2025 BMW X3 30e xDrive Review: PHEV variant is the Ultimate Driving Machine
You know we are truly through the technological looking glass when an enthusiast driver can eschew the obvious choice of recommending the new yet traditional straight six-cylinder engined variant of the all-new BMW X3 range for the more affordable plug-in hybrid.
And not just because it’s cheaper to buy and far more economical to run, but because it genuinely felt like the best variant of the three available to drive, at least once you put aside the admittedly glorious metallic bellows the range-topping M50 version offers.
And with an EV range of 91km, you really could use this X3 30e xDrive as your daily driver and very rarely have to put fuel in it.
READ MORE: BMW reveals first Aussie details of 2025 BMW iX: More expensive, more gear, more go, more range for Benz EQE and Audi Q6 fighter
READ MORE: Future BMWs could suck: German brand teases some of its latest tech including experimental fans that suck it closer to the road
READ MORE: Roarsome: Listen to the new 2028 BMW M3 EV … could there be an inline-six turbo lurking beneath the bonnet of this zero-emission next-gen super sedan?
The BMW X3 is a global success story, shifting more than 3.5 million units since its launch 20 years ago, and almost 60,000 of those in Australia. This new fourth-generation version of the car – almost certain to be the last one offered with combustion engines – is a slick and modern update to a well-loved formula.
2025 BMW X3 30e xDrive price and equipment
The combustion-only versions of the X3 start at $86,100 for the base 2.0-litre and rise to $128,900 for the shouty and sporty M50 xDrive, while the PHEV sits in the middle at $104,100. That sounds like a lot until you consider that the variant it’s replacing was $111,800.
As BMW dealers will no doubt tell you, that’s an all-new car with new tech, new chassis, new platform and better looks for less money. They’re basically giving it away at that price, they might even say.
BMW describes the sharper, edgier looks of the new X3 as “monolithic”, which certainly sounds grand, but in fact what makes this car so popular is its Goldilocks dimensions. A BMW X4 is properly monolithic, and a BMW X1 is Mini Countryman-sized, which makes the X3 just right for most people, even families, because there’s decent room in the rear seats and boot.
The exterior design will win hearts and dollars, but not everyone will love it, as it takes on a lot of cues from the more radical EV-edge of the BMW design language. There’s a new “Iconic Glow” grille that separates the two famous BMW kidneys, which is a bit radical and could be argued to make it look a bit gap-toothed in the face. There’s also a panoramic glass roof that really adds to a sense of space and lightness inside.
It does look a bit pinched from the back, but overall I liked it.
The interior introduces a new technology called “Shytech” – try saying it out loud, it’s quite amusing – which involves making things like air vents “less conspicuous” to create a slicker look, highlighted by lush screens (14.9-inch and 12.3-inch as standard).
Between the front seats is a new illuminated “Jewellery Box” with cupholders and a wireless charging tray.
The driver is also provided with a new and very sporty-feeling flat-bottomed steering and sexy shift paddles connected to an eight-speed auto gearbox, regardless of which variant. You can use the gears even when you’re in EV mode, but it feels a little weird when you do. Perhaps it’s just the lack of noise on downshifts, but I wasn’t sure what it was doing – changing the regen, as it would on an EV, or actually shifting cogs.
The new X3 PHEV comes with all kinds of safety equipment, literally too much to mention, plus standard inclusions like heated seats front and rear, a heated steering wheel, acoustic glazing, an interior camera, roller blinds, a Drive Recorder and a luggage compartment net.
You can spend more to get more of course, with an Enhancement Package at $4000 for the 30e featuring metallic paint, an alarm system and Harman/Kardon surround sound (surely a good stereo should be standard when you’re north of $100k?)
Another $2000 gets you the M Sport Pro Package, which is mainly show rather than go (M seatbelts, for example, although you do get M Sport brakes).
The interior is generally and genuinely lovely and feels both space ship-like and expensive. Wheels are 20-inch as standard with 21-inch optional.
2025 X3 30e xDrive: What we think
BMW is truly forging ahead when it comes to EV sales, which now make up close to 40 per cent of its volume, even in Australia, but it knows there is also a sizeable market for a PHEV option, and it has delivered a very attractive one here. And made it more attractive by really sharpening the price point.
That 91km EV-only range is a selling point, as is the fact that it will stay in EV mode even if you push on, right up to 140km/h (obviously only something you can do in Germany).
The new styling is modern and head-turning, the interior is suitably slathered in screens and you also get a huge, and colourful, HUD, which is actually so big it can be almost distracting.
For those who aren’t quite ready to go for one of the many BMW BEV options, the PHEV is a very smart first step towards electrification.
BMW has a lot to say about how fabulous and new the steering and chassis set up for this X3 is, and there’s no doubt that the X3 30e PHEV delivers when it comes to handling and ride, the sharpness of its turn-in and the general sporty, Germanic premium feel of the drive.
Personally, I felt like the steering wasn’t quite as meaty or talkative as in BMWs of old, although it was close, and still very good.
What was surprising was just how good the PHEV was compared to the other two options. Yes, it makes sense in terms of fuel economy and practicality, but it was also simply the best to drive. Perhaps it’s the relative lack of weight over the front wheels compared to the big straight six , and the lower centre of gravity provided by the battery under the floor, but it just seemed to have better turn-in and better ride quality in general.
Hit a bump and there’s just less rebound than in the more expensive car, and the suspension settles quicker. It was impressive, and despite being obviously slower in pure pace than the M50 – 6.2 seconds to 100km/h vs an impressive 4.6 – it never feels slow, indeed it feels zesty. Pull in the left paddle for a few seconds and you engage Boost mode, which gives you everything it’s got for 10 seconds, which makes overtaking a breeze.
No, it doesn’t sound as good as the M50, but it can be silent when you want it to be – a trick the combustion one can’t match – and under load it actually sounds pretty festive anyway.
BMW X3 30e: Verdict
I thought I would enjoy the PHEV version of the new BMW X3 range, but I didn’t expect it to be the one I wanted to take home. But it genuinely was, and not just because I have solar panels and am tight with money.
Score: 4/5
2025 BMW X3 30e xDrive price and specifications
Price: $104,100 (plus on-road costs)
Basics: PHEV, 5 seats, 5 doors, medium SUV, AWD
Range: 850km (91km in EV mode)WLTP
Battery capacity: 19.7kWh
Battery warranty: Six-years/100,000km
Energy consumption: 1.6L/100km (ADR)
Powertrain: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol
Motors: 1 synchronous, integrated into transmisison
Combined Outputs: 220kW/450Nm
AC charging: 11kW Type 2 plug
0-100km/h 6.2 seconds
