Used BMW iX3 2021-present review

The spaceship look – what do you make of it? Many electric SUVs embrace it as a means of standing out and emphasising the futuristic nature of the vehicle. It's not for everyone, though, and the BMW iX3 understands this.

We wouldn't blame you for confusing it with the conventionally powered BMW X3. They look almost identical, bar some badges and different front grilles. This isn't a coincidence, either. Unlike the imposing BMW iX and the quirky BMW i3 2013-2022, the iX3 wasn't built from the ground up to be electric – it's just a variant of the X3.

It's only really when you get on the accelerator that it becomes abundantly clear you have electric power moving you along (via the rear wheels). Officially, you can go up to 285 miles on a charge and performance is instantaneous, punchy and unsurprisingly quiet – on the other hand, M Sport Pro cars get an eerie electronic soundtrack dreamed up by German film score composer Hans Zimmer to accompany acceleration (in Sport mode).

Sure, a Tesla Model Y Performance will eat it for breakfast, but the iX3's 0-62mph time of 6.8sec isn't bad at all. What's more, the iX3 is better to drive than the Y, overall.

For a car as heavy and tall as the iX3, it has remarkable agility and composure in the bends, as well as a surprising lack of body lean. The well-weighted steering also aids confidence and the end result is one of the best, most polished driving experiences of any car in its class.

You can adjust the stiffness of the suspension, tightening things up for country road driving or softening them for long motorway jaunts. It’s firmer than the wafty Audi E-Tron, but it deals with bumps more than well enough, both around town and on faster roads. In fact, anyone who suffers from car sickness might prefer the iX3’s well-tied-down feel.

You certainly won't get sick of the iX3's interior. True, it perhaps isn’t quite as glamorous as what you'll find inside the E-tron or Mercedes EQC, but it feels really well put together and has lots of dense, squishy materials in most of the important places. Only a couple of patches of hard, scratchy plastic – around the starter button, for example – let it down a little.

BMW is known for leading the pack when it comes to infotainment and the iX3 is another example of that, with the latest version of the brilliant iDrive system. The 10.25in touchscreen display can be operated using a rotary controller between the front seats, which is much less distracting than rival systems. You can also use touch, a series of set gestures or the natural speech voice control function, which works surprisingly well (most of the time).

On top of built-in sat-nav, bluetooth and DAB radio, all versions of the iX3 come with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone mirroring, and wireless phone-charging, while top-tier M Sport Pro versions also get an upgraded Harman Kardon sound system.

Upon the iX3's 2021 launch, the model was available in Premier Edition and Premier Edition Pro trims. These soon transitioned into (similarly specced) M Sport and M Sport Pro – these two have since become more common on the used market.

Entry-level M Sport gives you plenty of luxuries, including 19in alloy wheels, a powered tailgate, a panoramic sunroof, leather seats (heated in the front), a 12.3in digital driver display and parking sensors.

Range-topping M Sport Pro trim gets you 20in aerodynamic alloys, a head-up display (which projects current speed, the speed limit and sat-nav directions on to the windscreen), auto-dipping headlights and keyless entry. That’s alongside a fancier sound system, lumbar support and IconicSounds acceleration sound effects.

Take a seat in the front of the iX3 and you’ll be treated to plenty of head and leg room, even if you're over six feet tall. The interior is also wide enough that you won’t find your shoulders rubbing those of your passenger.

It’s good news in the rear too, because despite the fact that a big battery has, in effect, been shoehorned under the floor, there’s as much space in the iX3 as in the regular X3. That means two tall people can sit quite comfortably in the back of the car, with leg and head room to spare.

You can recline the outer rear seats to give a more laid-back seating position, a feature that isn’t available in the iX3’s direct rivals.

The main boot area is identical to the X3’s, which means it’s slightly smaller than an E-Tron’s but bigger than the one in the EQC. The iX3 loses a bit of underfloor storage compared with the X3, but there’s still room for the charging cable. All iX3 models have 40/20/40 split-folding rear seats.

If you're interested in finding a used BMW iX3 or any of the other cars mentioned here, head over to our Used Cars For Sale pages to find lots of cars listed at great prices.

A 2021 BMW iX3 should set you back around £30,000. Expect around 30,000 miles on its clock and a car in good condition. It'll likely be a Premier Edition or a Premier Edition Pro. That's a useful saving on the new price, currently around £60,000.

M Sports rise to around £32,000. They'll be a year newer, though, as will be M Sport Pros – have a budget of around £35,000 for one of these. New, they'd set you back around £64,000.

Nearly new 2023/2024 models are generally available for upwards of £40,000.

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Charging

The iX3 matches the 150kW maximum charging rate of Audi E-tron, meaning that a 0-80% charge can be completed in around 34 minutes. The only trouble is that there aren’t many public CCS charging points in the UK capable of delivering that much power. Any time you need to travel more than 200 miles, you’re likely to find yourself plugging in to a 50kW charger on a motorway, and that will take just over an hour for a 10-80% charge.

Insurance and servicing

Insurance groups range from 44 to 45 (out of a possible 50), depending on your chosen specification. When looking at a 2022 iX3 M Sport, we were quoted £540 for two services through BMW.

There's just one battery and electric motor available with the BMW iX3. For now, it's a 80kWh (74kWh of which is useable) battery and and a single electric motor (driving the rear wheels) or nothing. That's not to say we're unimpressed, because this set-up is very good.

Trim-wise, it's a toss up between Premier Edition Pro and M Sport Pro – we're discounting Premier Edition and M Sport, because you can get their Pro counterparts for similar money.

A strong argument can be made for Premier Edition Pro being the better choice, with it being cheaper by around £5000. However, M Sport Pro means a newer car (by at least a year) and there are a lot more of them to choose from on the used market.

Our favourite BMW iX3: M Sport Pro

The BMW iX3's main pair of rivals are the Audi E-Tron and Mercedes EQC. Having arrived in 2019, both cars have been around for longer than the iX3 has, hence you'll see used examples go for less money than iX3s tend to.

The E-tron, especially, is somewhat of a newfound bargain, with our recommend '55' version going for around £28,000. You'll need a bit more to pick up a EQC, although it still undercuts the iX3 – prices start at around £35,000.

Another rival worth considering is the Jaguar I-Pace. It's almost as good to drive as the iX3 and it's generally cheaper, too, but there are valid concerns surrounding its reliability.

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If you're interested in finding a used BMW iX3 or any of the other cars mentioned here, head over to our Used Cars For Sale pages to find lots of cars listed at great prices.