InsideEVs is putting electric vehicles through a highway range test - basically, it's a loop-style drive at 70 mph in the most efficient mode with HVAC on to a comfortable setting, tires inflated to manufacturer rating, and speed calculated with GPS. Few have had as good a result as the BMW iX xDrive50. Typically, vehicles return less miles than their EPA rating. That's because the EPA range is calculated using a number of different speeds and 70 mph is more energy-intensive. EPA rated for 324 miles with 20-inch wheels, the BMW iX xDrive50 returned an amazing 345 miles during the test. Enjoy the video below which documents the test and check out the linked post above for more details.
The tire compound and tread pattern also play a role in range as the A/S will have a deeper tread pattern and more siping (increased rolling resistance) but the summer tire compound will be slightly stickier. The differences are more pronounced when comparing winter tires to summer tires. By the looks of the video thumbnail, Tom was using the 20" Goodyear A/S and BMW only offers summer performance tires for the 22" wheels.
I guess this is why the 22-inch option has a better EPA range than the 21-inch. Someone need to stick a pair of summer LRR tires on it and see how it does.
I've had my iX for about 1800 miles now, and it has 22" Non-Run Flat Bridgestone Alenza 001 summer tires. I'm consistently averaging 3.3 mil/Kwh or 347 miles range in regular driving (not trying to hyper mile, but doing 75 mph on the highway). You can get the 20" wheels if you don't option the sport package, but the range is just as good with the 22" wheels.
