BMW Updates X1 xDrive25Le In China With Bigger Battery

This gets us to the xDrive25Le iPerformance, a plug-in hybrid option that BMW revealed in September 2016 for the 2017 model year. Back then, the crossover promised 60 kilometers of range from a 10.7-kWh battery. Fast-forward to 2019 for the 2020 model year, and range has increased 83 percent while the plug-in hybrid powertrain promises 72 percent more efficiency.

Dropping the iPerformance nomenclature is one thing, but the xDrive25Le is more than meets the eye. With 110 kilometers (68 miles of range) on the New European Driving Cycle, there’s no denying BMW made the X1 more interesting than ever before. Nickel, cobalt, and manganese are utilized 8:1:1 in the battery, and despite the increase in capacity, the pack weighs 2.5 kilograms (5.5 pounds) more than before.

As ever, the electric motor that drives the front axle works in tandem with a 1.5-liter three-cylinder turbo connected to the front wheels. The all-wheel-drive crossover outputs 231 horsepower and 282 pound-feet (382 Nm). In conjunction with a six-speed automatic transmission, the xDrive25Le accelerates to 100 km/h (62 mph) from a standstill in 7.4 seconds.

Manufactured in Shenyang at the BMW Brilliance Automotive plant of Tiexi, the fuel-efficient X1 promises to consume 1.3 liters of gasoline every 100 kilometers (62 miles) or so. Then again, the NEDC is far from the WLTP the European Union uses these days, a more efficient means of rating fuel consumption and CO2 emissions.

BMW is the market leader in the premium segment of electrified vehicles in China, going to show the importance of the xDrive25Le in this part of the world. BMW also happens to sell more electrified vehicles in Germany than other automakers, but over there, the 225xe Active Tourer is the smallest plug-in hybrid on offer from the brand.