BMW I4 M50 test drive

[dmattingly23]

I currently drive an m3 f80 and have an i4m50 on order. It is supposed to finish production in early sept (We’ll see). I’m thinking about canceling the order or driving the m50 while I wait for an allocation to order a taycan 4s or ct4. Obviously the taycan will be $40-50k more expensive and with a fall 2022 delivery of the bmw I would get the tax credit so the difference in cost would be even greater. That said….the taycan just looks so much better to me. What to do?

Sponsored

 

[TDinDC]

I currently drive an m3 f80 and have an i4m50 on order. It is supposed to finish production in early sept (We’ll see). I’m thinking about canceling the order or driving the m50 while I wait for an allocation to order a taycan 4s or ct4. Obviously the taycan will be $40-50k more expensive and with a fall 2022 delivery of the bmw I would get the tax credit so the difference in cost would be even greater. That said….the taycan just looks so much better to me. What to do?

If you are asking this question, you already know . . .

 

[Mr.Smith]

I currently drive an m3 f80 and have an i4m50 on order. It is supposed to finish production in early sept (We’ll see). I’m thinking about canceling the order or driving the m50 while I wait for an allocation to order a taycan 4s or ct4. Obviously the taycan will be $40-50k more expensive and with a fall 2022 delivery of the bmw I would get the tax credit so the difference in cost would be even greater. That said….the taycan just looks so much better to me. What to do?

If you don't have budget restrictions, get the Taycan

 

[proficient_mathematician]

I currently drive an m3 f80 and have an i4m50 on order. It is supposed to finish production in early sept (We’ll see). I’m thinking about canceling the order or driving the m50 while I wait for an allocation to order a taycan 4s or ct4. Obviously the taycan will be $40-50k more expensive and with a fall 2022 delivery of the bmw I would get the tax credit so the difference in cost would be even greater. That said….the taycan just looks so much better to me. What to do?

A casual glance at the two cars will give you an answer…

 

[dmattingly23]

A casual glance at the two cars will give you an answer…

This is so true.

The Taycan sedan is one of the best looking cars on the road.

 

[iipabrewer]

I currently drive an m3 f80 and have an i4m50 on order. It is supposed to finish production in early sept (We’ll see). I’m thinking about canceling the order or driving the m50 while I wait for an allocation to order a taycan 4s or ct4. Obviously the taycan will be $40-50k more expensive and with a fall 2022 delivery of the bmw I would get the tax credit so the difference in cost would be even greater. That said….the taycan just looks so much better to me. What to do?

I was in the same boat a few months back waiting on my i4 m50 order. Sadly BMW is having a really rough time with the chip shortage (e.g. passenger lumbar, handsfree truck, rumors of driver assist and parking assist deletions) and according to the forums were deleting too many important options from customer's builds. I bit the bullet and bought a 4S and never looked back. Its a much better looking car and is very comparable to the M50 in performance plus I think the drive/handling is much better in the Taycan. Hopefully this upcoming PCM update will fix some of the issue with their technology (e.g. a little better range, wireless AA and spotify support in my case). If you can afford the price hit, go for the Taycan!

 

[dmattingly23]

I was in the same boat a few months back waiting on my i4 m50 order. Sadly BMW is having a really rough time with the chip shortage (e.g. passenger lumbar, handsfree truck, rumors of driver assist and parking assist deletions) and according to the forums were deleting too many important options from customer's builds. I bit the bullet and bought a 4S and never looked back. Its a much better looking car and is very comparable to the M50 in performance plus I think the drive/handling is much better in the Taycan. Hopefully this upcoming PCM update will fix some of the issue with their technology (e.g. a little better range, wireless AA and spotify support in my case). If you can afford the price hit, go for the Taycan!

Congrats and sounds like a great decision.
I agree 100% on the looks being much better.
I might have found a base Taycan that has most of the options I’ve been looking for so may get that to hold me over. The good news is I can get the tax credit.

 

[that.mr.smith]

This is nice comparison to see, as if I do not go for a taycan I already have had my head turned by the i4M50!

And what a coincidence on username!

 

[andrew1cohen]

Not exactly relevant, but I have an M4 Hard top convertible, 2015. I love it, but was planning on selling it when I get my Taycan (GTS). When lat at the BMW dealer, my service guy suggested I keep the M4 --He said they could not give the 2022 M4 convert away due to the ugly front end and the soft top. But if a used 2015-2021 M4 convertible is for sale, it's gone within the week.

 

[ciaranob]

Not exactly relevant, but I have an M4 Hard top convertible, 2015. I love it, but was planning on selling it when I get my Taycan (GTS). When lat at the BMW dealer, my service guy suggested I keep the M4 --He said they could not give the 2022 M4 convert away due to the ugly front end and the soft top. But if a used 2015-2021 M4 convertible is for sale, it's gone within the week.

Well I hate to re-enforce that but I sold my M4 vert (2014 build, 2015 model year - the first Euro delivery M4 Convertible to the US no less) for $45K ca. 2 months ago with an offer literally on the day I posted it online - should have asked for more!!

The whole 'grill-gate' thing is what moved me away from BMW TBH, despite an otherwise awesome car - that and amazingly w/o question, the most trouble free vehicle I had owned in 30 years!.

 

[Luminated67]

The most important question - what is the REAL range ??

The real world range depends on the wheel and rubber size, if 19" wheels then 290-300 miles is very much on the cards but with 20" wheels (wider rears) 240 miles is 100% confirmed because that's what I am seeing.

 

[Luminated67]

I test drove the i4 M50 the other day and had a very different experience. Firstly, it’s not built on a dedicated EV platform and it shows. No trunk and a huge transmission tunnel are obvious trade offs.

The rear space is it's biggest issue for me, the wife is only 5'4" and she is fine but anyone 5'8" and above will struggle on long journeys. The boot is decent being a hatchback which was the main reason the brother ordered the Cross Turismo instead of the regular model which is too small of an opening IMO.

Next, I found the interior rather bland and the infotainment, while responsive was full of useless graphics and from a UX standpoint I’d say poorly optimized. The climate controls were especially bad imo.

Having lived with the new iDrive8 for 6 months I actually rate it brilliant, plus the voice command function is excellent. Interior is standard BMW so if you aren't a fan then you never will be, the Taycan is by far the more interesting but not a fan of the way you control the air vents, who at Porsche thought that was a good idea.

The drive was fine though. Plenty of power but not much in terms of steering feel. Brake pedal was a low point, especially the transition from regen to physical braking was very noticeable.

Steering and brakes are typical current day BMW, you get use to both but nowhere near as good as Porsche. Performance is very good though, coming from a 2020 M5 Competition my i4M50 feels more violent when you press the GO pedal, looking forward to comparing with the brother's 4S to see which is quicker.

And I hate the front grille. The iX is much worse though but at least that car has a much more interesting interior.

I hated the grill at first but it has grown on me.

The i4 would be much more compelling if it was made into a proper M-car! If I had to pick I’d probably go for a Tesla Model 3 Performance or even a Polestar 2.

I have very limited experience of Tesla, I only know of two friends through work that have them, both the Model3 performance and both have serious build quality issues so frankly if you would pick one of these over the i4 I think you are nuts. The Polestar though is a really nice motor, great interior and built like a tank.

 

[Zcd1]

Had a quick test drive of an i4M50 a while back.

Takeaways:

It's a nice car. Slightly smoother and quieter than my TM3, but also not as much fun to drive. Interior quality is "fine", IMO - nothing super special. Personally found all the colors and splashy graphics of the iDrive system to be distracting, but that's a preference thing.

Rear seat ingress and egress is compromised by the small door openings, and the space back there is lacking. The huge transmission tunnel hump doesn't help with the feeling of spaciousness.

Visibility is okay, but the cowl/beltline is high, which might bother some people. I found it to be a bit claustrophobic.

Others have mentioned that the throttle response seemed somewhat "dialed down". I felt the same thing but am not sure of the cause. Could be the type of motors used, could be the comparatively high curb weight, could be that the acceleration is programmed to mimic an ICEV's. In any case, this was noticeable and to me, was a demerit.

Once it ramps up to full acceleration, it's very fast indeed. It feels like a car that runs 2-4 mph faster at the end of a 1/4 mile than my car, and it is. Thing is, that extra power doesn't really make itself felt until well beyond legal speeds, so it's sorta useless.

Others have also mentioned that the i4, even the M50 version, isn't really "playful", and that it doesn't seem like a driving enthusiast's choice. I would concur. It's a compact luxury sedan with a decent turn of speed.

As a first EV sedan from BMW, it's a decent effort, but I personally won't be buying one.

 

[Luminated67]

Had a quick test drive of an i4M50 a while back.

Takeaways:

It's a nice car. Slightly smoother and quieter than my TM3, but also not as much fun to drive. Interior quality is "fine", IMO - nothing super special. Personally found all the colors and splashy graphics of the iDrive system to be distracting, but that's a preference thing.

Rear seat ingress and egress is compromised by the small door openings, and the space back there is lacking. The huge transmission tunnel hump doesn't help with the feeling of spaciousness.

Visibility is okay, but the cowl/beltline is high, which might bother some people. I found it to be a bit claustrophobic.

Others have mentioned that the throttle response seemed somewhat "dialed down". I felt the same thing but am not sure of the cause. Could be the type of motors used, could be the comparatively high curb weight, could be that the acceleration is programmed to mimic an ICEV's. In any case, this was noticeable and to me, was a demerit.

Once it ramps up to full acceleration, it's very fast indeed. It feels like a car that runs 2-4 mph faster at the end of a 1/4 mile than my car, and it is. Thing is, that extra power doesn't really make itself felt until well beyond legal speeds, so it's sorta useless.

Others have also mentioned that the i4, even the M50 version, isn't really "playful", and that it doesn't seem like a driving enthusiast's choice. I would concur. It's a compact luxury sedan with a decent turn of speed.

As a first EV sedan from BMW, it's a decent effort, but I personally won't be buying one.

I would agree with this, it’s AWD setup isn’t rear bias enough to be steered by the throttle… much like an Audi quattro. I spent years driving performance Audi too so for me I am familiar with this and doesn’t bother me. Actually I can’t recall the last time I drove anywhere with real purpose, I do know that I can follow just about anything else with similar performance down any twisty road so it’s actual handling isn’t the issue.

 

[Zcd1]

I would agree with this,…,I do know that I can follow just about anything else with similar performance down any twisty road so it’s actual handling isn’t the issue.

No doubt about that - it’s plenty capable, just not as much fun as it might have been.

I’m sure the inevitable “Full M-car” BMW EV will address the fun factor aspect.

Sponsored