[Fedie]

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I've seen a lot of people asking about disabling stability control on the i3. As i3 owner we don't have a traction button but instead we have to through the idrive to deactivate just traction control however DSC/ESC still enable until now.

This is totally NOT recommended and for off road only, I mean there is no valid reason to this other than BMW tech run tests but hey let's not spoil the fun, nothing better than a snowy day on a empty parking lot to update your driving techniques

Service menu: some of you know of it, located by holding the trip reset button for about 20 sec. There is an option called "roller mode". This option can only be enabled on a complete stop and it will disable pretty much every piece of technology that makes this car safe, hence above "off road" and "not recommended"

You might have also disable TC using idrive as I did on my test.

Have fun braking your new car

[JasH]

I wonder how ever did we manage to safely drive in a straight line before cars had all these electronic aids?

[afadeev]

Originally Posted by JasH

I wonder how ever did we manage to safely drive in a straight line before cars had all these electronic aids?

Well, we didn't have to worry about 400+ ft.lbs of torque in 3-series cars in the "good old days", that how!


Remember the E30M3 that people like to love so much?
I had one. It was very racy for its time. Still, you needed rain to spin rear tires!

Now you can turn rears into smoke in every BMW sold in the US, even the bottom-feeder 320i (200 lb-ft for '15 320i vs. 177 lb-ft for E30 S14B23 engine).

I will take engine development progress any time, all the time.
DSC and other tools are GREAT for everyday street driving. As long as we can turn them OFF on demand, I LOVE them.

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[Kiwi]

I have said this before the i3 needs sport mode to move from a shopping cart to at least a better driving car.

[-c-]

Originally Posted by Kiwi

I have said this before the i3 needs sport mode to move from a shopping cart to at least a better driving car.

Well I guess you can look at this as a secret sport mode .


Sport mode is not going to help you since it's just programming.

In most cases the sport mode changed the shifting characteristics and throttle response with a little dab of heavier steering feel,

It's a single gear trans, what shift point optimization are they going to change since their are no gear shifts?
You already have Instant torque from stand still so what are they going to optimize their to get extra oomph !

Otherwise the nature of electric is already sporty as you have instant torque and a single gear trans so no need to shift. Only thing that differs in this car from the other bmw's is the inability to turn off stability control completely. Now you have it.

If they did give the i3 sport mode what would they change since everything is already optimized ?

Steering perhaps but that's not really going to help as most electric steering always feels numb and no feedback. The old Z4M I had used hydraulic steering and you could feel the road.

So heavier steering in an i3 is kind of a mute point. Be honest with yourself and the car and just accept its not going to be a track car. It is however sporty where in needs to be and comfortable where it needs to be and is a great commuter. Perhaps in another model and or a baby i8 you shall have your dream but complaining about it won't change a thing.


Need to fundamentally change the suspension and maybe make a wide body panels with wider tires and a sway bar.
With the likely hit in range and performance. (Heavier wheel and tires) not sure if that would really be worth it.. If the car had a range of 200miles then a few miles I could bare to loose but when the car gets in the 50 odd mile range when it gets cold out I need every mile.

[Kiwi]

Sport mode will fix the sloppy steering and stiffen up the suspension when required. My wife thought the i3 was a sloppy drive as well.

The i3 defiantly has the acceleration and I do like the design as well the interior except the front seats with their lack of back support.

[-c-]

Originally Posted by Kiwi

Sport mode will fix the sloppy steering and stiffen up the suspension when required. My wife thought the i3 was a sloppy drive as well.

The i3 defiantly has the acceleration and I do like the design as well the interior except the front seats with their lack of back support.

Yea that's not going to happen.

Plus my wife prefers the steering and drive compared to her Mini.

I two find it acceptable and more than adequate so not sure why yours was sloppy. Could have been a bad one, who knows but steering feels right on and very responsive in my car.

Also back to the suspension, you're going to have to change it as the sport mode will have to have different suspension that's configurable if it's to tighten it up.

So adding just a sport mode won't work, it's a lot deeper and involved than that. Steering is also razor sharp so I don't see that getting improved either. Maybe just making it heavier but I don't see any value in that.

Seats can be modified easily.

[jadnashuanh]

The i3 is a highly engineered vehicle that was optimized in almost every aspect. Now, your idea of what is optimum may not agree with BMW's, and there's nothing anyone can do to change that, but pretty much everything on the car was done for a reason, and it wasn't just to keep the costs down. In Germany, they take being green much more seriously than many other places, so renewable materials, recycling, and efficiency are major driving forces. Those features do not always agree with what some feel is luxury, or abide by the norm...the i3 was a blank sheet design. How it is accepted will have some effect on the next vehicles, but I think they will continue to hold to the main goals and that may still result in a polarizing design - you either like it or you don't, with not too many in between. Styles change, some embrace them, some prefer consistency - some do not accept change readily. One must do that to appreciate the i3.

[-c-]

Originally Posted by jadnashuanh

The i3 is a highly engineered vehicle that was optimized in almost every aspect. Now, your idea of what is optimum may not agree with BMW's, and there's nothing anyone can do to change that, but pretty much everything on the car was done for a reason, and it wasn't just to keep the costs down. In Germany, they take being green much more seriously than many other places, so renewable materials, recycling, and efficiency are major driving forces. Those features do not always agree with what some feel is luxury, or abide by the norm...the i3 was a blank sheet design. How it is accepted will have some effect on the next vehicles, but I think they will continue to hold to the main goals and that may still result in a polarizing design - you either like it or you don't, with not too many in between. Styles change, some embrace them, some prefer consistency - some do not accept change readily. One must do that to appreciate the i3.

[Fedie]

Originally Posted by Kiwi

I have said this before the i3 needs sport mode to move from a shopping cart to at least a better driving car.

In all fairness the i3 packs quite a bit of punch, however you must understand the propose of this car was never to be sporty.
Jump on a 550 GT, yes it is fast but never a track type of car. Yes we tend to upgrade our cars to in our own eyes make it better but this car is not you ultimate driving machine. Adaptive suspension will require different shocks and a way to control it this will also increase the cost. So for sport they made the i8.
Think about for a minute and put a Toyota Prius in your mind, are you really expecting to have tight suspension or a Mercedes b class electric? Not really.
I have spent lots of time modding my cars, last 2 a e92 n54 with 450whp and a x1 n55 with 350whp, lots of mods into this cars.
Yes I will like to have a 0-60 4 second car but I came to senses that this car is not that.
I do have plans to lower it but not for performance, just for looks. I will however gain better body control but that is not the end goal, also I must be really careful to align it to perfection since this car needs to roll. Lowering the car will give me negative camber increasing cornering but will also increase roll resistance so if I can't achieve same rolling I will not lower it. Again sacrificing performance, why? Just because this car is not your typical sports car.

So you want sport mode for Better handling? Lower it but be aware, now for sport related options in the electric motor it will totally defeat the purpose. Imagine getting a 20 mile range because of your idea of sport mode? Not so good, cool but good.

[Kiwi]

Who would ever want a Toyota anything.

I wasn't wanting the i3 as a sports car I just wanted it like other BMW's an option to drive a sporty car when I was out driving our country roads. We are not like large cities and don't have to drive many miles just to get out. We only need to drive no more then 15 miles from anywhere in Auckland to be in the country side.

The i3 was never designed for New Zealand roads it's an around town shopping cart for large cities.

I was so looking forward to purchasing an i3 but went with a new 1 series and 2 series convertible 3 months ago for the family. I was always going for the convertible and the i3 was going be for work.

[-c-]

Originally Posted by Kiwi

The i3 was never designed for New Zealand roads it's an around town shopping cart for large cities.

You said it yourself!

It wasn't designed for country roads.

In large congested cities I assure you their is no need for sport mode.

It does exactly as it was designed for, no more no less.

I think adding a sport mode to an I3 would be lying to the customer and to the spirit of the i3 in general.

We are but a small fraction of people that would not mind a sport mode and I would have paid to have it, but I bet you their just was no business case to spend the money to add that to the car. It costs millions to add specific items to vehicles ( testing, tooling, R&D, software) the list is long and for a city commuter they probably made the decision it was not right for the product and its environment.

I think we revived the horse and kicked it to death again.