Electrifying Elegance | BMW i4 M50 Review

A review by Chris Robinson

The i4 M50 is BMW’s flagship four-door coupé, in sport mode. My initial impression: looks gorgeous, with specs that scream premium German engineering.

If you’re into the numbers, here’s what those look like:

• 0-60 in 3.9 seconds
• A punchy 536 horsepower
• A real-world range of 280 miles

On paper, very impressive. But let’s be honest – it’s easy for a car to perform at its best on a test track, or on a quick jaunt around the M25. Just how premium would ‘premium German engineering’ feel when presented with the most unpredictable of obstacles – the Great British weather?

There was only one way to find out, and that was to take it on a little road trip from London to the serene, scenic and incredibly snowy Lake District, during a surprise bit of early winter weather. Planned? Absolutely not, but the snowfall ended up being a fantastic way to put this looker of a car through its paces.

So how did it get on?

Look. I’m 6’1 (or perhaps 6’2 in good lighting…), so I reckon if a car is comfortable for me, it’s comfortable for the majority of the population, professional basketball players and rugby forwards aside.

Side note: I thought it would be fun to set my route to avoid all motorways on my way up. This is probably a lovely thing to do in the summer – but learn from my experience and do not attempt on a cold, dark November evening in adverse weather conditions.

With a 12-hour journey between London and the Lakes, let’s just say I had plenty of time to test out just how comfortable the i4 M50 is on longer journeys. As a taller person, I’m normally constantly readjusting on long car rides, but the i4 M50’s low seating position, plush leather interior and airy cabin suited me perfectly.

My lower back survived the equivalent of a long-haul flight between the UK and Singapore with no complaints whatsoever. Top marks for comfort from me – though the back seats looked distinctly less roomy for anyone adult-sized.

On day two of my road trip, we were hit with an amount of inclement weather. The scenery: straight off a Marks and Spencer Christmas biscuit tin, circa 1997. The car: seemingly unbothered.

The secret to being able to navigate narrow, icy country lanes with this much confidence? No, it’s not that the i4 M50 is secretly the Batmobile (and though it looks the part, Batplough and Batflamethrower attachments do not come as standard).

Instead, it was the car’s exceptional regenerative braking capabilities that made driving in these conditions an absolute dream. Admittedly, it took me a bit of time to figure out how to turn the feature on, but once I got there, I was smitten.

Not only does the regenerative braking feature conserve your range – a big win whilst driving in cold weather – it allowed me to slow the car down in icy conditions without using the brakes, making it easier to maintain traction on tough roads. Five stars for safety, and for ease of use as it allowed me to drive the car using just one pedal.

Full transparency: I cut my driving teeth on a roster of 1990s Japanese imports (a norm in New Zealand), so I’m not the kind of driver that expects all the latest mod cons.

That said, the i4 M50 was a revelation in terms of how easy it was to drive. All it took was a little indication of what I wanted the car to do, and the i4 M50’s exceptional handling, or the suite of autonomous driving features could take over. The car’s agile sport steering system made cornering a breeze – especially useful in the Lakes’ narrow, winding country lanes.

Autonomous driving-wise, you’ll get BMW’s standard suite of features as standard, including adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning, blind-spot monitoring and forward collision warning with automatic city speed braking.

If you’re feeling flush, you can upgrade with a Parking Assistance Package and/or a Driving Assistance Professional Package for extended evasive features including Traffic Jam Steering Assistant (not that this was needed in snowy Cumbria).

We’re currently living through a revolution in EV technology. Cars can travel ever further on a single charge, and batteries charge faster with every new model released.

With a real-world range of 268 miles, the i4 M50 is certainly up there in terms of range and – as I mentioned above – performed surprisingly well in the cold weather due to its exceptional regenerative braking system. But how did it fare on charging speed?

It’s a little difficult to tell, because cold weather can impact the performance of public rapid chargers. But even under adverse conditions, the i4 M50 managed a respectable 9% to 75% in under an hour. This was the perfect amount of time to nip into Booths* for a spot of shopping pre-return trip.

This came a little short of the expected charging time of 27 minutes - but we’d estimate it would come close to this if I wasn’t driving in Narnian conditions.

*For those unfamiliar, think of Booth’s as a bougie, northern Waitrose with an extensive local beer and produce selection. Browsing time welcome.

‘Make driving fun again’ would be my commandment to many a car manufacturer out there. To fall back on that now done to death Gen-Z-writes-the-marketing-script trend, BMW has understood the assignment with this one. No cap etc.

After a few miles in the i4 M50, you’ll notice a distinct ache in your jaw from grinning so much. Perhaps it’s the sleek, panther-esque silhouette. Perhaps it’s the way that the car’s agile handling and autonomous driving features complement each other so well. Perhaps it’s the crisp audio of the sound system, unencumbered by the noise of a petrol engine.

Let’s be honest – it’s probably all of that. The BMW i4 M50 is the full package if you’ve got a little spending room (though much more affordable on Octopus EV's salary sacrifice scheme), and is well worth your while.