Compare the2026 BMW iXVS 2026 Subaru Trailseeker

The iX’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Trailseeker doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

Both the iX and Trailseeker have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The iX has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Trailseeker’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The BMW iX’s optional Surround View is available with washers for its front and rear cameras, ensuring crystal-clear visibility in any weather condition. Conversely, the Subaru Trailseeker only offers a rear camera washer, which may not provide the same level of all-weather performance.

Both the iX and the Trailseeker have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, four-wheel antilock brakes, all-wheel drive, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors and available around view monitors.

The BMW iX weighs 1002 to 1384 pounds more than the Subaru Trailseeker. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.

The iX comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Trailseeker’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

The iX’s corrosion warranty is 7 years longer than the Trailseeker’s (12 vs. 5 years).

BMW pays for scheduled maintenance on the iX for 3 years and 36,000 miles. BMW will pay for tire rotations, cabin filter replacement, brake fluid replacement, inspections, and any other required maintenance. Subaru doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the Trailseeker.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2025 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that BMW vehicles are more reliable than Subaru vehicles. J.D. Power ranks BMW above average in long-term dependability. With 13 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, Subaru is rated below average.

The iX xDrive45’s standard electric motors produces 27 more horsepower (402 vs. 375) than the Trailseeker’s electric motors. The iX xDrive60’s standard electric motors produces 161 more horsepower (536 vs. 375) than the Trailseeker’s electric motors. The iX M70’s standard electric motors produces 275 more horsepower (650 vs. 375) than the Trailseeker’s electric motors.

The iX can travel longer on a full charge than the Trailseeker on a full charge:

			Miles
iX
	AWD	xDrive60 20" Wheels Electric Motors	364 miles
		xDrive60 21" Wheels Electric Motors	341 miles
		xDrive60 22" Wheels Electric Motors	327 miles
		xDrive60 23" Wheels Electric Motors	318 miles
		xDrive45 20" Wheels Electric Motors	312 miles
Trailseeker
	AWD	Premium Electric Motors	281 miles
		Limited/Touring Electric Motors	274 miles

The iX M70’s launch control uses engine electronics to hold engine RPM’s precisely in order to provide the most stable and rapid acceleration possible, using all of the available traction. The Trailseeker doesn’t offer launch control.

For better stopping power the iX’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Trailseeker:

	iX	Trailseeker
Front Rotors	13.7 inches	12.9 inches
Rear Rotors	13.6 inches	12.5 inches

For better traction, the iX’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Trailseeker (275/40R22 vs. 235/60R18).

The iX’s optional tires provide better handling because they have a lower 35 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Trailseeker Limited/Touring’s 50 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the iX xDrive45/60 has standard 20-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the Trailseeker Premium. The iX’s optional 23-inch wheels are larger than the 20-inch wheels on the Trailseeker Limited/Touring.

The iX offers an available driver-adjustable suspension system. It allows the driver to choose between an extra-supple ride, reducing fatigue on long trips, or a sport setting, which allows maximum control for tricky roads or off-road. The Trailseeker’s suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

The iX has a standard automatic front and rear load leveling suspension to keep ride height level with a heavy load or when towing. The iX’s height leveling suspension allows the driver to raise ride height for better off-road clearance and then lower it again for easier entering and exiting and better on-road handling. The Trailseeker doesn’t offer a load leveling suspension.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the iX’s wheelbase is 5.9 inches longer than on the Trailseeker (118.1 inches vs. 112.2 inches).

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the iX is 2.7 inches wider in the front and 3.4 inches wider in the rear than the track on the Trailseeker.

For greater off-road capability the iX has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Trailseeker (8.8 vs. 8.5 inches), allowing the iX to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The front grille of the iX uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Trailseeker doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The iX has 2.7 inches more front headroom, 7.3 inches more front hip room, 3.5 inches more front shoulder room, 1.6 inches more rear headroom, 3.6 inches more rear legroom, 13.9 inches more rear hip room and 3.3 inches more rear shoulder room than the Trailseeker.

The iX has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the Trailseeker with its rear seat up (35.5 vs. 31.3 cubic feet). The iX has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Trailseeker with its rear seat folded (77.9 vs. 74 cubic feet).

Pressing a switch automatically lowers the iX’s rear seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Trailseeker doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

Maximum trailer towing in the Subaru Trailseeker is limited to 3500 pounds. The iX offers up to a 6834 lbs. towing capacity.

The iX offers an optional heads-up display that projects speed, warning, navigation instruction and driver assistance information readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Trailseeker doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

The iX’s standard Comfort Access allow you to unlock the doors from any outside door handle, open the cargo door, and start the vehicle, all without removing the key from the pocket or purse. Keyless Access and Start standard on the Trailseeker doesn’t offer a sensor on the rear doors, so you’ll have to reach a front handle to unlock the rear door.

The iX’s power window, power lock, power mirror and cruise control switches are lit from behind, making them plainly visible and easier to operate at night. The Trailseeker’s power window (except driver window) and power lock switches are unlit, making them difficult to find at night and operate safely.

Laser headlights, optional on the iX, produce their light by firing blue lasers through phosphorus, a process that uses one-half the power of the Trailseeker’s LED headlights. Laser headlights can have double the range of LEDs with a much smaller surface area.

To help drivers avoid possible obstacles, the iX has standard cornering lights to illuminate around corners when the turn signals are activated. The Trailseeker doesn’t offer cornering lights. The iX also offers optional adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle.

The iX’s standard rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Trailseeker has an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

The iX has a standard heated steering wheel to take the chill out of steering on extremely cold winter days before the vehicle heater warms up. A heated steering wheel is only available on the Trailseeker Limited/Touring.

The iX offers optional massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the Trailseeker.

The BMW iX has a standard Homelink wireless remote control system for garage door operation and device management, conveniently located on the rear view mirror. Homelink® eliminates the need for separate garage door openers and associated risks of losing, breaking, or having dead batteries. Subaru charges extra for Homelink® on the Trailseeker.

The iX’s Parking Assistant can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. Remote Control Parking will park and retrieve your car remotely: press a button and watch it park itself. This is ideal for tight locations. The Trailseeker Limited/Touring’s automatic parking system does not offer parking by remote control.

Consumer Reports® recommends the BMW iX, based on reliability, safety and performance.