BMW has added what will probably become the base model for the i4 lineup, the i4 eDrive35, which gets a smaller 70.2 kWh battery pack (good for 260 miles of range), as well as a single 281 horsepower and 295 pound-foot motor that pushes it to sixty in 5.8 seconds. This model variant will debut in Europe first, in Q4 2022, with US deliveries poised to start in Q1 2023.
Pricing for the i4 eDrive35 kicks off at $52,395 including the $995 destination charge, but it doesn’t include the $7,500 federal tax credit or any state incentives. The 260-mile range has not been officially confirmed by the EPA; it’s currently just a BMW estimate and it’s only for the 18-inch aero wheels.
Charging speed is down slightly compared the eDrive40 and M50 variants, both of which have a different 83.9 kWh (80.7 kWh usable) battery pack and can be charged at up to 200 kW. The eDrive35 model will charge at no more than 180 kW, or 10 to 80 percent in 32 minutes, according to BMW, or only one minute more than the other two models with the higher charging rate.
Gallery: 2023 BMW i4 eDrive35
The range king of the i4 lineup is the eDrive40 model that is rated at 301 miles by the EPA, although again only with the small aero wheels; move up to 19-inch wheels and range drops to 282 miles. BMW didn’t say how much larger wheels drop the eDrive35’s range, but it’s probably under 240 miles.
The i4 has only been on the market for a few months in the US, so it has probably only sold in the hundreds so far, but with this new more affordable version it may make a bigger splash. In its Q2 sales report for the US this year, BMW said it sold 2,600 EVs through the quarter, but it’s probably mostly the iX, not the i4.
Globally, BMW says it has sold 57,000 fully-electric vehicles and that it plans to have BEVs constitute 50 percent of all the vehicles it sells by 2030.
