[JasH]

DDave, did you actually buy an i8 and have problems? Or are you still just asking speculative questions in case you do buy one?

[Maxxsirrah]

Originally Posted by JasH

DDave, did you actually buy an i8 and have problems? Or are you still just asking speculative questions in case you do buy one?

Sounds like the latter to me. I reckon he'll make a decision some time in the next decade. Should be some more info available to answer the questions by then!

[DDave]

Sorry typo, 57,000 miles

[NGR]

DDave,
I personally wouldn't buy one of these cars without a proper warranty (i.e. a factory BMW or extended BMW warranty)
These cars are simply too specialist with lots of new, bespoke technologies involved - and that means most repairs need to be done by BMW Dealerships.

The extended warranty is very good value in my opinion and I would question any i8 that doesn't have either it's original warranty (all US cars are still under warranty?) or the extended warranty. I'd be keen to know the reasons why anyone who owns an i8 wouldn't cough up for the extended warranty (not much more than $1000).

The i8 is a very inexpensive car to run - especially in countries where fuel and vehicle taxes are high, but any problem could quickly change that. This is true of any car of course but alternatives like the Nissan GTR, Audi R8 etc have been out for 10+ years and have large groups of specialists that can help keep costs down. The existence of the 330e and X5e might mean that will change for the i8 but they're all still under factory warranty for a few more years to come.

[FrequentFlyer]

My non scientific view is that running costs are an order of magnitude less than the depreciation. Is the OP asking the right question ?

I don’t see the technology as vulnerable since there are common building blocks with the rest of the range. But the way it is packaged and the specialist procedures means a lot of labour hours will be spent on workshop jobs.

Any job on the petrol engine beyond a spark plug change probably needs the engine to be dropped down which means removing and refitting the coolant system, exhaust system, fuel tank and gearbox/transmission. You might be looking at 15 to 20 hrs of labour to remove/empty/refill/refit that lot before you actually get to the job on the engine (assuming diagnosis was correct). At UK dealer labour rates that 15-20 hours would add up to £2500-£3000 as a basic fixed cost. Plus the actual diagnosis time plus fix time plus inspection time plus test time plus parts.

There are 2 1/2 engines, two gearboxes, two different combustion air intake systems depending on engine speed. Two separate cooling systems (high temp and low temp) plus high voltage battery heating/cooling systems. Low voltage and high voltage electrical systems. Auxiliary electric heating/cooling systems, pressurised fuel tank and venting systems plus adaptive dampers and myriad sensors and control units. In isolation none of them are worrying but all this tech is on a single car!

On the positive side the car has been out for 4 years now and the recent refresh hardly touched it. If there were real reliability issues on such an expensive car then the internet would be full of stories about it and/or the refresh would have been more comprehensive. The fuel tank pressure sensor seems to be the main issue that I have seen (and had on my car btw) but you can work around it. My car was in for two days under warranty to get that sorted so in terms of labour it would have been in the £1500-£2000 range to give you a guide.

Extended warranty looks like a wise move as NGR says above. That has always been true for M Cars and the i8 is no different.

[DDave]

Thanks everyone for the input. Let me research a warranty company that will sell me a warranty or see if BMW will allow me to buy an extended warranty.

[DDave]

Can anyone recommend a warranty company in the US?

[zagaboo]

Why not buy one still in warranty or that already has a bmw extended warranty and save yourself the hassle?

[Maxxsirrah]

Am I the only one bored of this thread?? Buy a car with a BMW warranty and you are sorted, end of, super massive great!

[JasH]

OP, thanks for answering my question...


What a waste of time this thread is. You have been mulling it over since November!