BMW iX vs Audi e-tron Sportback: running costs and warranty

Both of these cars will of course be significantly cheaper to run than their makers’ equivalent large petrol and diesel-engined SUVs – but as electric cars become the mainstream, that fact alone will no longer be sufficient, with efficiency set to be a key battleground in winning sales.

Very simply, the iX is the more efficient of the two cars, and by a noticeable margin. So you’ll get more miles of driving for every kWh of electricity fed into its battery, resulting in a lower ‘pence per mile’ figure for the BMW contender.

In addition to its superior efficiency, the BMW also comes up trumps for other ownership costs. The brand offers an appealing £15-a-month, three-year servicing plan for its fully electric models, which compares favourably with Audi’s £32-a-month, two-year deal. In addition, industry experts expect the iX to hold its value better than the e-tron Sportback: it’s predicted to be worth nearly 62% of its new price after three years on the road, which is nearly 9% more than the equivalent figure for the Audi.

When it comes to company-car tax, there’s little to separate this pair. Like all zero-emissions vehicles, they currently fall into the 2% Benefit-in-Kind (BiK) band – and will do so until at least April 2024. That sees a higher-rate income-tax payer shell out just £291 a year to run an iX as a company vehicle, compared to £316 for the Audi. The equivalent fee for combustion-engined models of similar value would be over £10,000.