Written | Ben Editor| Routing Agency
Looking back at 2021, for many ordinary people, it is either a blank space that was inadvertently "stolen" or a difficult period of volatility and confusion.
Under the haze of the epidemic that has not yet faded, from the national plan to the people's livelihood, it is filled with countless days and nights, often the feeling of helplessness and powerlessness that cannot see the way forward and the state of mind.
However, as Romain Rolland said, "True heroism is the love of life after recognizing the truth of life." ”
Even if times are difficult, there are always people who choose to do something to increase their sense of control, by maintaining concentration, focusing on the present, making a difference, choosing to use thinking, action, and exploration to eliminate or hedge the uncertainty from the times, the environment and society.
For example, BMW's pure electric SAV flagship, BMW iX xDrive 50 (hereinafter referred to as BMW iX), which will be launched in the Chinese market at the end of 2021, is at the time node of the tenth anniversary of the birth of the BMW i brand, with an enterprising attitude of "beyond electric", aiming to lead the direction and path of future luxury travel.
So, as one of the hottest models in the high-end luxury pure electric market in 2022, bmw iX, which is famous and has the BMW i brand in the previous decade of technology, research and development and manufacturing, what should be "beyond electric"?
At the same time, in the 800,000+ range of luxury pure electric SUV market segment, BMW iX has brought what differentiated features and selling points, while continuing the inherent genes and characteristics of the BMW brand, how to continue to impress the hearts of consumers in the new track of electric vehicles?
A few days ago, after Sanya's close-up tasting and test driving of this star model, we tried to answer the above two questions one by one based on the initial experience, feelings and cognition of the first hand.
Triple contradiction and three balances
If the initial experience, feelings and cognition of iX is summarized into one sentence, it should be that in the specific contradictions and conflicts to achieve a certain dynamic balance, iX continues to break the waves on the road of digital intelligence and electric driving fun.
Next, you may wish to take a specific look at the three-fold "contradiction" and "conflict" visible to the naked eye on the iX, and how BMW's designers and engineers have completed the reconciliation and balance.
First, the cobblestone exterior shape that is said to be inspired by water droplets in nature, we see the sense of volume of the typical medium and large sports SUV in the front of the vehicle, the sense of movement with the rear sneak-on coupe, and the contradiction and unity of the MPV home and business texture.
The length, width and height data of the body of 4955mm/1967mm/1698mm are converted to the visual experience, and the previous part of the B-pillar of the vehicle still retains the typical tall and fierce image of BMW SAV.
However, in the most eye-catching front face part of the front of the car, the designers further strengthened the visual technology and pioneering impression through the strong contrast between the narrow and slender LED headlights and the wider polygonal double kidney intake grille with diamond-shaped checks (with integrated self-healing function).
After coming to the part after the B-pillar, the back-to-back roof arc extends to the rear of the vehicle, coupled with the design of the suspension roof, a change in the square and resolute image of the front of the vehicle, so that the rear half of the vehicle appears flowing, dynamic, full and round, and forms a strong visual contrast with the front, while bringing more sports car-like dynamics, similar to the sense of home and business of MPV. After opening the tailgate of the vehicle, the flat and wide luggage space also confirms the functional characteristics of iX to meet the needs of home and practicality.
Second, the designers are more diligent, the innovative luxury configuration is more concentrated, and it is also the cockpit part that is the most different from the previous BMW brand models, and the most prominent riding experience is the gap and fault between the atmosphere of the modern luxury parlor in the front row and the rear row.
To tell the truth, the cockpit of iX is the most modern temperament and aesthetic level that individuals have so far seen and actually experienced, and at the same time, they have the best balance and the highest degree of completion in the functional level of driving operation and the level of cockpit technology attributes.
With a clever combination of several BMW brand-first-of-its-kind and stunning cockpit configurations, including an integrated suspended curved screen, an olive leaf tanned leather interior, a log touch panel in the center console, glass controls, a Bowers & Wilkins 4D diamond surround sound system, a panoramic dimmable canopy, and frameless doors, the designers have indeed achieved the design goal of "creating the feel of a modern luxury living room with a minimalist design concept".
However, it is a little regrettable and regrettable that this bold innovation and effective breakthrough in the front row has weakened significantly in the back row. In addition to the integrated rear seats, overhead panoramic dimmable canopy, and intelligent induction mood lights, the unique atmosphere of the front row luxury living room has not been fully continued in the back row.
For example, the actual feeling after the ride is that the rear row without an independent entertainment system, coupled with the seats with an unrestricted angle, is not as good as the front row in terms of wrapping and comfort, and so on. It can be seen that while you want to drive a BMW with great interest on the iX, it seems that it is still not a natural thing to sit comfortably on bmw.
Third, back to the hottest focus of the current intelligent electric vehicle circle, the functions and applications of intelligent interconnection, the application level of intelligent driving assistance systems, and the coupling between the electric drive system and the underlying electronic and electrical architecture, vehicle control and integration, after a day of driving, riding and various functional operations, the biggest feeling of iX is the contradiction and unity of appearance and internal.
For example, based on the integrated floating curved screen, the BMW iDrvie 8.0 system that took the lead in getting on the car, as well as local applications such as Tencent Mini Scene 2.0 and the on-board WeChat function tailored for domestic users, iX's human-computer interaction is generally convenient to operate, rich in functions, especially smooth in speed.
At the same time, in some basic voice wake-ups, including the function switching of different application interfaces, even intelligent AI assistants such as Siri's BMW Personal Intelligent Assistant will show that they are sometimes too sensitive, sometimes too cumbersome in the jump level, and the response is not satisfactory, and there is a common situation of falling into speechlessness in the use of car machine systems.
Behind the two real experiences, what is invisible is the 5G technology first applied in the luxury car market and the hardware support brought by gigabit bandwidth.
For example, in order to achieve a balance between body rigidity and lightweight, a large number of carbon fiber materials are used in key parts of the body structure, which are clearly visible in the B-pillar, door frame, tailgate and other positions. At the same time, in places where the user is within reach or at a glance, such as the front seat backrest, the trim under the center console, etc., it is still wrapped with a large number of hard plastic parts.
From the perspective of driving performance optimization, the use of carbon fiber reinforced composite materials, coupled with the chassis technology only available in large luxury vehicles, including front double wishbone rear five-link suspension, adaptive dual-shaft air suspension, electronically controlled shock absorbers, xDrive all-wheel drive, rear axle active steering, integrated braking system, 17-inch large-size brake discs, etc., have laid a solid foundation for the iX's extreme, tough sport control characteristics.
However, from the perspective of riding body sensation and visual perception, especially the sense of interior luxury that domestic consumers will generally value, the plastic parts used in a large area not only form a strong visual contrast with the olive leaf tanned leather interior and multi-faceted cutting streamer glass controls, but also greatly dilute and dissolve the unique luxurious living room atmosphere created by the front row.
In this regard, it is no wonder that a media friend in the same car will sigh that this seemingly contradictory way of using materials not only makes him feel that the square head of the German and the round head of the Chinese are not on the same channel, but also directly allows the iX, which costs 800,000+ to directly dissuade consumers who only look at the surface luxury.
Make a brief summary. The above three visible contradictions to the naked eye, and the internal efforts to try to unify and balance, we think that we can roughly summarize the characteristics of the second stage of the BMW Group's electrification transformation road, which is in the transition period and transition period. The efforts and attempts of designers and engineers are a balancing act that BMW has always adhered to, just as the front and rear axle loads of 50:50 have always been adhered to in countless classic models.
The choice between the visible and the invisible
With the exchange and discussion with this friend along the way, we also ended the short day with iX. Then, I wrote a few first thoughts about iX in the circle of friends:
"Judging only from the general preferences and needs of Chinese users, the highlights and selling points of BMW iX may not be the personality, coolness, intelligence and hospitality they most admire in their eyes." It is more about its sustainable concept, materials and manufacturing, especially the design of the front row luxury living room, the handling performance that BMW is always good at, and the matching, reliable and stable of the three-electric system behind it and the whole vehicle.
At least, for domestic users with a budget of 850,000 yuan and ready to buy a medium-sized luxury pure electric SUV, the first four considerations will be more priority, while the value provided by BMW iX is hidden.
In the matter of building cars, spending money in places that are invisible or visible is probably the natural ethnic difference between Germans and Chinese. It is always difficult to change an established concept. The GAP, which is composed of regional, cultural, and conceptual differences from the source, is probably not easy to cross.
This is likely to be a long-term challenge and practical problem that all European and American automobile manufacturers will have to face. However, this will be more prominent in the era of smart electric vehicles. ”
Therefore, when we look back at the three -fold "contradictions" mentioned above dialectically, we can better understand that behind this is actually a positive and balanced effort. In summary, these three "contradictions" and "balances" on the BMW iX are not only concrete and practical actions to hedge the uncertainty of the future, but also use specific attempts to bridge the GPA that exists in different markets and different cultures.
Therefore, in addition to the characteristics of good-looking, easy-to-use, and easy-to-open surfaces, we believe that the intrinsic core concept of sustainability is the real entrance to understanding this pure electric luxury SUV.
epilogue:
Shortly after our sneak test drive of the BMW iX xDrive 50, at the North American Consumer Electronics Show (CES 2022) that opened in early 2022, the top-of-the-line model of the iX series, the iX M60, also debuted and was simultaneously listed in the Chinese market for 996,900 yuan.
This pure electric high-performance SUV, priced at nearly one million yuan, is not only the strongest and fastest pure electric mass production model in BMW's history, but also the first model with more than 1,000 Nm of torque, which brings the ultimate driving pleasure of the BMW M brand into the electric era and refreshes the performance ceiling of BMW i again.
Another recent research result presented on the same stage, the "electronic ink" technology (E-ink), may be more indicative of BMW i's attitude and action to meet the uncertain future with an open attempt and exploration.
For the first time, "E-ink" technology (E-ink) implements the one-touch color change function of the body on the BMW iX body. This technology can not only achieve the personality setting and change of the body color according to different occasions and environments, but also improve the comfort of the interior environment, reduce the energy consumption of the electrical system, and be more energy-saving and environmentally friendly like the panoramic dimmable sky curtain.
Leopard peek.
These two new technologies not only reaffirm the iterative characteristics of smart electric vehicles themselves, but also show that BMW iX has always been in an open state that can be redefined, and BMW's protracted electrification transformation with "sustainable" as the starting point has always been non-stop.
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