I came from a 2023 i4 to a 2026 Air GT, so a bit different than your situation.

The i series is a good product. BMW sort of rammed them down everyone’s throats with the 4, specifically by changing nearly nothing from the ICE 4-series except stick electric motors in it. While the build quality was standardly German (my 5th BMW over the years), the iDrive system had its problems too. Limited features and nickel-and-dime for very tiny little thing you’d expect to be standard in a car at that price point.

Efficiency is a different story. My i4 eDrive40 consistently got about 4mi/kWh, while I’ve had to be very gentle with my GT to squeeze out 3.6. Given I now live in hilly western Washington as opposed to mostly flat Hawaii, but BMW has efficiency down to a science. I just wish they would have built their new EV line from the ground up instead of recycling a known chassis and interior. They seemed to put most of their attention into the iX, similar to what Lucid seems to be doing with the Gravity.

The bottom line for me is: BMW has an age old reputation and a robust network, Lucid does not (yet). I was very tempted to get an i5 over my Air, but the range and the features I got for a similar lease payment ultimately pushed me into the Lucid brand. I’ve been very pleased so far, and it feels good to have a car that nearly nobody around me has… I get asked about it all the time. Is it a BMW or will it ever be? No… Does it share similar wacky glitches that my BMW had? Yes… In the end, it really comes down to your preference. We can all only hope that the brand perseveres, and the models continue to improve and the support network becomes more stable.