It was somewhere around Brora, on the edge of Sutherland, that the anxiety began to take hold. With about 60 miles left to go, Matt Allan started to wonder whether the UK’s first 500-mile EV really could make it all the way round on a single charge.
The plan was an obvious one. BMW had launched a car with a 500-mile WLTP range, so it seemed only right to test it on the country’s most famous 500-mile route, Scotland’s North Coast 500. Matt was dubious. BMW, surprisingly, was confident.
A new class of EV
The iX3 is a landmark car for BMW. It’s the first of the Neue Klasse models that will underpin every next-generation BMW, built on brand-new architecture in a low-emissions factory in Hungary.
At its heart is sixth-generation eDrive technology, with new motors and new cells in a whopping 108.7kWh battery. BMW claims a 20% cut in energy consumption over the previous model, and reckons the iX3 will reach CO2 parity with the petrol X3 in under two years. Matt set out to stress all of that to the limit.
Highway to heaven
The NC500 is actually 516 miles long. Starting from a bank of 400kW Ionity chargers on the outskirts of Inverness with a full 100%, the trip computer showed 512 miles of range in Eco mode, and a barely believable 578 miles with the Max Range function switched on.
So confident was Matt that he left Max Range off and headed for lunch on the Applecross peninsula. Then came the Bealach na Bà, the brutal single-track climb with near-20% gradients. Over the six-mile ascent, the iX3 shed 47 miles of predicted range and clawed back just five on the descent.
It set the tone for a three-day trip packed with steep climbs, campervan traffic and an un-Scottish heatwave. Max Range soon became essential, capping the motors, limiting the car to 60mph and, crucially in the sweltering conditions, switching off the air con.
Regen to the rescue
The iX3’s regenerative braking earned its keep along the way. BMW says the new setup can handle up to 98% of deceleration, and over the trip it recouped a remarkable 50kWh, nearly half the battery’s capacity.
Matt also found around 25 chargers along the route, mostly 50kW units concentrated on the east coast, with some awkward gaps on the more rugged west. Worth knowing if you’re planning your own EV adventure.
By Thurso, the numbers read 21% battery and 119 miles of range, with 140 miles still to cover. So did the iX3 make it home to Inverness without plugging in? To find out, you’ll need to read the full feature in the October issue.
Read the full feature on page 18 of the October issue, or catch up with the full story online in BMW iX3 v the NC500. And with the new BMW i3 saloon promising up to 567 miles, there may yet be a rematch.
