The BMW iX2 is a beautiful EV, once you get used to the styling

I wasn’t sure what to make of this car at first.

The BMW X2 fits between the X1 and X3 SUVs in terms of sizing – so far, so sensical – but it’s also what they call a ‘Sports Activity Coupe’, or ‘SAC’, defined largely by that sloping roofline.

This means you’re sacrificing space for style (and take this from someone who whacked his head on said sloping roofline while getting into the back seats), but I don’t know if the X2 exactly has loads of style to play with.

BMW has copped a lot of flack in recent times for its styling, to the point there was an audible sigh of relief from around the world last month when the brand’s head of design, Domagoj Dukec, announced he was moving to Rolls-Royce.

During Dukec’s tenure, we had the XM, perhaps most revolting in ‘Label Red’ spec where the outlines of its enormous kidney grilles were daubed in bright red. Googling “lipstick on a pig” will bring up similar results.

Then there was the 7-Series limousine, best put as “polarising”. Fans have also not yet recovered from the M3.

So, the X2, by Dukec’s pen, is not exactly what could be called pretty. Funky, striking, rugged perhaps.

I suppose we can live with that.

I borrowed the fully-electric iX2 model from Canberra BMW, and to be fair – despite the big battery underneath which means you sit fairly high in the seat – there was still plenty of space for two kid seats in the back and a pram in the boot.

You just have to stoop so as not to whack the little heads on the roofline on the way in. As mentioned, adults may also struggle.

The rest of the package truly is beautiful.

Mine is the top-spec xDrive30 model, which uses two electric motors – one on each axle – to create all-wheel drive. And a lot of power.

A paddle on the steering wheel marked ‘boost’ will hit you with everything it’s got for 10 seconds, and I can assure you 230 kW and 494 Nm is enough to press an embarrassing squeak from the vocal chords.

BMW claims a 0-100 km/h time of 5.6 seconds.

Fortunately, the wireless phone charging pad has a clever folding bracket that prevents your phone from being pelted into the abyss of the footwell at times like this.

Get a little too exuberant, and the iX2 feels a bit unsettled by its own weight, but everywhere else, it’s light and quick on its feet. And so impeccably smooth, like you’re riding on a mixture of silk and myrrh.

It actually reminded me a lot of the MINI Countryman, which is probably not too surprising given the MINI shares its platform with the X2’s smaller sibling, the – you’ll never guess – X1.

The regenerative braking comes with an “adaptive” mode, which takes note of how quickly you take your foot off the accelerator and brakes accordingly. I thought it would be too unpredictable and annoying, but I ended up leaving it on.

It’s the same with the safety systems, none of which yell at you.

You’re just left to revel in a concert by Hans Zimmer, piped through the speakers. Yep, BMW hired the man responsible for the soundtrack to Pirates of the Caribbean, Interstellar and, um, Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa, and plenty more to compose ‘iconic sounds’ for its EVs.

It seems to hit a magic frequency that makes the brain fizz, like those rainfall tracks on Spotify or something – I found myself in Sport mode and accelerating needlessly just to hear it. And also to cover my squeaking.

There are other toys too.

On top of Sport, there are also Personal and Efficient drive modes, but a new iX2 also comes with a free 90-day trial period of the ‘Digital Premium’ package which adds three more – ‘Expressive’, ‘Relax’ and ‘Digital Art’.

As far as I can tell, they only play a weird sort of humming music and splash the screens in extra colour. In the case of Digital Art, there’s an audio guide featuring a woman with an Asian accent talking about our connection to the universe.

Probably safe to say this package will be about as popular as the subscription BMW once tried to charge for heated seats.

Of course, the iX1 offers all of this for about the same price and a bit more space, thanks to the fact it’s more SUV and less SAC. So, the iX2 proposition really does come down to how much of a fan you are of Dukec’s work.

This one’s growing on me.

2024 BMW iX2 xDrive 30 M Sport

• $85,700 (plus on-road costs)
• Two electric motors, 67 kWh battery, 230 kW / 494 Nm
• All-wheel drive (AWD)
• 0-100 km/h in 5.6 seconds
• 395 km estimated range
• 2020 kg
• Not yet rated for safety

Thanks to Canberra BMW, Phillip, for providing this car for testing. Region has no commercial arrangement with Canberra BMW.

Original Article published by James Coleman on Riotact.