BMW Australia has announced pricing and specifications for the new BMW iX3 electric SUV.
This is the facelifted BMW iX3 – and it’s arrived at a rather unconventional time. Generally, facelifts arrive a few years into a car’s life cycle, but the iX3 was only launched last year.
BMW has a solid reason for the sudden update, however – it keeps the iX3’s styling in line with the combustion-engined X3, which received a facelift earlier this year. The decision also means that the iX3 gets many of the updates fitted to its petrol and diesel-powered sibling.
BMW Australia has now detailed pricing for the single variant available here priced at $114,900 plus on-road costs.
The updated iX3 will go into production this September at the BMW Brilliance Automotive facility in Shenyang, China.
Interested Australian buyers can put in an order now for expected November 2021 deliveries. You can read our BMW iX3 first drive review here.
Styling tweaks for the facelifted iX3 include a new front bumper, which BMW says shares design elements with its newest electric vehicles, the iX SUV and i4 saloon. The SUV’s kidney grilles are also slightly larger than before and feature new mesh-like inserts.
The SUV’s adaptive LED headlights have also been reshaped and BMW now offers its M Sport styling package as standard on every model in the iX3 range, which brings a lower front splitter and some new gills for the front wings.
Inside, the revised iX3 gets sports seats as standard and an upgraded infotainment system with a larger 12.3-inch screen. The centre console has also been tweaked, and now houses a new start-stop button, a model-specific gear lever and drive mode selector.
Australia-delivered BMW iX3 models will come in M Sport specification. Standard equipment includes a panorama glass sunroof, 20-inch alloy wheels, complimentary Chargefox 5-year unlimited Fast and Ultra Rapid charging subscription, Model 2 Domestic charger, Model 3 Public charging cable, vehicle pre-heating/pre-conditioning, ‘IconicSounds Electric’, Head-up Display, adaptive LED headlights with high beam assist, adaptive suspension, climate control, Vernasca leather, sport seats with electric adjustment, 16-speaker harman/kardon sound system, wireless phone charging, keyless entry with push-button start and an electric tailgate.
The iX3’s electric motor and battery remain unchanged over the pre-facelift model. The system comprises a 210kW electric motor mounted on the rear axle and an 80kWh battery pack.
BMW says that’s enough for a 0–100kph time of 6.8 seconds and an electronically limited top speed of 180kph. Maximum range also stands at 460km, while a full recharge using an 11kW wallbox takes around 7.5 hours.
However, the iX3’s electrical system will support much faster 150kW DC rapid charging. Find a suitable station, and BMW says the battery can be charged from 10–80 percent capacity in 32 minutes. Or, to put that a different way, just 10 minutes of charging will provide enough electricity to cover 100km.
Luke Wilkinson