BMW i4

unkel

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117670797#Comment_117670797

The Performance not worth €10k over the LR? Worth every penny in my book. A total bargain. A BMW M3 is €80k more than a 330i 🤣

Obviously if you never want to drive like a lunatic / on a race course, you don't need an M BMW car or a P Tesla car...

UhOh

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117670687#Comment_117670687

Went for the M50. March/April delivery.

UhOh

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117670850#Comment_117670850

Isnt the LR faster in the end? There’s a Carwow video racing them both, Performance wins the 1/4 mile but rolling start from 50 & 70 the LR beats the performance. M3/330i is like comparing apples & oranges, two different machines, unlike the Tesla.

unkel

Model 3 P is a very different machine. I guess you haven't driven one in anger in track mode? It beats a BMW M3 around a track. The extra €10k is a steal. There are only a handful of good value for money EVs at the moment imho, MINI, BMW i3, VW ID.4 base model and siblings and the Tesla Model 3 P. That's about it in my book.

moleyv

I wonder will they do an “i2” of the forthcoming 2 coupe.

rodge123

A quick config of the M50 seems to suggest much better value for money in comparison to the Audi etron GT.

Roughly 85k vs 110k. I’d prefer the look of the etron gt personally.

etron gt is just priced beyond the means of most people where as the i4 while far from cheap, will definitely have a wider market of potential purchasers I’d imagine.

whippet

I just did the config for a i4 40 in Portimao blue MSport. Comes in at around €71k .. really sweet price point when you think of the competition.

carsfan2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117671071#Comment_117671071

Fair play to you to order eight unseen.

Are dealers able to order at this stage considering it’s so far away?

did you agree a price for next March ?

I specced a 40 model to early 70’s which makes the 50model seem attractive for not much more as it seems to come with a lot more kit as standard. From what I can see metallic, leather, memory seats, Harman kardon, head up display are all standard on the 50 model but extra on the 40

UhOh

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117674320#Comment_117674320

Was able to spec it up two weeks ago with the dealer, they had all the options pricing etc. to hand. Not sure how the ordering on their end works but I guess they’re able to ‘book a production slot’ as it were. You know what you’re getting with BMW so didn’t need to see it in the flesh to be convinced. Standard kit is pretty good on the M50 alright.

80sDiesel

Interesting how BMW and Audi are taking a conservative approach to their electric offerings. I had to check recently the rear badge to confirm an Audi e-trim GT.

drumm23

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117673493#Comment_117673493

And it's a hatch - which is a massive plus - I'm never buying a saloon again the hatch is so much more practical ... I'd assumed the Audi was a hatch until I went out to Sandyford to have a look at it.

rodge123

Considering the price of around 85k for a brand new i4 m50, anyone think used m4s may see significant depreciation?

A quick browse shows 5/6 year old ones around the 50k mark.

sk8board

hard to know, but petrolheads don’t buy new M3/4’s, they’re bought by people with lots of money who want to buy ‘a sports car’. Ditto for the 911’s.

it’s those wealthy guys who will buy the i4 m50 now instead of the m3/4, in the same way Porsche aren’t selling any 911’s here any more, but have sold literally 80 taycans this year alone.

petrolheads buy them second hard, and the price of everything is going up at the moment, not down. My own car has been worth €20-23k for about the last 3 years :D

carsfan2

In the context of ever rising car prices, I’m starting to think the M50 version is not a bad deal.

a Kia ev6 or Hyundai ioniq 5 with comparable performance is going to be 70k odd based on the price of the more mundane versions. Model 3 performance is into the 70’s too.

the BMW has a more premium badge and should drive well.

digiman

Dealer rang me back on one today after I was in looking for a price about 6 weeks ago. Was wondering did I want to book one, expecting them in March.

Will wait to see a few reviews before I pull the trigger on one. BMWblog had a review and they were very impressed with the driving of it.

He said prices would be confirmed after the budget in October, I hope they are not expecting a VRT increase on expensive electrics.

carsfan2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117753536#Comment_117753536

Any discussion on prices or discounts available on a preorder?

I can't see the government upping vrt on ev cars at the moment so I guess prices shouldn't rise but who knows?

UhOh

i4 M50 was used as the safety car in the eMoto GP for the first time today, no on board shots unfortunately

UhOh

https://youtu.be/lw8V9fl9FwM

Nice little video on both versions.

v10

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117839306#Comment_117839306

Seen this, I'm very tempted by this car 😬

I was a bit shocked that 20" wheels takes about 100lms from the range !

rocky

544bhp and 'only' 3.9s to 100km/h? Same as current M3 and M4. It'll probably be faster than that in real life, and £11k cheaper than the M3.

Still, Tesla M3P (my current car) is oficially 3.3s to 100km/h from 490bhp

I guess weight is a factor, 2.2 tonnes compared to 1.8 for the M3P

v10

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117839956#Comment_117839956

0.4 tonnes of extra quality IMO. I see the advantages a Tesla has in some areas but I just don't like the look of them inside or out.

3.9 seconds is quicker than you'll ever need in reality.

UhOh

^^^ You’re trying to compare the Tesla Model 3 to the i4, fair enough. However for me I have no interest in the Tesla. Inferior build quality, inferior looks. Maybe if we stuck to discussing the i4 in this thread? I’m sure there must be a Tesla Model 3 thread aswell where you can talk about that car?

unkel

Looks good. What's the starting on the road price in Ireland and when is it available, are these things known yet?

rocky

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117840040#Comment_117840040

I don't doubt the i4 will feel more substantial. And you'd be surprised how often a quick press of the go pedal is used here... granted, 3.9s sounds like enough, especially if it's as I suspect, underrated. And if it is, the i4 should be as fast or a bit quicker in the 50-120 range.

Some people cross shop teslas and bmws, imagine that. I went from a 530i to the M3P, cabin quality seems on par to me. I might go back to bmw, if i4 is good enough.

unkel

Well said rocky. If this car is as good as I think it is, I would love to go back to BMW too. But I'd say the price, particularly of the M50, will be quite high here (compared to Model 3 Performance). I'll quite likely stay in my Model S Performance for the foreseeable future. Which is no punishment 😂

But my car will be 8 years old in July of next year (so out of battery / drivetrain warranty) and out of bumper to bumper warranty in about 6 months time, probably a bit earlier as I will hit the 161k km mark. I'm fairly confident that my local Bosch accredited service center will be able to do any out of warranty work on it though, met with the owners yesterday who told me as much.

PaddyFagan

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117840232#Comment_117840232

Its up on the configurator - I think someone earlier in the thread had ordered one and said there was some "pending any budget changes" element to the quoted price.

I have to be honest I really like the M50, but a bit out of my price range, hoping that a 1-2 year old one might come along at the right time in a few years :D

Paddy

unkel

That's not bad at all. Well less than €10k more for the i4 M50 over the Model 3 Performance. Out of my budget for now though unless I win the lotto. And then I would buy the Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo Turbo S anyway. Or the new Model S Plaid if I wanted a really fast car 😂

UhOh

The pending any budget changes thing was because delivery won’t be until next year. Unlikely EVs will see any change for the worse in October’s budget.

moleyv

White isn’t to my taste. If like to see some other colours

https://youtu.be/iXrtgRMTSTE

UhOh

Acceleration seems decent

https://youtu.be/U16XeuiJ5Eo

v10

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117907059#Comment_117907059

Not sure it seemed quite sub 4 seconds as they claim though 🤔

MightyMunster

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117841424#Comment_117841424

Is the M3P not 66k vs 78k starting price (I'm sure knowing BMW that you'll want a few extras) for the i4 M50. The cheaper one is 15k more than the cheaper Model 3 as well.

Basically it's slower, less economical and you pay 15k for a few extra buttons 😉

UhOh

^^^ why does anyone pay more for a car? Said it before, I’ll say it again. I have zero interest in the Tesla. Inferior build quality, dreadful interior, looks like a Dodge Neon. It might 0.3 faster to 100kph but it’s slower to 160 & 200. The video above can attest to that. I consider myself fortunate that I’m in a position to be able to consider both as my next car, and it’s a no brainer for me. It’s quite laughable the Tesla fanboys thinking Tesla is in the same league as BMW :)

whippet

I was the same when I test drove the model3 last year .. I ended up buying a 330e MSport plus .. I know it's not a BEV but when I was spending that sort of money on a car I couldn't live with the Tesla .. aside from the tablet which I instantly took a dislike to .. it felt cheap and nasty inside . I took the BMW for a spin and it was like comparing apple and oranges inside .. just an all round nicer place to be.

im almost sure when it comes to replacing the 330e it will be with an i4 at this stage

MightyMunster

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117910544#Comment_117910544

Point is it's overpriced, even for a BMW fanboy. My wife has a 3 Series sitting outside and would never take it instead of the Model 3.

Great to see BMW offering EV cars rather than just SUVs as all marques are needed to meet the demand for EVs

v10

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117910544#Comment_117910544

Agree completely. I've no doubt the Tesla is a bit better when it comes to the battery tech, but isn't remotely close anywhere else.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117912457#Comment_117912457

Sure you could argue every BMW is overpriced. You're paying extra for the brand and the premium quality that comes with it. Sure why stop at BMW, Ferrari are seriously overpriced if speed and economy are the important factors ..

whippet

My wife prefers the leaf to the 330e ... but that is just out of pure handiness for short hops etc

the driving seat of any new BMW is a better place to be than a Tesla in my opinion ... and when the option is pure EV it would be a no brainer

stesaurus

I finally got around to visiting a dealer and getting my M50 order in. It will be a while waiting but really looking forward to it.

Interested to know, what the breakdown of orders here are like. i4 standard or M50?

UhOh

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117937777#Comment_117937777

What delivery date have you been given? I heard anyone ordering now is being given a Q4 2022 date.

I ordered the M50

stesaurus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117938828#Comment_117938828

March/April nothing firmer than that. Seems that those in the continent are still able to order for around February.

Dealer mentioned EVs are getting priority but I think they were just talking crap.

NoBread

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117671419#Comment_117671419

Late reply to this I know - but how is the Model 3 Performance very different to the Long range?

Different spec motors on each, what else? There's no suspension difference that I know of, and both are dual motor so AWD. Plus on the track the Model 3 might be quicker than an M3, but that's no indication of what each is like to drive. The Model 3 is so quick out of a corner it makes up for a lot of time, but just look at the Top Gear episode where they take it, the M3, Alfa Quadrofoglio and C63 against each other. The Model 3 is quickest time wise on the track they set up, but it looks awful in comparison to the composure of the Alfa through the tight bends. There's no comparison.

A Stopwatch isn't the only measure of a good car, if it was there'd be no point in an MX5!

Not saying the Model 3 isn't a decent car - it really is, it's a great car to be fair, and a great price - with 10grand discount thanks to subsidies helping the price even more. But I still really struggle to see the massive difference between the Performance versus LR. I probably would pay the extra 10 grand if I was in a position to and could afford it easily, but if I couldn't afford it, I wouldn't be massively upset that I'm missing out either.

80k difference between an M3 and 330i - they're completely different cars to be fair, even most of the body panels are different, before you get to chassis strengthening and suspension/drivetrain. 25k would be a better price difference though, like it would have been 10 years ago!

rocky

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117945545#Comment_117945545

I replied to the Tesla questions in the M3 thread https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117949654#Comment_117949654

NoBread

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117949669#Comment_117949669

Fair points made in the reply.

I'd love to drive the i4 and Model3P back-to-back, it'll be interesting to see how BMW cope with the extra mass of a BEV.

UhOh

I don’t see it mentioned in previous posts but there’s an embargo on i4 reviews until Oct.13th. Should be a plethora of reviews that day like there is with the iX today.

Fitz II

My M3P did 0-60 in 3.2 all the time according to the draggy or 3.4 without the rollout. If yours was doing 4's there is something wrong.

carsfan2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117954687#Comment_117954687

I know you sold your model 3 and are considering/ have ordered a Porsche taycan. Was the Tesla boring? Did you consider i4 at all?

Fitz II

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117955077#Comment_117955077

I4 does nothing for me BMW's styling direction at the moment is "challenging" and I dont want to be challenged, also I have had less than stellar experiance with BMW;s ability to make electronics that work. The tesla was drove well, but its not a drivers car, in fact it does almost anything it can to have you avoid having to interact with the car at all. It does nothing to egg you on. The straight line speed grows old after a while and I really wish tesla looked better and felt more premium. The taycan has the looks and feel, albeit at a price. No car is perfect but unlike at the start, its the regular manufacturers are playing catchup to tesla.

carsfan2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117955118#Comment_117955118

I reckon the i4/4 series gran coupe doesn’t look bad at all. Will wait until I see it in the metal though.

Off topic but did you settle on a spec for the Porsche ?

UhOh

First reviews of the i4 should be out Wednesday morning for anyone who’s interested

digiman

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118004470#Comment_118004470

Really looking forward to seeing these, I think this will be a super car