The BMW i3 is certainly an atypical car, compared to the typical BMW shape and proportions. Normally, the sales trend goes upwards as a new car is launched, reaches a peak after about two or three years and then starts dwindling as the new generation starts development and gets ready for market launch. It’s not the case with the i3 though, as the electric vehicle has seen a steady rise in demand in recent years, mostly due to the technical upgrades it received.
The original 60Ah model was selling in decent numbers, but after the 94Ah model came out, with a 50-percent longer range, things started to really pick up, range anxiety becoming less of an issue. This year BMW announced that the range will go up another 30 percent thanks to yet another update in the battery department, offering an even higher energy density, of 120Ah. The Germans are so confident in their offering that they actually stopped selling the REx model in Europe, one of its biggest markets for the i3.
It may seem atypical but BMW is really confident that the i3 is going to do good, even though it is a 5-year old model. Speaking to Automotive News, Robert Irlinger, the head of BMW i said “We will have to see how demand is for the new 120-amp-hour i3, but I can say that sales of the car will increase significantly this year even though it is 5 years old. And, we expect a further gain next year.” High expectations, indeed.
Truth be told, the i3 was a particular bird from the get go. Its design is still setting it apart in the crowd today while the interior remains up to date thanks to its minimalist look. The materials used inside are still revolutionary today, showing just how much work went into making the i3 from the get go. The two updates done to the battery pack in 5 years are, apparently, all the i3 needed to stay relevant. Sales recorded throughout 2018 show that the Germans were spot on with what needed changing.
I’d buy one, especially if they have a fire sale on them again.
CPO.
For the 120Ah versions? Are they out yet in the US?
Jan-Feb
Why? You need more than 160 km. range?
Of course.
If range is your issue, why shop BEV? Diesel=range.
150 miles is enough range to be comfortably useful to me. Also, I wasn’t aware of two years of free diesel with purchase.
huh?
BMW provides buyers with access to two years of free charging on the EVgo network. I’ll gladly wait 20 minutes every two hours to avoid having to buy my own fuel.
So you will be paying for it. If it’s available, present grids already suffer killer blackouts, millions of BEV may be too big a challenge, could be the electric ’70’s OPEC oil & gas crisis all over again.
No, they can’t.
huh?
Added range is great, but how about acceleration? If they can give it a little more kick, then it would really be more competitive.
If they’d give it even more power, many people (especially these smart americans using summer/all season tyres in winter) will crash all the time…
LOL. $$ More Replacement Sales $$
First I don’t think more power means more crashes. Second I don’t think americans are better or worse than people from other places.
With what? i3 real world acceleration is fine, one benefit of BEV insta-torque.
While fun, I dont think acceleration is important for competitiveness. i3 is not a sports car.
It’s no sports car, but it’s still a BMW…
one could argue though, that the i3 should be fitted with one electric motor for each rear wheel, which would allow for 2x170hp power and individual control og each wheel.
BMW keeps mentioning a 4th generation of EV with the i4.
I hope that includes a more powerful and more efficient electric motor, and they drop it into the i3 as well. That would be fortunate for everyone.
I owned a 2014 for 3 years–big mistake, should have leased. Sales will only increase with really aggressive leasing rates or a $10K price cut. 2014 i3’s are selling in the $20K range. An off-lease is the sweet buy, because I thought it was a really good city car, and I could afford to throw it away after another three years; but that’s unlikely to be necessary as a BEV version should have few maintenance or corrosion issues. AND, the battery will have a high trade-in value for electric grid use for one to upgrade to a new, larger capacity battery. Need to do something about the tires, though. Rough riding, and even more rapid wear for a lot of people than Run Flats. OEM tire is the only one available, unfortunately.
Agreed. Lease is the way to go or buy used ones after a few years.
The tires? Yeah, agreed. But it doesnt seem that many OEM tire makers wanna build them for the i3. Sucks!
If the electric sale ramp goes S curve, we’ll need the REX version more than ever.
As, these slow 2 stall charger stations will be always full.
BMW should keep that in mind, even for Europe.
I’d really like the car software to allow winter charging to just 80%, like Tesla.
Because, I only use 20-30 miles a day. But, I have to plug it in at night and charge, so that in the morning it will pre-condition the battery. This forces me to charge to 100% during winter, every day.
The only other change would be to match the width of the i3s front tires to the Standard non-sport i3.
So that it too has a bit wider front tire. It could use the extra grip for handling.
This would help to sell cars, as the looks of those skinny front tires I’m sure are hurting sales.
Thanks