[electric_journey]

It’s funny that just over 2 years on we are all reliving our IX experiences.
I read many times Nomotesla’s comments about BMW abandoning pre MY2023 IX owners by selling dead ended cars fitted with inferior MGU21 hardware which restricted any of that generation vehicle being upgraded to IDrive 8.5. And for sure those owners have missed out on the significant upgrades to IDrive and MyBMW App.

So I fully respect the cautions issued.

However, the IX3 NK is looking very compelling.

I will lose my IX M60 when I retire in 6m and I’m thinking of my next car I will purchase.

24/25 IXs have depreciated so much that they are looking great value but the thought of 350/400 mile range in an IX3 is VERY appealing.

For sure it won’t be as Rolls Royce like as the IX, but to be honest I’ve not read a negative review.

My concerns are cabin space and airiness - I’m a big guy and there’s no denying an IX3 NK will be a smaller vehicle on the inside compared to the classy IX …. So I won’t put my deposit down right now until I’ve sat in this new NK EV.

@Croddlebopper Who knows? The game has moved on. The NK iX3 may be just as quiet as the iX or even quieter. We won't know until the cars hit the road (after all, it has yet to go into formal production) - The amount of money BMW have put into NK is unbelievable.

The digital white makes it seem very airy. I'm also a big and tall guy (and there were even bigger and taller guys at IAA who were sitting in the car) - I think BMW have done well by now making the battery part of the structure of the car, so that helps to enable X5 room in an X3 sized vehicle. The iX interior dimensions are supposed to be somewhere between an X5 and X7, hence it feels so spacious.

Having said that, I recently met a chap who was 6'4" who swapped his iX for a Tesla Model Y (Juniper) and claimed he did so because it offers more front and rear legroom than his iX did, even though the Y is shorter. I checked online, and yes, the Model Y has more rear legroom than the iX (40.5 inches vs 38.9 inches)

If you can get to Birmingham this week, then the NK iX3 will be exhibited there at Fleet and Mobility Live so you can sit in one and see if it's any good for you, without having to wait until March 2026 for the dealers to get their demo vehicles.

 

[electric_journey]

iX3 Neue Klasse launch

iX3 Neue Klasse launch

bmwi.bimmerpost.com

"If the 365W HK is the best system they bring to the US market, it would be one of the weakest upgrade audio systems they have put in any car in the last few decades. It would be on par with their typical base systems. It would likely be worst in class in a highly competitive segment."

It's not just me 😄 that kind of audio is a show stopper for me regardless of the rest. I will how the Mercedes GLC with Burmeister will perform. Before that we will know what the iX3 really is.

@micleg It's weak on paper. I will wait until I hear one to see just how "weak" it is in the real world.

 

[Croddlebopper]

I have not gone through all the permutations of the IX3 but your setup looks pretty good to me - however the prices as you suggest are far from incentivised! 😞
… and the red hasn’t been released yet?

But thank you for the info.

Maybe it’s time to think with my head rather than my heart and a late low mileage M60 is going to be my best move as it is fully loaded and has already lost a ton value ie 50%!

I’ll need to get a decent warranty as we know the IX is pretty solid, but when things go wrong they can be VERY expensive to repair …. Especially that Heat Pump!😱

Thank you again.

 

[electric_journey]

I have not gone through all the permutations of the IX3 but your setup looks pretty good to me - however the prices as you suggest are far from incentivised! 😞
… and the red hasn’t been released yet?

But thank you for the info.

Maybe it’s time to think with my head rather than my heart and a late low mileage M60 is going to be my best move as it is fully loaded and has already lost a ton value ie 50%!

I’ll need to get a decent warranty as we know the IX is pretty solid, but when things go wrong they can be VERY expensive to repair …. Especially that Heat Pump!😱

Thank you again.

@Croddlebopper Yeah, Fire Red can be ordered from March. It's weird how they are staggering the release of certain features.

Regarding extending the warranty on the iX, I looked into doing that for my iX, as I'll be keeping it on a daily hire basis once my lease (and factory warranty) expires. I've been quoted £752 a year for the top level of BMW warranty (including roadside assistance) with £0 excess. If I choose £250 excess, that drops down to £447 a year. There is no way I would run an electric BMW like the iX without the extended BMW warranty once the 3 years are up.

Given the NK iX3 (and all future NK updated/new models) are going to revolve so much around software, I don't think BMW are going to leave owners high and dry like they did before, as it would seriously damage their reputation given how the NK iX3 is likely to be a big seller, and how software is going to be the aspect that car companies compete on.

Furthermore, if you are a tech person and find value in always having the latest tech, I reckon BMW will focus a lot of energy on improving and updating NK cars in years to come, and will do little to improve or update older cars with iDrive 8.0 or 8.5. I like the idea of being able to start a Zoom video call from the NK iX3 (using the car's interior camera) when parked but as soon as you put it into D, then it turns off the video and keeps it audio only.

Yeah, it does sound like where you are in life, that picking up a heavily depreciated M60 would be the most "sensible" decision. Were we born to always be "sensible" though?

 

[exxxviii]

It's weak on paper. I will wait until I hear one to see just how "weak" it is in the real world.

Given it’s about half the power of a typical BMW HK system and less than one-quarter the power of the B&W, it’s highly likely to be weak in real life. DSP and speaker placement cannot solve for lack of power. With such little power, it’s almost impossible to get a balanced output above a background conversational level. On paper, it‘s about the same as the Cadillac Lyriq’s upgraded AKG system (also by Harman International), and that system is a turd with no low end.

 

[electric_journey]

Given it’s about half the power of a typical BMW HK system and less than one-quarter the power of the B&W, it’s highly likely to be weak in real life. DSP and speaker placement cannot solve for lack of power. At that low of, it’s almost impossible to get a balanced outpost above a background conversational level. On Paper, it‘s about the same as the Cadillac Lyriq’s upgraded AKG system (also by Harman International), and that system is a turd with no low end.

@exxxviii Let's see. Time will tell how weak it actually is.

 

[Croddlebopper]

@Croddlebopper Yeah, Fire Red can be ordered from March. It's weird how they are staggering the release of certain features.

Regarding extending the warranty on the iX, I looked into doing that for my iX, as I'll be keeping it on a daily hire basis once my lease (and factory warranty) expires. I've been quoted £752 a year for the top level of BMW warranty (including roadside assistance) with £0 excess. If I choose £250 excess, that drops down to £447 a year. There is no way I would run an electric BMW like the iX without the extended BMW warranty once the 3 years are up.

Given the NK iX3 (and all future NK updated/new models) are going to revolve so much around software, I don't think BMW are going to leave owners high and dry like they did before, as it would seriously damage their reputation given how the NK iX3 is likely to be a big seller, and how software is going to be the aspect that car companies compete on.

Furthermore, if you are a tech person and find value in always having the latest tech, I reckon BMW will focus a lot of energy on improving and updating NK cars in years to come, and will do little to improve or update older cars with iDrive 8.0 or 8.5. I like the idea of being able to start a Zoom video call from the NK iX3 (using the car's interior camera) when parked but as soon as you put it into D, then it turns off the video and keeps it audio only.

Yeah, it does sound like where you are in life, that picking up a heavily depreciated M60 would be the most "sensible" decision. Were we born to always be "sensible" though?

The BMW warranty sounds like a steal TBH so I’ll follow up on that.

I’m also going to check out the M70 lease deals - I’ve read they’re heavily discounted but I’ve not tripped up on any yet.

Sunday morning job 😉👍

 

[electric_journey]

The BMW warranty sounds like a steal TBH so I’ll follow up on that.

I’m also going to check out the M70 lease deals - I’ve read they’re heavily discounted but I’ve not tripped up on any yet.

Sunday morning job 😉👍

@Croddlebopper The cheap M70 deals are via brokers, and my BMW dealer simply said, most likely, BMW would match whatever price a broker is advertising, even if the official BMW lease price is way higher.

Yes, the extended warranty cost for the iX is around 50% or less vs the cost of an extended warranty on a petrol X5.

 

[micleg]

Looking at this video of the coming GLC I realize I will also miss the electric steering wheel adjustment (and automatic movement when exiting the car) if I go from M60 to iX3.

 

[Croddlebopper]

Looking at this video of the coming GLC I realize I will also miss the electric steering wheel adjustment (and automatic movement when exiting the car) if I go from M60 to iX3.

Yes the IX3 NK is fading fast.

@electric_journey has opened my eyes on the real price of the IX3 NK but I had forgotten about the new GLC? But I’m not overly convinced by MB products.

I’ve owned a couple of PHEV Benz’s in the past, and they drive in a very relaxed way but are totally unrewarding to push… and the service capabilities of anything other than an oil change is pretty hopeless in my experience.

I’ll take a look - but with caution.

 

[micleg]

Yes the IX3 NK is fading fast.

@electric_journey has opened my eyes on the real price of the IX3 NK but I had forgotten about the new GLC? But I’m not overly convinced by MB products.

I’ve owned a couple of PHEV Benz’s in the past, and they drive in a very relaxed way but are totally unrewarding to push… and the service capabilities of anything other than an oil change is pretty hopeless in my experience.

I’ll take a look - but with caution.

I am a bit worried about their previous software problems but I have to admit that with my M60 the only problems have been software 😔

 

[NomoTesla]

In fact Nomotesla, I read this week that the Polestar 3 is getting a major cpu upgrade on the latest released vehicles, but unlike BMW, Polestar will also offer a CPU Upgrade Retrofit to existing owners FOC!

if only BMW had been that courageous and loyal 🤷‍♂️

If anyone has the name and email address of the head of BMW NA, I'd love to let them know how I feel about the situation.

 

[electric_journey]

Looking at this video of the coming GLC I realize I will also miss the electric steering wheel adjustment (and automatic movement when exiting the car) if I go from M60 to iX3.

@micleg I'm curious, how many times a day do you need to adjust the steering wheel to a different position? Regarding the automatic movement of the steering wheel when exiting the car, I thought that feature was originally designed for those drivers who were on the obese end of the spectrum.

 

[electric_journey]

Yes the IX3 NK is fading fast.

@electric_journey has opened my eyes on the real price of the IX3 NK but I had forgotten about the new GLC? But I’m not overly convinced by MB products.

I’ve owned a couple of PHEV Benz’s in the past, and they drive in a very relaxed way but are totally unrewarding to push… and the service capabilities of anything other than an oil change is pretty hopeless in my experience.

I’ll take a look - but with caution.

@Croddlebopper The GLC is likely to be comfort oriented, like most of MB non AMG products. The NK iX3 definitely seems focused on enhancing traditional BMW dna of better to drive around a corner than a MB. It all depends upon what you are looking for.

Do check whether the GLC will be able to charge at 400V charging stations from launch, as their CLA at launch was unable to charge at 400V charging stations, and was limited to charging at 800V charging stations, until they could implement a fix.

 

[NomoTesla]

@micleg I'm curious, how many times a day do you need to adjust the steering wheel to a different position? Regarding the automatic movement of the steering wheel when exiting the car, I thought that feature was originally designed for those drivers who were on the obese end of the spectrum.

That would be one out of three Americans at this point lol

Do check whether the GLC will be able to charge at 400V charging stations from launch, as their CLA at launch was unable to charge at 400V charging stations, and was limited to charging at 800V charging stations, until they could implement a fix.

Mercedes does some unbelievably dumb things. Like releasing the flagship EQS without a heat pump and then adding it later. These are not rocket science things. There is a certain successful EV maker out there that has already shown everyone else the way for the last 12 years.