo area is super easy to access because of the liftback design, although I still had to lower the rear seats to fit a pair of golf bags. At the same time, the rear headroom is tight for adults, and the lower roof line makes getting in and out a challenge. The front seats aren't an M-specific thing, but they're supportive on twisty roads and comfy over long journeys.

Despite the M50 badge on the tail and the optional 20-inch wheels on 35-series front/30-series rear tires, the sportiest i4 (so far) has a surprisingly relaxed and pleasant ride. The steering is just isolated enough over bumps and imperfections and avoids the hyperactive behavior my colleagues and I have complained about in other M and M adjacent products, so it won't tire out the driver by demanding constant corrections on long freeway hikes.

Little sound makes its way up to the cabin as the M50-spec adaptive dampers do their work (the default Comfort mode is where it's at). BMW's decision to skip run-flat tires surely helped there, and it probably made a difference in the lack of tire roar. Frameless windows shouldn't lead to impressive wind control, but the slippery body (the i4's drag coefficient is just 0.25 compared to the 0.3 for the M440i Gran Coupe) reduces noise at highway speeds."

— Brandon Turkus, motor1.com

"Lately BMW has taken two distinct approaches to its electric vehicles – something like the big and bold iX is a continuation of the spirit original i3, which was a radical departure from BMW norms.

While the iX is a large SUV that carries over the i3's distinctive design cues and carbon fiber construction, BMW's secondary approach is far more traditional, with the likes if the iX3 and i4 being simply electric versions of more run-of-the-mill ICE cars from the company's lineup, with the iX3 obviously being an electric X3, while the i4 is an electric version of the 4 Series Gran Coupe.

Splitting the difference between radical and conservative is a smart strategy in a market where some people still want an EV that is distinctive and, almost compulsorily a bit weird, while others just want something that looks like a normal car that also happens to be electric.

And that is exactly where the i4 comes in – being more or less an electric 4 Series Gran Coupe (four door, in other words) with a techy interior, the i4 brings all the expected dynamic excellence of a 4 Series along with the silent silky-smooth effortlessness of a BEV.

Inside it is very much a modern BMW, with high quality materials and excellent build quality, but the huge screen (well, two screens cleverly pretending to be one...) that dominates the dash marks it out as something a bit more special."

— Damien O'Carroll, Driven