One of the great things about sporty electric cars is the instant torque they provide Thanks to the way the electric motor works, the response is immediate when you step on the gas pedal

Do that in the new BMW i4 M50 and you're off down the street with your head resting on the headrests Yes, the BMW i4 M50 is neck-snappingly fast At first impression, though, it doesn't look like it can go that fast

I recently walked around a rather nice Aventurine Red model before taking it for a test drive That car definitely looked promising It looks the part, and the styling is certainly better than other current BMWs

Even the kidney-shaped grille looks acceptable enough, considering it dominates the front end Elsewhere, the rounded lines give the BMW i4 M50 a touch of class and style, but the stance is seductive enough to poke fun at its power

However, you won't know how powerful the BMW i4 M50, which produces 544 hp, is until you get in and drive it Peak torque is 795 Nm, 0-62 mph time is 39 seconds, and top speed reaches an electronically limited 140 mph In other words, those looking for a thrill in the torque department, Tesla style, can get it by simply sitting in a car that is more finely built than the Tesla Model 3

As you settle into the black Vernasca leather and get used to the controls, there is an air of classic German engineering in the cockpit This is something you don't get in a Tesla; the BMW i4 M50 is unshakable

The car was fully equipped, so the total price is £64,100 (about $85,154), which is certainly a premium price But you get so much car and some proverbial ass-kicking performance

On the other hand, you could save a little money by driving a car like the i4 eDrive40 M Sport that BMW displayed, which is also fully equipped and costs £54,495 (about $72,360) But after driving the more rugged BMW i4 M50 for a few hours, I really didn't want to give it back

The i4 M50, an M-badged beemer, is not only set up for driving, but also for stopping on a dime thanks to thick discs placed all around The chassis, which takes the power of the motors mounted front and rear, proved very impressive handling on the highway

On the other hand, the i4 M50 coped admirably when touring on winding country roads with muddy curves and curbs full of pot holes The ride is firm, but actually quite forgiving, given its speed-oriented setup

With so much power, one would think that battery life would be sacrificed, but this is not the case Even after nearly two hours of continuous driving with the car set to Sport mode (Eco Pro and Comfort options are also available) for most of the trip, the battery gauge was at 60-70% when we returned to the starting point

Official figures from BMW's spec sheet give a maximum range of 316 miles based on the European WLTP test cycle and 300 miles based on the more conservative EPA cycle From the short time I spent in this car, there is no reason to dispute this For a high-performance vehicle, the BMW i4 M50 seems remarkably efficient As a comparison, the BMW i4 eDrive40 Sport and BMW i4 eDrive40 M Sport both have 340 hp electric motors and rear-wheel drive, while offering a range of 367 miles

BMW claims that the combined charging unit allows the BMW i4 M50 to add 87 miles during a 10-minute splash-and-dash charging stop This means it can be connected to high-power DC charging stations with up to 200 kW, the only challenge being finding a compatible plug in the current infrastructure There is much more to see besides performance, and the interior is truly the star of the show Much of this is concentrated on the latest version of BMW's iDrive control and operating system

The heart of the operation is a 123-inch information display, augmented by a 149-inch control display The two are integrated and essentially function as one unit, but everything is really well designed and the operating system8 works great, even for those who don't like touch screens Of course, you can set the drive to your own preferences, but I mainly left it in Sport mode

Although I was only able to spend a couple of hours with the car, the BMW i4 M50 clearly has much more to offer I think it's the combination of performance, dynamic styling, and a host of on-board technology (this model was equipped with the Technology Plus Pack) that makes this car so hard to follow Given that the car I test drove was fully equipped, this car looks like a bargain if you are wondering about the Tesla Model 3 Performance Edition, for example, and as far as I can tell, it is better looking

Critically, Tesla's product is still slightly inferior when put up against cars like BMW and Audi; one of the first things that struck me when I visited Tesla's manufacturing plant in Fremont, California, in 2016 was the poor manufacturing quality

Indeed, Tesla was still young and in the process of getting its production line on its feet, with much of the equipment reused from elsewhere In fact, the plant itself was once used by General Motors and Toyota

Since then, Tesla's manufacturing quality has been erratic, and while its cars are much better than before, the somewhat haphazard approach to manufacturing that I experienced at the Fremont plant seems to remain BMW, on the other hand, has a longstanding image of producing cars that will last and have quality that justifies its premium price

Tesla, however, retains a notable advantage in all of this thanks to its charging infrastructure Sure, if you spend most weeks making a relatively mundane commute to work or to the grocery store and back, you have to rely on the public charging network But if you plan to go long distances, the security of Tesla's Supercharger network makes something like the Model 3 seem like a very good idea

After trying the BMW i4 M50, I think I'm ready to gamble on an inferior charging network and enjoy a more complete, all-round experience Of course, it may cost more depending on the specifications you choose, but you can't put a price on quality