2023 BMW i4 M50 Review: Treat Yo' Self

2023 BMW i4 M50 Review: Treat Yo' Self - CNET

X Why You Can Trust CNET Our expert, award-winning staff selects the products we cover and rigorously researches and tests our top picks. If you buy through our links, we may get a commission. Reviews ethics statement Home Electric Vehicles 2023 BMW i4 M50 Review: Treat Yo' Self You don't need to pay more for dual-motor i4 M50 to have a good time, but it's hard to argue with more power and fun. Antuan Goodwin Senior Writer, Electrified Cars Antuan started out in the automotive industry the old-fashioned way, by turning wrenches in a driveway and picking up speeding tickets. He now has nearly 20 years of expertise and experience behind the wheel of hundreds of cars, including electric, hybrid, plug-in hybrid, hydrogen, and traditional combustion vehicles. For each car he tests, Antuan covers more than 200 miles behind the wheel and evaluates driving dynamics; acceleration and braking performance; range; and efficiency. Antuan's goal is to use his extensive car knowledge to educate CNET readers and help with their next car-related buying decision. Whether you're EV-curious, an EV-enthusiast or a combustion-car loyalist, Antuan will bring you the unbiased advice, reviews, best lists and news you need. You can reach Antuan at antuan.goodwin@cnet.com Expertise Nearly two decades of testing, driving, reporting on, writing about, reviewing, and editing content about electric and ICE cars. Category focus is on electrified cars, EVs, HEVs, PHEVs, ICE cars, EV infrastructure, EV chargers, EV adapters, EV news, auton Credentials North American Car, Truck and SUV of the Year (NACTOY) Awards Juror See full bio Antuan Goodwin Oct. 14, 2022 12:33 p.m. PT 9 min read Enlarge Image You don't need the extra power, but it sure is nice. Antuan Goodwin/CNET CarsThe full-electric BMW i4 is essentially a 4 Series Gran Coupe four-door liftback sedan without a tailpipe. From the curbside, it is indistinguishable from its combustion-powered siblings. Unlike the iX, which screams "weird electric SUV!" with its avant garde design, the i4 flies under the radar. The 2023 BMW i4 M50 builds on this formula with a more powerful dual-motor electric powertrain and M Sport handling. The M50 may not quite be an electric M car, but with better whisper-silent performance, it's possibly the best Q car in BMW's lineup. 8.8 2023 BMW i4 M50 Like Great power and acceleration

Nicely balanced chassis

Liftback utility and generous cargo space

Flexible iDrive 8.0 tech Don't like iDrive's learning curve is a steep one

Much more expensive than competition Up front, the i4 features a unique grille with the same self-healing tech found on the iX SUV. Small rock chips and scratches disappear from the glossy surface after a few warm days or a few minutes exposed to a hair dryer. Break out the measuring tape and you'll note that the i4 M50 is 0.2-inch taller than the M440i with a 0.1-inch wider front track -- barely any difference at all. That sounds simple enough, but is actually quite remarkable considering BMW has crammed an 83.9-kWh battery into the low-slung, coupe-like silhouette.The battery lives under the i4's floor, which costs it a bit of cabin space but, again, not too much. The biggest changes are 0.4-inch less headroom (36.6 inches) and 0.7-inch less legroom (34.2 inches) on the second row and a cut to 10 cubic feet of trunk capacity (down from 16.6 cubes) due a loss of space under the load floor. Space above the floor is nearly identical and the i4 M50 retains its 40/20/40 split-folding rear seat, so most owners probably wouldn't notice when loading items into the power liftback.Range and chargingThe i4 even uses the same fuel door as the combustion-powered 4 Series -- look closely and you can even see the spot where the gas cap goes when filling -- but instead of a filler neck, there's a combined charging system port. Connected to an 11-kilowatt AC charger (Level 2), the 80.7-kWh of usable capacity (the rest is reserved) is restored in around 8.25 hours. At a 200-kW DC fast charger, the battery can be rapidly charged from 10 to 80% full optimally in around 31 minutes.  That charge time syncs nicely with the two years of complimentary 30-min charging sessions with Electrify America that BMW includes for new i4 owners. Of course, there are faster-charging EVs around, but until 200-kW-plus stations are much more common, the BMW's quick enough. Enlarge Image If you're really in a rush, the i4 M50 can add 97 miles of range in just 10 minutes at a 200-kW charger. Antuan Goodwin/CNET CarsSadly, the i4 has no front trunk -- usually a nice bonus feature on purpose-built electric vehicles -- so you'll have to store the portable charging cable in the trunk. However, unlike BMW's iX SUV, the Gran Coupe's hood can be opened by the owner. Though, there's not much under there to see besides a gigantic plastic cover hiding the electric hardware and two filler caps for wiper fluid and coolant.The M50 performance variant of the i4 comes standard with 19-inch double-spoke M wheels, but my example upgrades to 20-inch wheels with staggered high-performance Pirelli P Zero tires -- 255/35 R20 in the front with 285/30 R20 rears. This change affects the look of the sedan, its handling and, more importantly, the range. On the standard 19s, owners can expect up to 270 miles of range per charge. With the stickier, heavier 20-inch wheels and tires, that estimate drops to 227 miles. That's still a comfortable amount of range for commuting and a bit of B-road fun, but frequent road-trippers looking to roam further should consider the less powerful, 282- to 301-mile i4 eDrive40 configuration.During my week of testing the i4 M50 on the 20-inch wheels, I never charged past 80%, recharged once well before empty to test charging speed, and spent most of my time in Sport mode. After around 175 miles traveled in total, the trip computer reported an average of 2.6 miles per kWh used, slightly better than the EPA's converted estimate of 2.4 miles per kWh.xDrive electric all-wheel driveThe i4 M50 upgrades to a dual-motor xDrive electric all-wheel drive setup. Powering the front axle is a 190-kilowatt motor; the rear wheels share a 230-kW unit. Total output climbs to 536 hp, which is a fair bit more than the eDrive40's 335 hp. The four-door coupe will scramble from 0 to 60 mph in just 3.7 seconds with its Sport Boost mode taking full advantage of the 586 pound-feet of instantaneous torque. 2023 BMW i4 M50 Is the Strong, Silent Type +62 More See all photos Going from 0 to 60 in 3.7 seconds looks good on paper, but the way the i4 M50 effortlessly surges forward as you roll onto the accelerator has to be experienced to truly be appreciated. It's a totally different sort of thrill ride than even the M4 Competition xDrive Coupe's 3.4-second sprint. There's no drama, no wheelspin or even much sound at all, save for the whoosh of the wind and rumble of the tires -- only pure, eye-popping acceleration as the i4 M50 rockets forward like a bullet train.Silent by default, the M50 features M-specific versions of BMW's Iconic Sounds -- generated sound played through the cabin speakers in concert with acceleration or deceleration. I'm usually not a fan of fake engine noise, but I found the M50's Sport sound theme to be a pleasant, surprisingly engaging rendition of a futuristic combustion engine. Designed by film composer Hans Zimmer and BMW Creative Sound Director Renzo Vitale, the system makes use of overlapping Shepard tones to create a sense of constantly rising urgency as the i4 builds speed.In addition to customizing the sound, I was also able to tweak the performance of the i4 M50 via drive and regeneration modes. The EV features Eco Pro, Sport Boost, Comfort and Individual drive modes, which are toggled directly via a dedicated physical buttons. There are also multiple regeneration modes starting with the default Adaptive setting that uses the distance to the car ahead, navigation data and the battery's state of charge to determine how much regen to apply every time the throttle is lifted. This should net you the most efficient energy recapture, but I found it inconsistent and, at worst,  difficult to predict, not to mention jerky. I prefer to choose one of the static regen modes: low, medium or high. Disable low-speed creep in a menu to enable one-pedal driving where the i4 can slow to a stop without touching the brake pedal -- my favorite EV braking method overall. Enlarge Image The M50 comes standard with dark Shadowline trim and aerodynamic bits. Carbon-fiber trim is optional. Antuan Goodwin/CNET CarsThe i4 M50 also features standard M Sport physical brakes that work well in tandem with the regeneration system during dynamic driving and hard stops. The rest of the handling department is manned by the standard Adaptive M Suspension with electronically controlled dampers and variable sport steering. BMW's engineers have nailed the M50's driving dynamics. The EV is about 850 pounds heavier than the M440i xDrive, and that weight makes itself apparent on switchbacks and serpentine mountain roads. Still, the chassis still feels well-balanced; the new 48:52 front-to-rear weight distribution is actually reversed relative to the slightly nose-heavy M440i, which makes the steering feel lighter and more playful, while retaining a nice fingertip feel. (At least, it does in Sport mode; the Comfort steering setting feels a bit numb and ove