BMW India launched its electric four-door sedan, the i4 eDrive 40 Sport at an introductory price of Rs 69.90 lakh, ex-showroom India. Due to the lack of competition, the i4 eDrive 40 Sport is the only four-door sedan in this segment.
Let’s take a look at what the BMW i4 eDrive 40 Sport offers, including its features, specifications, and accessories.
Let’s talk about design first. The new BMW i4 eDrive 40 Sport started its life as the 4 Series Gran Coupe, an ICE vehicle. BMW saw this platform (the ICE 3 Series) as a good fit and stripped the car of its powertrain and mechanicals and replaced it with lithium-ion batteries on the floor and an electric motor. BMW sedans are known for their involving driving dynamics and the i4 is no different as it has a 50/50 weight distribution to give the car a lower centre of gravity for better handling.
The exterior retains the sporty lines of the Gran Coupe, but BMW has sealed off the kidney grille and tweaked the bumpers a bit to differentiate the EV. The electric sedan features LED lights and DRLs with a follow me home function, 17-inch alloy wheels, rain-sensing wipers and headlights with an auto function, and flush-mounted door handles.
Inside, BMW has equipped the electric sedan with a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, along with a 14.9-inch infotainment system with BMW’s iDrive 8 user interface that offers connected car tech like navigation, personal assistance, park distance control, smartphone connectivity, reverse assistance, wireless charging, and customisable widgets for the infotainment system.
That said, comfort features include three-zone automatic climate control, leather upholstery, wooden inserts, a 3-spoke steering wheel wrapped in leather, an electrically-adjustable steering column and seats with memory functions, power sockets, and sport seats.
Coming to the all-important safety features, the i4 electric sedan gets airbags for the front and side for the driver and passenger, including head airbags for the first and second rows. The car gets ABS, Dynamic Stability control with CBC, ASC, and DTC, a tyre-pressure monitoring system, a first aid kit, crash sensors, and ISOFIX child seat anchors amongst others.
The new i4 eDrive 40 Sport measures slightly taller and longer compared to the 4 Series Gran Coupe, but there are slight changes that can be attributed to the wheels and tweaked bumpers.
The electric motor specifications are what BMW highlights the most, as the i4 eDrive 40 Sport gets the 5th generation BMW eDrive technology. The car gets an 80.7 kWh battery pack with a motor mounted on its rear axle to produce 335 bhp and 430 Nm of peak torque, sending power to its rear wheels via a single-speed fixed ratio automatic transmission.
BMW claims a WLTP-certified range of 590 km, which is more than Mercedes-Benz EQC and Audi e-Tron. The German sedan can charge up to 205 kW, allowing the batteries to charge from nil to 80 per cent in 31 minutes using a 205 kW DC Charger.
The BMW i4 comes with a standard two-year warranty for unlimited kilometres with extended warranty benefits for up to five years. The batteries are covered by a warranty valid for eight years or up to 160,000 kilometres.
Like most premium carmakers, including BMW does to its range, the i4 eDrive 40 gets a host of accessories, including the optional M Aerodynamic Kit, M aerodynamic bumpers, 18 or 19-inch M light-alloy wheels, and more.
The new sedan comes in three colours: Mineral White, Black Sapphire and Skyscraper Grey, while there are options to further customise the exterior and interior.
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