Rival: 2026 BMW iX3 reviews are impressive... R2 has its work cut out

[Wilber]

The full ADAS in our iX is pretty fantastic, I don't use it that often (and not 100% I would've sprung for it, but it was in the loaded available car we wanted), it's accurate, makes really good spacing and braking decisions (vs. our previous Tesla that almost killed us a couple of times ...). It's as good as any system I've experienced.

The tech stack is very good too, and they've been doing a better job of keeping up on the app side as well, CarKey is excellent, quick works with [Apple] iPhone and Watch, Siri ("open trunk"), CarPlay is tied in with garage and lighting automations. I think they've a decent balance of physical controls (windows/wheel/seats/auto/modes/drive) and touch screen.

One thing people may not know is the on-the-fly D/B mode switching, where D is what I call "coast mode" (BMW uses EESM), traditional use the brakes mode (the brakes are fully blended regen) or B which is one-pedal-driving, it's nice to be able to B around town, hit the one ramp, one (physical) toggle to D mode.

New app UI is nice, good seeing them go through incremental improvements pretty regularly:

(There's a map/location/charging state just below the section I posted)


Our iX is good enough to the point where if I had to commit to another vehicle in advance (like sign now, take delivery Apr '27), I'd gladly put my X on a contract for another, M70 this time please

After seeing the R2 in person, getting a good sense of Rivian's future, our soon-to-be-local SCs, etc., I'm still really into something different, but if has had to go BMW again, I'd be more than happy.

As a current iX driver i fully agree with you. The technology is top notch. Car is very fast and fun to drive. Has a very quiet cabin and an excellent sound system. Styling inside and out is fine with me. But I may buy an R2 or an IX3. While i agree those two cars are different in many ways, there are various things i am picky about that can only be evaluated with a test drive. So, I plan to test drive both. and then decide if i get either or just stick with the iX. As an EV driver for 13 years now, I have owned EVs of various brands and do try to keep up to date on the industry. A RIVN shareholder as well. BMW and Rivian are two of the leaders in EV tech. (Audi, VW, Volvo are NOT)

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[TexasBob]

As a current iX driver i fully agree with you. The technology is top notch. Car is very fast and fun to drive. Has a very quiet cabin and an excellent sound system. Styling inside and out is fine with me. But I may buy an R2 or an IX3. While i agree those two cars are different in many ways, there are various things i am picky about that can only be evaluated with a test drive. So, I plan to test drive both. and then decide if i get either or just stick with the iX. As an EV driver for 13 years now, I have owned EVs of various brands and do try to keep up to date on the industry. A RIVN shareholder as well. BMW and Rivian are two of the leaders in EV tech. (Audi, VW, Volvo are NOT)

How do you find real world range vs rated range on the ix? Is it consistent with the CR data I posted above (ie better than rated)?

 

[Wilber]

How do you find real world range vs rated range on the ix? Is it consistent with the CR data I posted above (ie better than rated)?

Sorry, I have not been paying much attention to that stuff for the last year. So, I wont quote any numbers. What i can say is the car still seems to beat the EPA range by a decent amount. I live and drive in coastal Northern California, so dont deal with real winter weather or super hot summers. On the other hand, i have a heavy foot. That is, I really enjoy the rocket ship style acceleration and even use it on the drive to the grocery....

 

[MaskedRacerX]

How do you find real world range vs rated range on the ix? Is it consistent with the CR data I posted above (ie better than rated)?

We've beat the original EPA spec pretty consistently. Our mi/kWh is pretty heavily weighted towards highway/interstate (I-95/I-4) driving (at 75MPH+), where there's some efficiency hit, but I do check our occasional trips around town, and that mi/kWh exceeds the projected range (by way of mi/kWh * kWh battery capacity of 105). We've had EVs for 5+ years, and I tend to pay pretty close attention.

Our average with that 85-90% being highway, is 3.1 mi/kWh (~325 miles), but often times around town, some moderate highway (~55-60MPH), I see 3.3-3.5 (~346-367 miles). Average around town split evenly with average highway, we'd be around 340. This is for a '24 iX with the 21" Sport Package wheel/tire setup that was originally spec-ed at 305-307 miles on the BMW site.

Sorry, I have not been paying much attention to that stuff for the last year. So, I wont quote any numbers.

I don't know how much time you spend in the app, but there's a huge amount of data available, all sorts of consumption rates per trip, per month, YTD, comparisons vs. other BMW owners. There's a fun monthly summary, you can see specific trips and choose to merge/separate sections traveled, see efficiency use, etc.

Sometimes around town I bail on efficiency, put it in Sport Mode

 

[macb00kemdanno]

For once, I agree with China. They are forcing auto manufacturers to ditch the hidden door handles. BMW has already obliged with the IX3 for the Chinese market.

Global market

Chinese market

 

[Virtio]

Kia has finally said that the EV3 will come to the USA this summer. Nice to see another small AWD EV option. I was sad to see the Volvo EX30 go but this could be even better. Wireless Android Auto and CarPlay is nice along with Harmon Kardon sound system and 300+ miles of range. Will be 400V to keep the cost down. I'd still prefer an R2 but it will be interesting to see how the pricing works out.

 

[mkg3]

Came across this review. While its the production UK RHD version, the characteristics of the vehicle is the same as what we'll get in US.

https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-review/bmw/ix3

 

[KRIV_ian]

iX3 wins World Car of the Year and World Electric Vehicle in the 2026 edition of the World Car Awards.

2026 BMW iX3 Wins World Car of the Year & World Electric Vehicle Awards! - BMW X3, X4, iX3, iX4 - BIMMERPOST

 

[Just Passing By]

Came across this review. While its the production UK RHD version, the characteristics of the vehicle is the same as what we'll get in US.

https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-review/bmw/ix3

Good review and nice graphic. I've attached the detailed European iX3 50 specs from BMW's Media Information in Sept 2025, which I don't recall having seen posted here. Presumably nothing has changed since and US variants will be similar. It would be nice if Rivian posted such a detailed list.

 

[Virtio]

What do you think about Mercedes' massive display?

 

[Great Gatsby]

What do you think about Mercedes' massive display?

I might be one of the few people who actually likes it. I'm sure it is likely stunning in person.

I thought I'd hate the huge display on the Cadillac IQ but walked away pretty impressed. A passenger screen is also a very nice idea.

 

[mkhuffman]

I might be one of the few people who actually likes it. I'm sure it is likely stunning in person.

I thought I'd hate the huge display on the Cadillac IQ but walked away pretty impressed. A passenger screen is also a very nice idea.

We have a passenger screen in my wife's Jeep Grand Cherokee and we played around with it once after we first got the truck. It sounds cool but nobody uses it.

 

[KRIV_ian]

Autobahn testing on a 500+km trip. BMW iX3 real-world Autobahn long range test with astonishing results!

Just jump ahead of all the stuff at the beginning as that's been covered in many videos before.

I was impressed with the charging, immediately hit 400kW at 15% and was still doing around 200kW at 80%.

 

[Zorg]

Beemer gonna be a road trip machine for sure.

 

[Virtio]

If I remember right, they got 3.45 mi/KWh average in the iX3. Pretty impressive.

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