BMW iX Meets X7 M50i In EV Versus ICE Tug Of War

In November 2019, Tesla demonstrated the Cybertruck’s first prototype and displayed a video, in which an electric truck crashes into a Ford F-150 in a tug of war challenger. The video caused a sensation, though not everything in this race was fair. A story about Motor1.com detailed all the inaccuracies in the video and it quickly became one of our most popular articles of all time (see related link below). Since then, we’ve been watching combustion-engined vehicles against electric vehicles in a tug of war race.

That’s why we decided to share this new tug of war video coming from carwow with you. The nearly 10-minute clip takes us to Great Britain where two of BMW’s most powerful and heaviest SUVs currently available are challenged in search of the ultimate towing engine. On the left is the BMW iX and next to it is the X7, both in the ’50 version, which means they have a similar output. Many factors contribute to the final result here – power, weight, traction and more. But let’s look at the numbers first.

This electric SUV uses two electric motors with a combined output of 523 horsepower (385 kilowatts) and 564 pound-feet (765 Newton-meters) of instant torque. It’s quite heavy at 5,533 pounds (2,510 kilograms). In contrast, the X7 uses a 4.4-liter twin-turbo V8 engine, producing 530 hp (390 kW) and 553 lb-ft (750 Nm). It’s nearly as heavy as the iX at 5,489 lbs (2,490 kg), although it has one major advantage – its towing capacity is 7,716 lbs (3,500 kg) versus 5,511 lbs (2,500 kg) for a luxury electric SUV. So, with the numbers laid out on the table, it’s time to see how those numbers translate into actual performance in this tug-of-war.

Both vehicles were placed on a slippery surface, possibly to protect their tires and drivetrain from excessive damage. This means traction isn’t great and the first half of the challenge isn’t particularly exciting – both cars are almost completely static and spin the wheels desperately. However, the combustion model gained traction at some point and beat the iX. The second run is shorter and has the same winner. At the end of the video, there’s a little surprise – the Mercedes-AMG G63 is trying its luck against the X7.