Got an I-Pace as a loaner

robg · 05-02-2022, 05:01 PM

Weirdly, my dealer gave me an I-Pace as a loaner while my RRS was in for an oil change. Ended up being able to keep it for the weekend and returned it this morning. Usually I get a Discovery sport so this was a nice upgrade (although it was an older car-- I think it was a 2020 since it had the older infotainment setup).

I'd done a short test drive of one of these in the fall and really liked it. Having now had the chance to live with on in various conditions (and with the family) for a few days I like it even more. By the end of the weekend my wife kept asking when we could get one (as did my 7 year old).

Highlights:
-I picked up the car fully charged showing a range of 240 miles. That proved to be fairly accurate, as I kept an eye on how much the estimated range decreased relative to actual miles driven. We drove a total of about 70 miles with it.
-The seats and driving position were very good, but maybe not quite as comfortable as the RRS. Then again, this car appeared to have the base seats (without even adjustable lumbar), whereas new I-paces only come in 1 "fully loaded" spec with really good seats. Way more comfortable than the Taycan i test drove however.
-The ride/handling balance was excellent...this car had 20" wheels with air suspension + adaptive dampers. It glides over road imperfections but aslo feels very agile on curvy roads. I think only the Taycan I test drove last year did a better job in both areas and only slightly.
-Rear seat room comfort and legroom seemed to be much better than other EVs i've sat in. Plenty of legroom, well shaped seats and your knees aren't up in the air plus you can actually put your feet under the seat in front of you. Roomier feeling than both our RRS and old X3.
-Good steering weight and feel (although the "Dynamic" setting for steering was artificially heavy).
-Love that it still has knobs for the climate control and volume!
-The "high" regen setting was powerful enough to bring the car to almost a compleete stop around 3mph). Once I turned it on, I almost never had to use the brake pedal.
-Plenty of cargo room in the hatch..probably similar to a q5.
-Really good build quality and materials. No squeaks or rattles and nothing moves or creaks when pressed. Good paint quality, panel gaps, etc. We parked next to an SUV when taking my kid to his basketball games and a kid swung the door open so that it hit the car pretty hard. There was no damage. Maybe aluminum body panels help in this respect ( I think they are less likely to dent than steel).
-As expected, plenty of instant torque and great acceleration both from a start and at speed.
-The styling grew on me...I had gone back and forth on whether I thought it was a bit awkward. Got lots of positive compliments from people on it too. They are quite rare so most people dont even know what it is. Much better in person than in pictures for sure.
-Overall, it's just a really fun car to drive. I would definitlely need to have something that involved a manual NA V8 or flat six to have more fun. A turbo 6 or even v8 with an automatic seems almost pointless in comparison.

Dislikes:
-The brake pedal had an odd feel at the end of its travel (noticed this when pressing it down to stop the car completely). I can't really find the right way to describe it other than it felt kind of creaky or arthritic. Might've just been something wrong w/ this car but it was annoying.
-There's no rear wiper. The theory (apparently) is that the airflow over the car keeps the rear glass clear. To be fair, this is true at highway speeds - but when you park in the rain and then have to reverse out of a spot it's not so great.
-This car had the older infotainment system which is a bit slow and laggy. Atleast new cars come with the faster/upgraded system that I experienced in my last loaner car.
-I don't love the look of the dash and how "deep" it goes. It's a bit fussy looking as well imo.
-The scroll wheel for the volume on the steering wheel feels kinda cheap...yet the main volume knob and climate controls on the center console felt high quality and "Audi-like".
-Although it offers pretty much all the same features and configurability as Audi's "virtual cockpit", the digital dash on JLR products requires more clicking/scrolling around menus to configure and use.
-You can't get a power adjustable steering column. The lever to release the manually adjustable column seemed a bit stiff/balky and not as smooth as what I'd remembred from BMWs i've owned.

On the one hand, this car makes it really hard to justfiy something like the base Taycan Cross Turismo. When similarlly specced, the Taycan would be about 40k more while offering similar performance and range. The i-Pace is roomier on the inside while being considerably smaller on the outside and also weighing less. As noted above, it rides and handles nearly as well while offering a more comfortable seating position (dead pedal is at a less upright angle and the seat is a bit softer). There are actually useful storage cubbies on the inside as opposed to the Taycan's tiny center console. And unlike the Taycan it offers one-pedal driving...of which i'm now decidedly a fan. I still prefer the looks (inside and out) of the Taycan and it charges much faster (theoretically) on DC fast chargers...although that is irrelevant for probably 95% of our driving.

On the other hand, it's hard not to also compare this to the similarly sized Mach E and Ioniq 5. Both of those cars would be about 15k less when similarly equipped. As i've ranted on about many times before, the mandatory fake leather in both is a deal breaker for me. But I should still test drive both at some point just to see how the driving experience compares. I doubt either will be revelatory... based on reviews i've watched/read, the consensus seems to be that they are both "fine" from a ride/handling/comfort perspective but nothing special. It's more the tech, design and packaging that gets people excited about on those cars. The Ioniq also just looks really cool imo. From what I can tell, dealer markups are rampant on those 2 vehicles.

I don't see much point in considering the i4 at this point... even the slower RWD version is almost as expensive when similarly equipped, while the i4 m50 is more. Plus BMW has opted to not pass the federal tax credit on to lessees. Even the RWD version weighs almost as much as the i-pace.

There's only 1 trim of the I-pace now and it is pretty much fully loaded for 71k. With the tax credit that's about 64k. Not bad if I compare it to other (conventional) daily driver/family cars I've also been thinking about like the X3 and x5 40, S5 sportback, etc. Actually those cars would be a few k more w/ the same features.

In terms of reliability, yeah, there's a risk. However, this is an area where the i-pace's age works in its favor as they've now had time to address the issues. Seems like many of these newer EVs are going through a fair share of teething pains. The Taycan, for example, seems to suffer from all manner of electronic problems and Porsche has barely managed to deliver OTA software updates.

I still can't quite bring myself to pull the trigger on ordering one for some reason. I'm still in a bit of disbelief that I like a 4 year old EV from Jaguar so much. Or maybe I'm just curious to see how the production version of the A6 etron looks. The concept is gorgeous IMO. Plus there might be a wagon version coming!
https://www.caranddriver.com/audi/a6-e-tron

More classic perseveration i guess....

ZBB · 05-03-2022, 08:35 AM

Thanks for the write-up. I haven't driven an i-Pace, but someone I work with just got one as a company car a few months ago (he's in the UK).

He said he loves it... when its not in the shop. Not a good thing for a car that's been on the market for a few years.

I'd like it to succeed, but I've only seen a couple on the road over the years. At this point, there are more competitors coming to the market, so probably worth waiting a bit longer to do a proper comparison before deciding which to order/buy...

robg · 05-03-2022, 05:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ZBB

Thanks for the write-up. I haven't driven an i-Pace, but someone I work with just got one as a company car a few months ago (he's in the UK).

He said he loves it... when its not in the shop. Not a good thing for a car that's been on the market for a few years.

I'd like it to succeed, but I've only seen a couple on the road over the years. At this point, there are more competitors coming to the market, so probably worth waiting a bit longer to do a proper comparison before deciding which to order/buy...

I think I’m most excited to see how the VW PPE cars turn out (macan, a6, etc). But realistically it’s probably 3 years before they are launched, actually available and then the requisite time to let them shake out first year issues. So an ipace lease could potentially fill that gap.

Then again, when I casually asked the sales guy back in the fall how long it would take to get ipace he quoted a 8 months to a year and said that the demo unit wasn’t for sale (since they would then have none for test drives).

I suspect that it launched a little before regular luxury buyers were willing to accept EVs. Maybe because of that, maybe supply issues but the annual production numbers are very low (I think like less than 5k worldwide!). It’s strange that they spent the effort to develop a very appealing EV on a dedicated platform that is still pretty competitive today but then decided to keep production so low and barely promote it. That is typically what automakers do with compliance-type EVs.

I’ve definitely read about the issues that earlier cars had but they seem to have resolved them. Then again, it is very hard to get accurate data with such a low volume car.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

ZBB · 05-03-2022, 07:21 PM

Honestly, I’m currently most excited by the Hyundai triplets — Ionic 5, Kia EV6 and the Genesis GV60.

I’ve been putting off test driving the EV6 since I think I it will make me want to trade the Model 3…. Kind of waiting for the GV60 to be avail to test. Part of me really likes having a paid off car and I don’t need to replace it, but I still hate having a car that was repaired after the accident 3.5 years ago…

robg · 05-03-2022, 08:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ZBB

Honestly, I’m currently most excited by the Hyundai triplets — Ionic 5, Kia EV6 and the Genesis GV60.

I’ve been putting off test driving the EV6 since I think I it will make me want to trade the Model 3…. Kind of waiting for the GV60 to be avail to test. Part of me really likes having a paid off car and I don’t need to replace it, but I still hate having a car that was repaired after the accident 3.5 years ago…

Yeah I can see that. For some reason I’m just not into the EV6 or GV60 styling. Realize I’m in the minority. I do love the ioniq5 design

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

05-02-2022, 05:01 PM	#1
robg Carmudgeon Join Date: Jun 2004 Posts: 3,241	Got an I-Pace as a loaner Weirdly, my dealer gave me an I-Pace as a loaner while my RRS was in for an oil change. Ended up being able to keep it for the weekend and returned it this morning. Usually I get a Discovery sport so this was a nice upgrade (although it was an older car-- I think it was a 2020 since it had the older infotainment setup). I'd done a short test drive of one of these in the fall and really liked it. Having now had the chance to live with on in various conditions (and with the family) for a few days I like it even more. By the end of the weekend my wife kept asking when we could get one (as did my 7 year old). Highlights: -I picked up the car fully charged showing a range of 240 miles. That proved to be fairly accurate, as I kept an eye on how much the estimated range decreased relative to actual miles driven. We drove a total of about 70 miles with it. -The seats and driving position were very good, but maybe not quite as comfortable as the RRS. Then again, this car appeared to have the base seats (without even adjustable lumbar), whereas new I-paces only come in 1 "fully loaded" spec with really good seats. Way more comfortable than the Taycan i test drove however. -The ride/handling balance was excellent...this car had 20" wheels with air suspension + adaptive dampers. It glides over road imperfections but aslo feels very agile on curvy roads. I think only the Taycan I test drove last year did a better job in both areas and only slightly. -Rear seat room comfort and legroom seemed to be much better than other EVs i've sat in. Plenty of legroom, well shaped seats and your knees aren't up in the air plus you can actually put your feet under the seat in front of you. Roomier feeling than both our RRS and old X3. -Good steering weight and feel (although the "Dynamic" setting for steering was artificially heavy). -Love that it still has knobs for the climate control and volume! -The "high" regen setting was powerful enough to bring the car to almost a compleete stop around 3mph). Once I turned it on, I almost never had to use the brake pedal. -Plenty of cargo room in the hatch..probably similar to a q5. -Really good build quality and materials. No squeaks or rattles and nothing moves or creaks when pressed. Good paint quality, panel gaps, etc. We parked next to an SUV when taking my kid to his basketball games and a kid swung the door open so that it hit the car pretty hard. There was no damage. Maybe aluminum body panels help in this respect ( I think they are less likely to dent than steel). -As expected, plenty of instant torque and great acceleration both from a start and at speed. -The styling grew on me...I had gone back and forth on whether I thought it was a bit awkward. Got lots of positive compliments from people on it too. They are quite rare so most people dont even know what it is. Much better in person than in pictures for sure. -Overall, it's just a really fun car to drive. I would definitlely need to have something that involved a manual NA V8 or flat six to have more fun. A turbo 6 or even v8 with an automatic seems almost pointless in comparison. Dislikes: -The brake pedal had an odd feel at the end of its travel (noticed this when pressing it down to stop the car completely). I can't really find the right way to describe it other than it felt kind of creaky or arthritic. Might've just been something wrong w/ this car but it was annoying. -There's no rear wiper. The theory (apparently) is that the airflow over the car keeps the rear glass clear. To be fair, this is true at highway speeds - but when you park in the rain and then have to reverse out of a spot it's not so great. -This car had the older infotainment system which is a bit slow and laggy. Atleast new cars come with the faster/upgraded system that I experienced in my last loaner car. -I don't love the look of the dash and how "deep" it goes. It's a bit fussy looking as well imo. -The scroll wheel for the volume on the steering wheel feels kinda cheap...yet the main volume knob and climate controls on the center console felt high quality and "Audi-like". -Although it offers pretty much all the same features and configurability as Audi's "virtual cockpit", the digital dash on JLR products requires more clicking/scrolling around menus to configure and use. -You can't get a power adjustable steering column. The lever to release the manually adjustable column seemed a bit stiff/balky and not as smooth as what I'd remembred from BMWs i've owned. On the one hand, this car makes it really hard to justfiy something like the base Taycan Cross Turismo. When similarlly specced, the Taycan would be about 40k more while offering similar performance and range. The i-Pace is roomier on the inside while being considerably smaller on the outside and also weighing less. As noted above, it rides and handles nearly as well while offering a more comfortable seating position (dead pedal is at a less upright angle and the seat is a bit softer). There are actually useful storage cubbies on the inside as opposed to the Taycan's tiny center console. And unlike the Taycan it offers one-pedal driving...of which i'm now decidedly a fan. I still prefer the looks (inside and out) of the Taycan and it charges much faster (theoretically) on DC fast chargers...although that is irrelevant for probably 95% of our driving. On the other hand, it's hard not to also compare this to the similarly sized Mach E and Ioniq 5. Both of those cars would be about 15k less when similarly equipped. As i've ranted on about many times before, the mandatory fake leather in both is a deal breaker for me. But I should still test drive both at some point just to see how the driving experience compares. I doubt either will be revelatory... based on reviews i've watched/read, the consensus seems to be that they are both "fine" from a ride/handling/comfort perspective but nothing special. It's more the tech, design and packaging that gets people excited about on those cars. The Ioniq also just looks really cool imo. From what I can tell, dealer markups are rampant on those 2 vehicles. I don't see much point in considering the i4 at this point... even the slower RWD version is almost as expensive when similarly equipped, while the i4 m50 is more. Plus BMW has opted to not pass the federal tax credit on to lessees. Even the RWD version weighs almost as much as the i-pace. There's only 1 trim of the I-pace now and it is pretty much fully loaded for 71k. With the tax credit that's about 64k. Not bad if I compare it to other (conventional) daily driver/family cars I've also been thinking about like the X3 and x5 40, S5 sportback, etc. Actually those cars would be a few k more w/ the same features. In terms of reliability, yeah, there's a risk. However, this is an area where the i-pace's age works in its favor as they've now had time to address the issues. Seems like many of these newer EVs are going through a fair share of teething pains. The Taycan, for example, seems to suffer from all manner of electronic problems and Porsche has barely managed to deliver OTA software updates. I still can't quite bring myself to pull the trigger on ordering one for some reason. I'm still in a bit of disbelief that I like a 4 year old EV from Jaguar so much. Or maybe I'm just curious to see how the production version of the A6 etron looks. The concept is gorgeous IMO. Plus there might be a wagon version coming! https://www.caranddriver.com/audi/a6-e-tron More classic perseveration i guess....

05-03-2022, 08:35 AM	#2
ZBB Relic Join Date: Oct 2003 Carmudgeonly Ride: A very fast golf cart Location: The Valley of the Sun Posts: 12,821	Thanks for the write-up. I haven't driven an i-Pace, but someone I work with just got one as a company car a few months ago (he's in the UK). He said he loves it... when its not in the shop. Not a good thing for a car that's been on the market for a few years. I'd like it to succeed, but I've only seen a couple on the road over the years. At this point, there are more competitors coming to the market, so probably worth waiting a bit longer to do a proper comparison before deciding which to order/buy... __________________ ZBB

05-03-2022, 07:21 PM	#4
ZBB Relic Join Date: Oct 2003 Carmudgeonly Ride: A very fast golf cart Location: The Valley of the Sun Posts: 12,821	Honestly, I’m currently most excited by the Hyundai triplets — Ionic 5, Kia EV6 and the Genesis GV60. I’ve been putting off test driving the EV6 since I think I it will make me want to trade the Model 3…. Kind of waiting for the GV60 to be avail to test. Part of me really likes having a paid off car and I don’t need to replace it, but I still hate having a car that was repaired after the accident 3.5 years ago… __________________ ZBB

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