Thomas and Lea from Autogefühl drove the base-spec BMW iX3 from western Germany to Berlin, a 550-kilometer stretch, without any self-imposed speed limit, then returned the same distance under a 130 km/h cap with no charging stop at all. The iX3 here is the all-wheel-drive model with the 108.7 kWh battery, base trim with no M Sport package, and the standard 20-inch aero wheels rather than the 21- or 22-inch options. On the outbound leg, one stop at a 400 kW station went from 15% to 80% state of charge in roughly 18 minutes, with an average charge rate across that session of 280 kW. The reviewers note that even that stop was longer than strictly necessary: a few minutes from 15% would have been enough to reach Berlin.
BMW recently released specs for the smaller-battery entry model, the iX3 40, which uses an 82.6 kWh pack, rear-wheel drive only, 320 horsepower, and a 0-100 km/h time of 5.9 seconds. WLTP range on that car is rated at 635 km. In Germany, it starts at €63,400, roughly €5,500 less than the tested all-wheel-drive model. Thomas notes that on a leasing rate, that gap shrinks enough that the case for skipping the larger battery becomes hard to make. Interior quality in the iX3 comes in ahead of the BMW X3 combustion model, and the seating comfort from the standard comfort seats is described as better than both the Mercedes GLC EQ and Volvo EX60, despite the iX3 lacking the air suspension either rival can be ordered with. Seat ventilation, which the GLC EQ and the X3 plug-in hybrid both offer, is not yet available on the iX3 and will arrive as a model-year update, likely sometime in 2027.
The efficiency figures from the 20-inch wheel test are the headline. At 100 km/h (60 mph), consumption measured 16 kWh per 100 km, a real-world range equivalent of roughly 680 km. At 130 km/h (80 mph), that rose to 22 kWh per 100 km, equating to around 500 km. Earlier testing of the same car on 22-inch wheels returned 20 kWh at 100 km/h and 25 kWh at 130 km/h, a consistent 3 to 4 kWh difference per 100 km across speeds. On the return trip, with mixed driving including some city sections and a road diversion, the overall average landed at 18 kWh per 100 km. After 530 km, 10% battery remained, pointing to a realistic maximum of around 590 km in that mode. The Autobahn assistant, allowing hands-off motorway driving within its limits, worked smoothly through most of the run, with occasional dropouts in construction zones where the road markings were unclear.
Bottom line: The wheel size finding is more significant than most buyers will expect. If your priority is range and real-world efficiency, the 20-inch aero wheels are not a cosmetic decision, they are a functional one. The iX3's wish list is genuinely short: seat ventilation, laminated windows, and air suspension. The GLC EQ can tick all three boxes, but the iX3 beats it on battery size and seating comfort, and the charging speed at 400 kW is competitive with anything in this class.