BMW i3 50 xDrive First Edition Drives In As Order Books Swing Open

The BMW i3 First Edition has arrived, and it is already turning heads before a single wheel has touched a customer’s driveway. Demand for this electric saloon ran so hot that BMW threw open its reservation books well ahead of the planned schedule. For now, the early order rush is centred on the European market, yet the appetite for this badge is unmistakable. When a marque shifts its own timeline to keep pace with buyers, you know the showroom buzz is genuine.

Among recent electric launches, the i3 has earned a notably warm welcome from the motoring crowd. A few voices have picked over the styling, as they always do, but the broader response leans firmly positive. Keen to reward the drivers who put pen to paper first, BMW has rolled out the i3 50 xDrive First Edition. The name is a mouthful, granted, but it signals a model packed with extra equipment for those quick off the line.

Step inside, and the kit list reads like a proper treat. Tri-zone climate control, sun-protection glazing, a heated steering wheel and a crisp 3D head-up display all feature, alongside a Harman Kardon surround sound system and a powered boot. The headline upgrade, though, sits in the charging hardware. The First Edition lifts the AC charging rate from 11 to 22 kW, so topping up the battery becomes a far quicker affair between journeys.

Beneath the added luxuries, the mechanical recipe stays true to the standard car heading for forecourts. The 50 xDrive runs a dual-motor layout fed by a hefty 108.7 kWh battery, and the First Edition comes in this configuration alone. BMW quotes up to 563 miles on the optimistic WLTP cycle, with 469 hp and 476 lb-ft of torque on tap. That muscle fires the saloon from 0 to 62 mph in a brisk 4.7 seconds.

European drivers will be first to take delivery, with the i3 arriving as early as autumn 2026 and production starting in August. American buyers face a slightly longer wait, as their cars will roll out of BMW Plant Munich and land on home soil in 2027. With orders moving this fast and the timeline already shuffled, the i3 looks set to bolster BMW’s electric line-up and ride alongside the strong showing of the iX3 across Europe.