Hearing this, I think my expression at that time must be in line with the word "stunned". As one of the earliest traditional electric car companies, BMW released i8 and i3 much earlier than the establishment of most new car companies. A century-old car company that enjoys a high reputation in the industry has put such a low attitude, which really surprised me.
Electric drive or BMW, non-pure electric platform can also make a good pure tram.
Is BMW not confident enough about its products? Obviously not! BMW has always been full of confidence in its products. The BMW iX3 is still a pure BMW, which is excellent enough by the standards of a luxury medium-sized SUV.
The exterior interior of BMW iX3 is basically the same as that of BMW X3 on the same platform, except for some changes and the addition of some blue decorative strips to highlight the identity of electric vehicles. Anyway, people can still tell it's a BMW at a glance. The working materials in the carriage are good enough, the details are exquisite enough, and the sense of luxury is full. Under the premise that the NEDC cruising range reaches 500km without using a pure electric platform, the battery of BMW iX3 does not obviously occupy the space in the car and the trunk space. The ergonomic design, seat design and storage design of the car are basically the same as those of BMW X3, and the practicality and comfort are good enough.
As a BMW, iX3 also inherited BMW's manipulation genes. Although the weight of the whole vehicle has reached 2.2 tons, its body is still quite flexible before it breaks through the limit, and it can easily complete large steering movements in the venue, and accurate steering directivity and good sense of communication between people and vehicles can also bring a lot of fun to drivers. Although BMW iX3 only has a power layout of rear-drive single motor, the maximum output power and torque of DC synchronous motor using BMW's fifth-generation eDrive technology reach 2 10kW and 400N·m respectively. Under its strong output, the official performance of BMW iX3 is equal to that of BMW X3? xDrive？ 30i Same 6.8s
However, if you expect to drift in this 2.2-ton high-power rear-wheel drive, you think too much. When the vehicle is pushed to the limit by rapid cornering, BMW iX3 shows an obvious tendency to push the head, esp will take the initiative to intervene, and the power output of the rear wheel is limited. Generally speaking, BMW iX3 is still a car with more comfortable orientation than handling orientation. Its chassis is softer than BMW X3, and its tires are replaced by non-explosion-proof tires, which makes it more comfortable to drive. In addition, there is no sound of engine and exhaust, so the car is quieter when driving.
In terms of kinetic energy recovery, BMW iX3 provides four recovery modes: adaptive, high, medium and low. In the adaptive mode, the distance between the vehicle and the preceding vehicle will be judged by the radar, and the closer to the preceding vehicle, the stronger the kinetic energy recovery. In addition, BMW iX3 also offers B gear, which is a single pedal mode. After the B gear is engaged, the kinetic energy recovery will be the strongest state. When the accelerator pedal is released, the vehicle will continue to decelerate to a complete stop. At this time, the vehicle will no longer crawl at idle speed. However, through the extremely sensitive accelerator pedal, the driver can easily control the speed and kinetic energy recovery intensity, and the driving experience with a single pedal is very natural and easy to use. If your footwork is delicate enough, you can even control the speed at 1km/h to crawl slowly, which many cars can't do.
But when using B gear, there are two details that I think are not good enough. First, the position of Block B is unreasonable. When reversing in the state of B gear, you must turn the gear handle back to D gear to the right before you can switch to R gear. After reversing, you have to return to B gear, which is completed in two steps. Secondly, the relationship between kinetic energy recovery and braking is not linear enough in the state of B gear. After the accelerator pedal is completely abandoned, the whole vehicle already has a strong kinetic energy recovery braking force. At this time, the braking force will suddenly increase when you lightly step on the brake pedal, but the increase speed of braking force will slow down, which makes it difficult to control the front part of the brake smoothly and makes people lack confidence in the middle part.
L2 automatic driving blessing, intelligence keeps pace with the times.
It can be seen that in terms of electrification, BMW iX3 has only made a small step forward. Its driving experience has not changed much compared with its own fuel car, and there is no brand-new experience compared with BMW's previous electric car. However, BMW iX3 is a big step forward in intelligence. Autonomous driving and smart cars are what BMW calls "catching up with new forces."
In terms of automatic driving, the BMW iX3 comes standard with the automatic driving assistance system Pro, and the hardware comes standard with Mobileye? EyeQ4 autopilot chip, 1 forward three-eye camera, 1 in-car autopilot state detection camera, 4? A panorama camera, 5? A millimeter wave radar and 12? An ultrasonic radar, the software can realize L2-level autopilot functions, including full-speed ACC, middle lane keeping, lighting and lane changing.
After the actual experience, it is found that BMW's automatic driving assistance system Pro has few functions, but it is still quite practical. In the high-speed scene, it can keep the driving stability in the lane, and the acceleration and braking are smooth. Capacitive steering wheel can judge whether the driver's hand is on the steering wheel very accurately, and it is not necessary to turn the steering wheel gently frequently to confirm. Moreover, the effect of changing lanes is decisive, the success rate is high, and the judgment of the coming cars is also very reliable. In the low-speed traffic jam scene, when the green light on the steering wheel lights up, the driver can leave the steering wheel with both hands. At this time, the system will check whether the driver keeps his attention through the camera on the full LCD instrument, and only when the driver's attention is not on the road will he ask for taking over.
As for smart cars, BMW iX3 adopts an in-vehicle system specially developed for the China market, which not only retains BMW's easy-to-use wireless Carplay and Carlife functions, but also adds localized applications such as QQ music, Himalayan and watermelon videos.
Like the previous Polaris 2, the BMW iX3 is also equipped with dual voice assistants. Saying "Hello, BMW" can wake up BMW's intelligent personal assistant, control navigation, multimedia, window and other physical functions, and set reminders and memos, such as telling it to "remind me to take an umbrella when getting off the bus". Text and voice reminders will pop up when getting off the bus, which is very practical. Calling "Tmall Elf" can also wake up another voice system provided by Ali, which can be used to realize functions such as searching, listening to songs, controlling smart homes and playing idioms solitaire.
At the same time, BMW iX3 is also equipped with Tencent's small scene application platform, through which third-party applications can access the car machine for functional expansion. Not only that, BMW iX3 is also equipped with mobile phone number keys. After completing the authentication and authorization, the mobile phone can completely replace the car key. When you approach with your mobile phone, the vehicle will automatically unlock. You can put your mobile phone in the position of the wireless charging panel to start and drive the vehicle. When you leave with your mobile phone, the vehicle will automatically lock.
If the functions mentioned above are not enough, BMW iX3 also supports OTA remote upgrade, and the in-vehicle system will be constantly updated like our mobile phone system. It can be said that BMW has now followed all the new forces.
But from the experience, I think the biggest problem of BMW's car system is that it does not abandon the control logic of knobs and buttons, which leads to the lack of intuitive operation interface, too many tiled submenus, lack of graphical interactive interface, frequent switching of text menus or drop-down pages, and complicated operation.
Can BMW still take the lead on the brand-new track?
If I were to sum up my evaluation of BMW iX3 in one sentence, I would call it "an excellent luxury car and a qualified intelligent electric car". No one will question BMW's achievements and position in the field of fuel vehicles, but on the brand-new electric car track, BMW's powerful engine and gearbox matching ability is useless, and BMW's good handling is bound by heavy battery packs. In terms of intelligence of electric vehicles, BMW has become a chaser.
It is difficult for this ship to turn around. In the process of electrification and intelligent transformation, of course, traditional manufacturers are not as flexible and fast as new forces, but we also see that traditional manufacturers like BMW, which are leading in the field of fuel vehicles, have lowered their posture and caught up. How long can the first-Mover advantage of the new forces last? When the electric vehicle market matures, can BMW still lead? No one dares to jump to conclusions now.
Impression of BMW iX3' s first test drive
Outstanding advantages: the car is luxurious and sufficient; Long battery life and low power consumption; Accurate pointing, good steering communication, good single pedal operation control, good chassis texture and sound insulation; L2 autopilot function is easy to use.
Main short board: the brake is not linear enough; The speech recognition rate is average, and the car operation is complicated.
This article comes from car home, the author of the car manufacturer, and does not represent car home's position.