2021 BMW iNext could have more than 600km of electric range

According to BMW Blog, the German marque is on track to unveil the production-ready iNext later this year – and it's expected there will be three variants in the range.

At the top end of the line-up, one model will reportedly deliver between 600 and 620 kilometres of range on a full charge on the World Harmonised Light Vehicle Testing Procedure (WLTP) cycle – a measure that tends to provide a fairly accurate range estimate for electric vehicles.

A base model, meanwhile, will reportedly offer 400km of real-world electric range, while power outputs will could vary from roughly 223kW to 447kW across the line-up.

The latest reports correspond with BMW's previous indications that the car would be available with a battery pack capable of up to 600 kilometres of driving, meaning the BMW iX's range will eclipse those currently offered by premium competitors like Audi and Mercedes-Benz.

Currently, Tesla is the only manufacturer with a production car offering 600km of range or more – with the Model S boasting up to 610km – although incoming models like the Lucid Air promise up to 809km on some variants.

For comparison's sake, the Mercedes-Benz EQC currently offers up to 417km of range on the WLTP cycle, while Audi's e-tron is capable of up to 436km of range, and Jaguar's I-Pace offers a maximum of 470km.

The BMW iNext – which will likely use some iteration of the iX naming convention when it is officially unveiled – is expected to land in US showrooms in late 2021.

According to previous spy shots, it's likely to receive the same tall kidney grille featured on the 2021 BMW 4 Series.

The German marque hopes to add 25 electrified cars to its line-up by 2025, having already unveiled its iX3 medium SUV earlier this year, promising a WLTP range of up to 460km and an Australian showroom arrival by mid-2021.