The battle between first-line luxury and independent high-end: BMW i3 vs. Polar Fox Alpha S Who is stronger?

As the future development direction of the automobile market, new energy has accumulated certain advantages in the technology and market with the rise of new car-making forces in the early years and the entry of domestic traditional brands. Today, while the joint venture and luxury brands have laid out their respective new energy vehicle matrices, more independent high-end pure electric brands have also followed. On March 31, BMW's first pure electric medium-sized sedan i3 was launched, launching a model configuration with a guided price of 349,900 yuan, while in the 300,000 yuan price range, the Polar Fox Alpha S listed last year is a representative of the independent high-end pure electric model. The same luxury pure electric car, how strong is the BMW i3 product that has just been listed? Compared with the extreme fox alpha S, which is still hot, how to choose between the two models? Let's take a look.

Appearance comparison

The exterior design of the BMW i3 is not much different from the BMW 3 Series, and some of the details are different in design. From the front face, the chrome-plated double kidney mesh is decorated with black dots, and the inner ring of the mesh in the white-looking model has eye-catching blue lines to indicate the identity of its electric vehicle. The headlight design of the BMW i3 is different from the 3 Series, and the straighter lines and light strips enhance the technological texture of the vehicle. Under the surrounding part, the new shape design is slightly messy, but it also better highlights the sporty temperament of the vehicle.

Coming to the side of the car, the multi-lane waistlines arranged in layers are full of strength, and with the new style of five-spoke wheels, the sense of vehicle sports and technology has been enhanced again. In the rear part, the design of the BMW i3 is also different from the current 3 Series, the simple taillight design is surrounded by sports, and the vehicle recognition and fashion texture are still online.

The design style of the Alpha S is significantly different from the BMW i3, and the vehicle is more prominent in the creation of sports and technological textures. From the front face, the four ridges on the cover converge forward around the Polar Fox logo, with a sharp LED headlamps, like a beast ready to attack. Under the headlights, the upper narrow and lower width of the middle net adopts an all-black design, with the slewing chrome trim through the front of the car, which enhances the vehicle's sports attributes and the high-grade texture is also well displayed.

Behind the vehicle side, the silver trim strips emitted by the A-pillars on both sides cross the roof contour and connect under the rear window, reflecting the family design concept of the extreme fox borderless, with a straight waistline and 21-inch five-spoke wheels, showing a stronger premium and sporty texture. The Alpha S's through-line taillights rotate downwards at both ends, and the chrome trim that runs through the perimeter echoes the front face design, giving the vehicle a greater recognizability.

Summary: In the comparison of appearances, the two models show consumers completely different design concepts. BMW i3 is based on the design of the 3 series, sports and technology attributes have been strengthened, compared to the design of the Alpha S is an extreme interpretation of the texture of sports technology, and the acceptance of the Alpha S by consumers with different preferences will also be very different.

Interior contrast

From the breaking news, the mid-term redesign of the 3 series will also adopt the interior design of the BMW i3, and compared with the current 3 series, the BMW i3 interior has been significantly improved while maintaining the sports attribute. In terms of detail design, a large number of silver trim strips ensure that the interior is sporty, the three-frame multi-function steering wheel still maintains the current family shape, and the 12.3-inch LCD instrument and the central control screen in the front adopt a joint screen design. Bmw i3 central control LCD screen is 14.9 inches, while improving the technical texture of the interior, the car network, satellite navigation, mobile phone interconnection and voice recognition control and other functions are not missing, the actual car experience has also been guaranteed.

Compared with the BMW i3, the interior design of the Alpha S brings a completely different visual experience, and the simple design and soft lines create a good high-end texture and technological atmosphere. In terms of details, The Alpha S also adopts a dual screen design, the front of the two multi-functional steering wheels is a 12.3-inch LCD instrument, and the LCD touch screen on the right side is larger than the BMW i3, reaching 20.3 inches. Car machine network, online map, satellite navigation, mobile phone Interconnection, Alpha S's car machine and interconnection configuration are equally rich, taking into account the creation of scientific and technological sense and practical attributes. The soft air conditioner outlet in the square and the large leather wrapping are also the embodiment of the luxurious texture of the interior.

Summary: In the interior comparison link, the different design concepts of the two models also bring different driving experiences. The BMW i3 continues the sporty interior style of the current 3 Series, and the design of the dual screen also effectively enhances the technical texture of the interior. The interior design of Alpha S is more concise, and the sense of luxury and technology atmosphere is also stronger.

Spatial contrast

BMW i3 is positioned as a pure electric luxury medium-sized sedan, body size 4872/1846/1481 mm, wheelbase 2966mm, riding space, adjust the front seat to the appropriate position, BMW i3's second row of knee space in more than two fists, head space also has limbs or so, and the current 3 series long axis performance is comparable. In terms of seat configuration, it has a 10-way adjustment of the main and auxiliary seats, the electric memory of the main seat and the electric adjustment function of the auxiliary seat, and the heating of the front seat needs to be optional. Combined with space and configuration, the BMW i3 ride experience is also in line with the standard of mainstream luxury mid-size cars.

Opening the tailgate, the trunk volume of the BMW i3 is 410L, which is small in the same class, but it can also meet the daily storage use. The rear seats of the BMW i3 do not support proportional reclining, so the loading capacity for large-volume items is limited.

In the same price range of 300,000 yuan, The positioning of The Pole Fox for the Alpha S is a medium and large car. The Body Size of the Alpha S is 4930/1940/1599 mm, with a wheelbase of 2915 mm, compared with the BMW i3, the Alpha S has the advantage of length, width and height, while the wheelbase of the 2915mm has a 5cm disadvantage. In terms of riding experience, adjust the front seat to the appropriate position, the rear knee space of alpha S also has more than two fists, and the head space of about four fingers can also meet the daily ride. Combined with the 12-way electric memory of the main seat, the 4-way electric adjustment of the secondary seat, and the heating/ventilation of the front seats, the Alpha S actually feels better than the former.

The height of 1599mm gives the Alpha S excellent trunk space, and the volume of 560L can fully meet the daily storage practicality. With the rear row left and right proportional inversion function, the spare compartment volume of the Alpha S can be extended to 1300L to cope with the use of large-volume items such as travel and moving.

Summary: Space comparison link, in comparison, the advantages of length, height and width make up for the disadvantage of the Alpha S wheelbase, making it have a relatively good riding and storage experience.

Power comparison

Coming to the 300,000 yuan price segment, power performance has also become one of the focal points of competition between models. BMW i3 is the first pure electric medium-sized sedan in the family, equipped with a rear motor with a maximum power of 210 kW and a maximum torque of 400 N·m, and the transmission part is matched by a single-speed fixed gear ratio gearbox, and the official acceleration time of 100 kilometers is 6.2 seconds. In the battery part, the ternary lithium battery pack CLTC pure electric mileage equipped with BMW i3 is 526 kilometers, and it takes 0.58 hours to use 0-80% of the charge when using fast charging, and 6.75 hours to fully charge slow charging.

In contrast, the Alpha S provides consumers with a variety of power options, the 525S model is equipped with a front permanent magnet synchronous motor with a maximum power of 160kW and a maximum torque of 360N·m, with a single-speed fixed gear ratio gearbox, with an acceleration time of 7.7 seconds per 100 kilometers, a ternary lithium battery pack with a comprehensive cruising range of 525 kilometers, and a 30-80% charge of the 30-80% power fast charge takes only 0.5 hours, and a slow charge takes 11.5 hours to fully charge. The power performance of the 708S model is consistent with that of the 525S model, and the comprehensive cruising range of the ternary lithium battery pack is upgraded to 708 kilometers, and the battery slow charging time is extended to 15.5 hours.

Alpha S 603H model is equipped with front and rear dual permanent magnet synchronous motors, the maximum total power of the system is 320kW, the maximum total torque is 720N·m, the acceleration time of 100 kilometers is only 4.2 seconds, and the matching ternary lithium battery pack is consistent with the 708S model, and the upgrade of power performance makes the comprehensive mileage of the 603H model drop to 603 kilometers, and the battery slow charge and fast charge time are 0.6 hours and 15.5 hours, respectively.

Summary: Power comparison link, in comparison, Alpha S provides consumers with more power choices. In contrast, the BMW i3, under the premise that the price of the Alpha S 603H model guide is basically the same, there are still certain disadvantages in power performance, so you can choose the most suitable model for your own use conditions according to actual needs.

Configuration comparison

In the pure electric car market of 300,000 yuan, the quality of the car has always been the core element of consumer purchase. In addition to factors such as design, power, and space, the richness of the configuration is the key to the quality of the car. In the configuration comparison session, the car uncle chose two models with similar prices (BMW i3 2022 eDrive 35L) and (Polar Fox Alpha S 2021 603H) for comparison.

In terms of safety and driver assistance configuration, the two models have different advantages in different aspects. The advantage of the BMW i3 is that it has a variable suspension function, supporting suspension soft and hard adjustment and high and low adjustment. In contrast, the Alpha S has a more practical and convenient driving experience with a 360-degree panoramic image and full-speed adaptive cruise function.

In terms of external configuration and internal configuration, the Alpha S has a more abundant configuration, compared to the BMW i3 with more power trunks, front keyless entry, steering wheel heating/memory, front seat heating/ventilation, voice control sunroof, adaptive far and near light, matrix headlights and front multi-layer soundproof glass, the central control screen size and the number of speakers are also more advantageous.

Summary: Configuration comparison link, in general, the configuration of the BMW i3 is still at the mainstream level of luxury medium-sized cars, but in comparison, the configuration richness of the Alpha S is undoubtedly higher, which can bring the same level of excellent driving experience to the driver and occupants.

Write at the end

In the current new energy vehicle market, whether it is independent, joint venture or luxury brand, each can be described as full of firepower, and with the experience and accumulation of early years, independent brands have finally achieved curve overtaking, and have the strength to compete with traditional luxury brands in the field of pure electric high-end models. As the essence of BMW, the 3 series has attracted the attention of the majority of consumers with its not weak product strength, and in comparison, the Polar Fox Alpha S also has obvious advantages in terms of space, power and configuration. In terms of the choice between the two models, if there is a higher demand for brand power, then the BMW i3 is of course a better choice, if you care more about the actual driving experience, the car uncle is more recommended for the Polar Fox Alpha S.