[giggsy11]

Hi guys..
Picked up my new i8 a week ago...
Just getting used to the car now but I do have a few questions..
Firstly I am wondering if there is an issue with the electric engine as it only shows 12 miles after a full charge! Is that normal? I was under the impression the figure should be closer to 16miles..
Secondly I am charging just via the mains.. Should be the charge setting be set as low only?? And it should take about 4/5hours?? All normal??
Thanks guys!

[Nivarox]

Welcome,
I have not seen it as low as 12 miles , mines is minimum records 24 kilometers with full charge .Try to reset the computer then try again may be it helps
Low Charge setting is perfectly right with the numbers you provided for . I have not measured or timed using a chronometer to see all the different settings but mine is around 6.5 hours to fully charge it up from 3 to 25 kilometers opting the lowest setting

[Aye-eight]

Originally Posted by giggsy11

Hi guys..
Picked up my new i8 a week ago...
Just getting used to the car now but I do have a few questions..
Firstly I am wondering if there is an issue with the electric engine as it only shows 12 miles after a full charge! Is that normal? I was under the impression the figure should be closer to 16miles..
Secondly I am charging just via the mains.. Should be the charge setting be set as low only?? And it should take about 4/5hours?? All normal??
Thanks guys!

Congrats on the car!

The range the car shows depends on how you drive it. Just like in a normal car, where the remaining fuel range changes when you go from aggressive driving to slow and vice versa. Because the battery isn't huge, your driving style will affect the range indication a great deal. But it's only an indication. You will find that if it says 12 miles, you can still get 16 or more if you drive carefully. Maximizing the range (if you even care) takes some getting used to. I have gotten as much as 40 km (23 miles) out of a charge. But that pretty much requires that you roll along at an even, moderate speed without traffic, etc.

Once you've done one or two careful trips like that, your range indication will be higher. And it will drop again if you're more throttle-happy.

For recharging from a normal wall outlet, the car is set to a low charging rate for safety reasons. They don't know in what shape the electrics of your house are. I have changed mine to max. Doesn't make a huge difference, though - still takes about four hours for a full charge. That goes down to about two hours if you use a proper charging station, like a wall charger. If that's worth the investment, is entirely up to you.

I have found that two hours is the fastest you can get. I do have a portable aftermarket charger that I carry with me it allows me to plug into all kinds of outlets. But even if I plug into 400 V, 32 A, it still takes two hours. There's a charging rate beyond which the car doesn't go.

Enjoy the i8. It's an amazing car. And you'll soon get the hang of optimizing your experience. Depending on your mood and your needs of the day, you can drive at least two very different cars in one. That's the coolest part.

[fishpond]

Originally Posted by Aye-eight

Congrats on the car!

I have found that two hours is the fastest you can get. I do have a portable aftermarket charger that I carry with me it allows me to plug into all kinds of outlets. But even if I plug into 400 V, 32 A, it still takes two hours. There's a charging rate beyond which the car doesn't go.

Correct - the i8 only has an on-board 16A charger (unlike the i3 which has a 32A on-board charger). Not sure why they did this...

[Jo-Sta07]

I use to see 16 on full charge but I drive pretty hard and now mostly see 14-15. Still average about 30 mpg tho.

[giggsy11]

Many thanks for the info guys!

[fishpond]

The climate has an effect on the range as well. In the summer I was seeing around 20 miles of range, but now I see ~14-16 miles (unless my wife drives it, in which case I'll typically see 12 miles or less!).

[Aye-eight]

Originally Posted by fishpond

The climate has an effect on the range as well. In the summer I was seeing around 20 miles of range, but now I see ~14-16 miles (unless my wife drives it, in which case I'll typically see 12 miles or less!).

My experience is similar. Most likely, interior heating, more use of headlights, etc. are the key culprits. Maybe the battery also requires more conditioning, although I'd expect it to have more of a need to be cooled rather than heated.