BMW i5 Touring review

On the outside BMW’s kept its current electric cars conventional: they don’t inhabit bizarre bespoke bodyshells. That translates into how you drive one. Not much has been re-invented for the sake of futurism. You settle in, squeeze the brake, and prod a start/stop button at the prow of the centre console. The screens awaken.

There’s a faintly sci-fi ‘whuzuuum’ sound effect to reassure you the powertrain is armed. Tug the stubby gear selector backwards for Drive, and the car creeps away with uncanny smoothness as soon as the brakes are released.

And that smoothness – that sense of utter composure and politeness – is shot through the i5’s behaviour. At speed it rides bumps like a mogul skier, and yet it maintains the i5’s poise and sense of purpose through corners. It’s highly impressive.

But…

There had to be a catch, didn’t there? We’ve been most impressed with the expensive adaptive suspension, which we’ve only tested on glassy-smooth German roads so far. But in the UK, the M-Sport suspension that comes with the mid-range spec delivered far more mixed results: it too is supple over potholes but the low-speed ride is annoyingly fidgety, and when you get a lick on the chassis becomes oh so skittish. M-Sport cars ride 5mm lower, albeit with self-levelling air chambers on the rear axle; this seems to push the i5 out of its sweet spot. Avoid.

Otherwise… wow, is it comfortable. Have Rolls-Royce engineers been letting themselves into the BMW factory after hours and dabbling in the suspension toybox? When a car is this quiet it hyper-tunes your brain to any foibles in its road manners.

A suspension thunk shatters the ambience like an unsilenced mobile phone in a cinema. Wind noise wrecks the mood like flatulence at a funeral. But not in the i5. It’s a serene way to travel. Only the overwrought, angular ‘M’ mirrors of the M60 version let the side down, needlessly attacking the air instead of gliding through it.

Perhaps that’s just because the M60 is fast. Hugely fast, in that unrewarding, slightly unnecessary EV-kinda way. You might enjoy the novelty of leaping a 2.4-tonne wagon forward like it’s been shot from an aircraft carrier’s catapult, but your passengers won’t.

Neither will whatever’s in the boot. And it’s £100,000, for around 50 miles less claimed range. It feels like a car BMW’s marketing department insisted upon. It’ll find a niche audience, just like 550is of old did with their not-quite-an-M5 vibes. But it’s not the best of the i5.

So the smart money goes on the base model?

Absolutely, though with 335bhp and enough pace to keep up with a Golf GTI it’s not exactly hard-done by. The i5 40e is just as relaxed to drive but doesn’t goad you into bouncing your passengers’ heads off the cushioned headrests. It’s a car happier in its own skin, doing its duty like millions of humble 520is and 520d Tourings before it.

Yes, the steering’s a bit remote and you sense the car’s a heffalump if it’s asked to change direction like a gazelle. But that’s fine. It’s fit for purpose as a core 5 Series. It’s not in any way trying to be an M5 CS.

Is it efficient?

We managed 3.0mi/kWh on a warm-ish day in mixed driving in the eDrive40, suggesting the official range of 343 miles is more like 250 real-world; more if you’re just bimbling about locally. That’s nothing to write home about, but we’ve seen much, much worse. The M60 was similar, so expect the same kind of drop-off from its 310-mile claim.

Clearly, Tourings are more likely to be asked to heave around a family. And all their assorted paraphernalia. Perhaps a roof box. Or a trailer – it’ll couple up to a 1,500kg load – or 2,000kg in the AWD M60. And that’ll chomp through range like a Labrador at a buffet.

How about this automatic lane changing then. Is it like being chauffeured by a nervous learner?

Actually once you get on top of your own nerves and let the car perform its own manoeuvres at motorway speeds, it’s pretty impressive. We found the car appeared to learn quickly, going from being cautious to seamlessly smooth in its movements; changing lanes as it detects the driver’s swivelling head checking the mirrors.

The steering inputs are measured and the speed relative to nearby cars is well judged. The caveats? We’ve only tested it in Germany. In the dry. On an immaculately surfaced, brightly-lined road. In daytime. How that translates to a wet, grimy M62 on a dark Tuesday night in February remains to be seen.

Is it quick to charge?

Peak charging is 205kW DC, so 10-80 per cent on a service station rapid charger is going to take 30 minutes. Not too shabby. At 7.4kW on a home charger a full top-up is a 13-hour job. Electricity prices have been up and down like a heart rate monitor of late, but at the time of writing an average UK tariff will mean the 81.2kWh battery costs about £20 to fill completely. Public stations will obviously be dearer.