BMW prices its 428-mile iX4 at $66,200 on a bet that range sells

Put the iX4 on a spreadsheet beside any other electric SUV and the most useful first column is sticker price divided by rated range. On the $66,200 base price ^[19] and up to 428 EPA-estimated miles ^[4], the iX4 50 xDrive works out to about $155 per mile of range ^[16].

BMW's pitch is that distance is worth paying for. According to The Verge, the company believes range and efficiency are two of its biggest selling points, with performance third ^[12]. The buying record The Verge describes points somewhere else. Tesla and others "have done plenty well with EVs in the mid-300s, while Lucid continues to struggle despite exceeding 500 miles in range," The Verge wrote ^[14]. InsideEVs has wondered whether BMW's range is overkill, The Verge reported ^[13].

Part of the range comes from efficiency, and efficiency is what lowers the energy bill per mile. Dividing 428 miles by 112.2kWh of usable energy gives about 3.8 miles per kWh ^[17]. BMW says the electrically excited rear motor and its inverter cut drive-system energy losses by 40 percent and weight by 10 percent ^[15]. The Gen6 cylindrical cells have 20 percent higher energy density than the prismatic cells in BMW's Gen5 packs ^[8].

The China comparison is harder to settle. The Verge describes BMW positioning the Neue Klasse lineup as its bulwark against Chinese imports that are hurting other European brands ^[10]. The same article says the iX4 "can certainly compete on range and tech" but that "it's unclear whether BMW can rival China in terms of sheer affordability" ^[11]. The Verge does not list a price for any Chinese competitor. So $66,200 tells a buyer what BMW charges, and it does not show how far that sits from Chinese pricing ^[19].

For whoever signs the order, two questions sort the decision. One is whether the drivers regularly need more than the mid-300s range that has sold well for Tesla ^[14]. The other is whether the purchase turns on sticker price or on time lost to charging.

Drivers who need the distance and lose money while they wait are the buyers this car is built for. Ten minutes at a 400kW charger restores about 43 percent of the rated range ^[18]. Long-distance drivers on a tight budget should be compared on price per mile, starting from about $155 for this car ^[16]. A buyer who rarely leaves town and shops on price is paying for battery capacity that will mostly sit unused. The local buyer who shops on features is choosing the Panoramic iDrive dashboard and vehicle-to-home charging ^[9], and for that buyer the 428 miles is a side benefit.