The iX is BMW’s only current EV that is built on a bespoke EV platform, but that doesn’t translate into it having superior charging specs compared to other models in the lineup. Its ability to charge is still competitive when compared to rivals (although it’s not class-leading), but it does mean there is room for improvement, and BMW recently gave the iX an update that supposedly improves its charging capability.
Still 195kW Charging Rate, But Faster Charging To 80%
Even after the update, it still peaks at 195 kW, but changes have been made to help reduce the time you spend waiting for your iX to charge. The update is specifically concentrated on providing a more consistent charging curve, especially in cold weather, which has been a topic of frustration for some iX owners whose vehicles charge rather slowly in winter. Our source tells us that with this update installed, you should see your iX charging from flat to 80 percent about 3 minutes quicker than before if the outside temperature is between 59°F and 73.4°F (15°C and 23°C). We don’t have specific information on charging times in even lower temperatures, but you should still see improvements.
Another change brought about by this update has to do with the scenario when the iX is hooked up to the same charger as another EV. In this instance, the iX will limit charging to 70 kW, and before the update, it would stay that way even if the other was disconnected from the charger. With the update, the charging speed should jump to 150 kW once the other vehicle is no longer plugged in, and this should help lower wait times in some situations.
The final thing that the update changes should be observable when you plug in to charge with over 40 percent in the battery. Your iX will now charge at maximum speed for the first few minutes (even when in cold temperatures) before tapering off.
BMW says that all iX variants except the base xDrive40 model should be able to charge from 10 to 80 percent in 35 minutes. You should be able to add as much as 93 miles (150 km) in the first 10 minutes of charging when plugging into a DC fast-charger with 10 percent in the battery. However, in reality, it’s not very consistent, and it’s never clear whether it was something that you did or if it was all down to the car, charger, and weather condition combo. We tried to see how our long-term BMW iX M60 charged in winter and got some interesting results.
100 Miles of Range in 15 minutes
In one charging session that started with 10 percent left in the battery at an Electrify America station, the 2024 BMW iX M60 immediately started charging at over 192-195 kW and stayed there until around 30 percent state of charge, when speed began to decrease. We also observed a sharp drop at around the 80 percent mark, but this seems to be consistent across all iX models. During this session, the car added 83.2 kWh in exactly 35 minutes.
In another charging session we started at an 11 percent state of charge until just over 50 percent, the car came much closer to matching its maximum charging speed, immediately shooting up to over 150 kW and reaching a peak of 171 kW. During this session, the iX replenished 46 kWh in 19 minutes, which is much closer to the manufacturer’s claimed numbers.
Updated Charging Curve For BMW i5 and i7 Also
This update was also rolled out for the BMW i5 and i7, and they should show the same improvements as the iX. We will definitely be doing more EV charging analysis for future electric test vehicles that we review so that we can see if the improvements are consistently showing up in more than one model. But in the mean time, here is a DC Fast Charging test we just did with the 2024 BMW iX M60. The outside temperature was 51F.
