I have had the i4 eDrive 40 for about3 month and absolutely love it. Quiet, fun to drive, super quick and very comfortable ride. Drove all the competition, and made the best choice.

I had a Model Y. It was totaled in a car accident. So, unfortunately, I was in the market for a new car. I decided to look around. I peeked into the Kia, VW ID.4, thought about buying another Model Y or even going M3P. I wanted to look into the i4. I stopped by the dealership and they had an eDrive40 with the M-pack on it. I took a standard eDrive40 for a test drive. Performance was on par with my MY. The hatchback is nice. I compare it to splitting the difference between the M3 and MY. I asked if the demo vehicle I drove was for sale. He said they would sell it. About 4K miles on it, decent option pack. I was expecting a much higher number. I paid 56K out the door. 12K less than the one I wanted, and even with the $7500 off, over 7K less than the Model Y (including taxes and fees). I decided right then and there to get it. Later that day, I drove off in my i4. First impressions, much more solid than my Tesla. Interior build quality is far better, I don’t have to worry so much about the paint, the interior is more conventional, the looks are great. Performance is more than I need for day-to-day driving. As I said, about the same as the Model Y. I love the split curved screen and the ability to put nav on the main cluster, the curved screen or the heads up display. And that heads up display is pretty nice, with multiple colors, good readability. Better than my wife’s HUD. For my wife, she prefers the i4 over the MY. I liked everything voice controlled, all digital display. I like that Tesla has few options (paint, interior, hitch, wheels and EAP/FSD) whereas the BMW is more traditional pay for a bunch of stuff model. Things that strike me, the Tesla is smoother for the auto-hold function. It’s easier to add new features to the Tesla, due to the infrastructure. I love the glass roof. But I hated the squeaks and rattles. The completely flat floor on the Tesla was a blessing and a curse. Good for legroom, but if something fell on the floor, it rolled around everywhere and could end up in the driver footwell area. The Tesla shows it’s a clean sheet design, new and innovative. Tesla FSD was finally becoming more valuable, but still not worth the 10K I paid for it, much less the current 15K. The i4 shows its lineage, with a transmission tunnel that does nothing. And no frunk. The i4 has a little more driving character and feedback. The i4 does come with 2 years of free Electrify America charging in 30 minute limits. The infrastructure isn’t nearly as well managed as the SuperChargers. I don’t regret my decision. I really enjoyed the MY, but I think the i4 is going to be a lot of fun.

I have the same spec except I don't have the aero wheels, I have the 18 inch wheels, and its AWESOME!! I'm getting 318 miles with a full 100% charge!!! Thanks, Kyle for the great review!!!

My work colleague has this car, he gets 320 miles out of it at 70mph!!

Hi Kyle, I have had this car since August and I absolutely love it. Will buy this over Tesla any day despite all the charging constraints. Range is fantastic and I have the maxed out trip. Will go for winter tires as it is RWD.

The hatchback makes a big difference for me over the Model 3 trunk. I like the I4!

Love that hatch, wish the Model 3 was like that.

I drove this finally. It's light years more refined than the Model 3.

I borrowed a i4 e40 from the dealership, drove it for about 3 hours, did some errands and now I am getting ready to place an order. I currently drive a 2014 i3 since new, and it’s a great city car. The i4 e40 is a refined i3. Thanks for your videos and reviews. I always look forward to them.

Great review Kyle. If Elon opens up the Tesla Supercharger Network to all brands of electric cars, would you still pick a Tesla model 3 over this BMW at this price point?

We got our e40 msport 3 weeks ago and have averaged 4.0 mi/kWh for the first 1,000 miles. That’s roughly 70/30 highway/local in 50-70 degree mostly fair weather, driving in Eco Pro mode usually 5-10 over the posted limit. So far, we love the car. We tested ID.4, Mache-E, Tesla 3 & Y, Ioniq 5, BMW iX, and EV6 before settling on the i4. Decision based primarily on driving dynamics, build quality, and expected range. We live in MA, so my concession to winter was getting the P-Zero no-season tires instead of performance tires, which seemed unsuited to the pace we drive this car. For bad snow days, we have an Audi B9 S4 fitted with 18” winter tires. The Audi on summer PS4S tires fills the need to drive quickly, and we have a BMW R1250RS if we want to go even quicker. The instantaneous acceleration of the i4 is significantly more than enough to get around bicycles, etc., on narrow lanes, but the car excels in wafting us around in a serene cabin with a very good sound system and wireless Android Auto. Our solar panels at home make more than enough kWh to run the house and charge the car, so the underdeveloped public charging infrastructure is not a concern. Most of our daily excursions are well within the 80% to 20% battery SOC range.

Aside form the introspective car review (thanks by the way), the phone visuals and colors were sharp and vibrant. Love the channel.

Would love to see a range test for the i4 eDrive40 - definitely considering this as my next care after my current lease is up.

I also think the i4 edrive40 is the best option. Great car Nyland did the standard 1000km challenge and range tests and it performed excellently.

Just wanted to pop in to the comments on this year-old video to say that I recently swapped out my Tesla Model 3 for a BMW i4 edrive40 and I couldn't be happier. Wasn't initally crazy with the M50 I'd test driven but then I saw this review and gave the edrive40 a try. Magnificent vehicle; couldn't be happier. Thanks Kyle!!

Nice video as always, what if you put 18 inch wheel on i4 M50? Will it make same mileage? I know weight reduce mileage but isn't 2 electric motor will regen more energy if slow down before turning

I drive a i3 with winter tires in MN and I have no issues. I'd go with the i4 Edrive 40 over a Model 3. The hatchback, plus the refinement of the build is more appealing to me. Thanks for the review. Looking forward to a i4 Edrive 40 70mph range test.

Your smile at the end says it all! Thanks for the review!

I have the M50 since August and love it. However I needed AWD and totally agree with your assessment that most people would prefer something like an i4 xdrive 40 over the M50. I do have the 19“ tires and get an EPA rating of 272miles similar to the car you drove. Like you explained in your excellent i7 review in most driving conditions the M50 is rear wheel drive only.

Not sure I agree with the charging infrastructure comment as a reason to choose a Tesla over this. I come across far more lvl 3 charging locations than I do supercharger.

I was looking towards an i4 40e, but based on what they did with the price this year I am starting to look towards a Polestar 3. It is not that much more expensive, you get a lot more car and equipment and you don’t need a certain spec to make the nose less ugly. Besides that my latest BMW dealer experience was terrible. I am in the camp of : never a Tesla.

Dude we have been getting by with RWD and FWD in Northern Sweden in the Arctic Circle for centuries, just get good winter tyres. They make more for the driveability than AWD does. A FWD Volvo V70 with studded winter tyres will fair way better in the snow and on ice than an AWD Volvo V70 with shitty all-season tyres.

Entry level in the UK is the i4 35 and is available now, I test drove one last week and placed my order straight away, the only problem is the waiting time is up to a year, much too long, hopefully it will be worth the wait 😀

How does this compare to the EQE? Is the price premium worth it for a cruiser?

While some will say this statement is wrong but speed isn’t everything when the trade off is significantly reduced range. If you want absolute speed get a hellcat or the Model S Plaid or something similar. I suspect that many potential buyers of an electric autos seek a reasonable balance of speed vs. range.

Couldn’t wait to locate one of these BMW i40. Went with the Tesla 3 ordered earlier this year but this looks great.

Is this silver paint a custom color? Cannot find silver in the configuration tool..

I was in the market for the i4, Model 3 and Polestar. And let me tell you that a Tesla HAS to be a lot cheaper because it's a toy car. Plastic seats, missing important features the overall feel is just sad. I felt like a goldfish in a gold fish glass because of the extremly low dashboard. The missing features like ventilated seats, a stable good working autopilot, Android Auto, flexible adjustable speed limit and HUD hurt. Why can't a Model 3 have them? It's like they're stuck in 2005. And I was shocked of how extremly loud the road noise was. But I'm coming from an Audi and had some expectations. The Model 3 should never ever be called a luxury car. It's a budget car with a budget feel. For that, the price is ok, hence, it's ok that the i4 costs a lot more.

This car sold me on the first drive like the Tesla Model 3 did. So there I was with three options: Tesla Model 3, BMW i4 eDrive 40 and waiting for the NIO ET5. So in Germany, the price difference between the Model 3 LR and the i4 eDrive40 is not that extreme. The i4 is just about 3k more in my configuration. Yes, the Model 3 LR has more power and faster acceleration, but has no HUD, no 360 Camera, no real Blind Spot monitoring, no hatchback trunk, no traffic sign recognition and so on. So they are very compareable in price. The NIO ET5 will may be a very good car, but with everything currently going on in global politics and China in particular, I'm a little bit sceptical about whats to come on that front. Also, NIO wasn't able to release a price for the ET5 in time until I had to order the i4, if I wanted one.

I tested it the other day and it was just like driving the g20 but faster and more silent. Hate to say but there’s not much reasons to buy ice cars anymore. Waiting time is about a year if you spec one yourself.

What did the ram in the background think?

Love your channel. I have a 2023 I4 35 and absolutely love it but buyer beware the range is rarely over 200 miles which is disappointing. I turned in a 550I and while I miss a little more room I absolutely l love the way this car drives and of course the regular bmw dials and buttons and impressive screen. The 19 inch wheels certainly dont help range.

Probably time to update this video. The charging infrastructure for non-Tesla vehicles has improved significantly. Comparing this to a Model 3 (which these days is admittedly a lot cheaper), is really not a legitimate comparison. The interior quality of this is leagues ahead of a Model 3. It has a heads up display option, and an actual speedometer etc in front of you with real buttons, stalks, etc, and it’s so much more solid than the pre-Hyland Model 3. If I was cross shopping these and could afford this, it would e a complete no-brainer in favor of this.

The hatchback on this car makes it instantly superior to the Model 3.

Very fair comparison. This is practical intel.

What color spec is this ?

AWD is table stakes for me. I won't buy a vehicle that's 2WD anymore. I ended up getting the M50 as a result.

The i4 edrive35 is indeed available in the USA and has already been released

The 35 is available. I saw one at the local BMW dealer in Salem OR today.

Did not know this was a rear wheel. Wow. I think I might test drive this. Thanks! Still do not like the grille though.

what color is this car?

trying to decided between tesla model y performance or BMW i4 drive 40

You get two years free charging w electrify America and if you live In cali you can opt for a car pool sticker. I prefer the styling and looks of the I4 compared to the model 3 and inside is way nicer.

This is the one to have imho, nice spec on this one too.

You ask and you shall receive. X-Drive 40i is available

With the "New Klass" 3 series EV coming soon... not sure I want to spend my $$ on a EV swapped ICE platform when a purpose built EV platform is coming soon. Thoughts?

as of april 2023 i4-35s are on the lot in silicon valley

I love the idea of a pure RWD EV. And I live in Canada! Is stability/traction control easily defeatable?

Thanks!

Please do a range test in the 18" wheel i4 edrive40.

Great car, jut a shame the i4 derive 40 M Sport doesn’t include the Harman K hifi, you have to by the tech pack, unlike the iX where is its included in the equivalent spec.

Having a real hard time deciding between this and a loaded 300e.

I've been waiting for M50 allocation for a while but I'm still wavering due to reviews like this. Catch is that I will definitely be driving in snow... In and around Fort Collins and up to Colorado ski areas. Haven't seen definitive info on how RWD electric vehicles perform. Everyone knows that ICE RWD is dicey but with the weight evenly destributed, how do RWD EVs do in snow?

When will you review the Cadillac lyriq

Price difference to the M50 is only 3600€ in Germany, if you put the same options inside. The difference between 40 and 50 looks much bigger because the 50 has a lot more options.

I have i4 e drive 40 RWD and Tesla model 3 AWD but to be honest, i will take BMW any day over my Tesla. BMW does feel like driving a traditional car which is fully electric but Tesla is more into class of EV driving.

The e35 is coming to Canada. It's on their website. Not sure about the US.

M50 is hands down better than the Tesla! The overall built quality and tech and appearance is just awesome!!

I love the hatchback.

What's the range with optional 18" wheels?

It make strong happy moment for me.

Build quality plus not wanting to support Elon (who, imho, has gotten way too big for his britches) puts me in the BMW camp. I have an i4 M50 on order.

Slapping a licence plate on the front will definitely tone that grill down for those who don’t particularly like the look.

I’m trading in my model y for the 50. I can’t wait….

Don't forget the Polestar 2, Kyle.

I disagree with you Kyle, this car is way better than model 3. The only missing is self-driving and charging (which is improving). And bmw has the tax credit and a dealer gave me $7k discount so I think it's a steal in comparison to Tesla.

Wish they’d build an i4 2-door! All I want is a RWD/AWD 2-door EV with over 200 miles range. Mini SE unfortunately is only FWD and around 100 miles of range.

Dude you look like Jobs from certain angles

Probably better with the M Sport suspension.

I totally agree that BMW should offer an xDrive40.

They now have an i4 X40 with just under 400 hp and AWD.

The curved display is extra?

BMW superior build quality is worth the extra $10k.

It’s nice toooo

Wish BMW made this an AWD model instead of forcing you to get the M50, which is tremendously fun but at the cost of range.

blinker fluid is the most expensive option again? 🤪

Nah, if you live in areas with mountain roads, frequent rain or snow, AWD is the way to go. Note: eDrive with Xdrive AWD is one motor, not 2. Re M50 power abruptness: a slightly softer spring in the gas pedal or longer travel design for the power would remedy that. Ditto for the automated driving - build in some slightly slower initiation to smooth the response. Rides much better than the Teslas.

Tires def get fizzier in turns on the M50 version

If (and only if) you have no intention to be a maniac with your BMW i4 on a regular basis, the E40 is the better choice than the M50. The front motor of the M50 isn't on all the time-- the M50 will cruise on the rear motor in order to conserve range and only engage the front wheels if the situation demands it (inclement weather or maniac time). Which means, for long range cruising the front motor is dead weight.

"It still has 10, 000 worth of options" 🤣

ive had a Model S and 3...and i think im done. Time for something new. I will come back when they get better build quality.

Kyle, great summary. Just for a minute remember that you're not selling Teslas, because there are critical things you always leave out with Teslas, and specifically the Model 3 in comparison to the i4. First, I'm not an unqualified commentator. I have four friends with various Teslas, and I've spent countless hours in each, especially driving 4.5 hours to SLC to get service (not the normal 2.5 hours due to charging charging charging. FYI, you can't drive 93mph with mountain passes in any EV without killing your range. 1) Lack of Dealerships: I don't don't anyone who would drive 1.5 or like us 4.5 hours to get service at their nearest car dealership Tesla store, especially given the initial Tesla build quality with things like water in the lights and cracked sunroofs. I'm sure the quality will go up eventually. But the Model 3 has had six model years to fix it. Quality aside, you're lucky that you only live 1/2 a charge way from Denver. 2) Price: From what I can configure, if you spec your i4 40 like the Model 3 (plastic, no heads up, etc.), the pricing is: $60, 085 vs $55,490. However, that doesn't include full auto pilot, which then makes the price $64,490. However, it's doubtful that until the lawsuits are over, from this point on Full Autopilot probably won't get engaged. That said, you CAN option the i4 to $67,000. But that includes things you'll never get on a Tesla like actual leather, heads-up, Laser headlights, a decent stereo, wireless charging, hot spot, ventilated seats, Apple Car Play, Alexa, etc. 3) BIG point: the Model 3 does not qualify for the $7500 tax credit, so I get sick of Tesla acting like it's a discount. They even show the price with the tax credit. IT's a tax credit. Not a discount. 4) Charging: The Tesla charging network is awesome, but expensive. Our last grueling trip to SLC from Idaho Falls for one of our many Tesla warranty claims or services cost over $23 each way in supercharging fees. Tesla has had a huge head start in developing its charging network. They had no other options if they wanted to sell their cars. The others will catch up and surpass very soon, as there will be tons of new EVs coming. Then the silver lining will be that there will probably be charging price competition amongst the players. I even read that Elon has intelligently decided to sell harnesses for non-Teslas to charge at superchargers--at least in Europe at first. It's worth noting that Idaho Falls only has one supercharger. One. The nearest next is an hour away. Not cool. That means you have to spend $2000 to install the Tesla charger at home, and it is not very fast. $2000 more??? Please correct me if I've gotten anything wrong. Otherwise a great review. Thanks Kyle.

Is this car as low as a model 3 tesla

I have i40 eDrive40 w/ Msport package and 19” wheels. U wanna test is for a week or so. I would need an EV in kind

Hardly the cheap seats but thanks for reviewing the entry level i4 BIG GRILL BEV #bgb

or they rarely need to super charge.

When you say, "Let's jump in and go for a ride" at 3:04 in the vid, and then don't actually go for a ride until 10:23 in the video, my interest wanes. I hope this helps.

i4 by far better. The build quality is another level. tesla model 3 too common now. Not attractive. Will be ordering an i4.

The shame is you can’t get any ADAS features on the eDrive40 right now. Have to move up to the M50. Kyle’s manufacturer-provided eDrive40 may have ADAS, but you can’t spec it that way right now.

Driver assistance for e40 on i4 isn’t available in market to buy for 2023 model year, why is BMW showcasing a spec to media which customers can’t buy?

7:10 For 2024 they have done just what you asked. xDrive40 is now an option.

I hate the piped in sounds so very much in these. I drove an i4 M50 over the weekend and the sound was the worst part.

in regards to the price difference over a Tesla - BMW is a step above Tesla. just a reality, have to pay for the badge not to mention the higher quality as discussed.

One word: Sportback

The middle ground e40 AWD is in the 2025 lineup though ...

BMW makes better EVs than VAG. More complete, more cohesive, more reliable.

I really like this car. and let me preface this by saying I’m fully aware of why someone would want a 60k rwd bmw i4 (which is basically like you said a live able spec and it’s options you “need”) over a model 3 performance even. Bmw has much better build quality, way better customer service and loyalty to customers as well as interior quality and status. However, For the same price the model 3 performance does 3.1 where the bmw is still competing performance wise with the rwd lfp model 3 in the 5 second range. I’ve driven the lfp rwd model 3 and the performance and imo the rwd is plenty fast therefore the rwd I4 would be as well but now the I4 is in that price range where I’d rather stick with tesla quality and get the best performance for the money with my EV. And the M50 is much more expensive than a Model 3 performance, especially with the liveable safety features and options like heated seats. However, I’d get an IX before a Model Y tbh. I’ve seen one on the road so far here in socal and wow is it smaller on the road than pictures make it look 😂. But wow did it look good 😅

I found the car small with a cabin that's too snug. The sunroof really cuts into your illusion of space. My lingering impression is that I felt cramped. In addition, the eDrive35 seems to be the model they're pushing, not the 40. Neither get the EV tax credit.

they increased the price by 10k in canada 3 months after launch, not a god value anymore here

The exact care you got there is 87'000€ in France...