Forum for the entire range of BMW electric vehicles
BMW Garage BMW Meets Register Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read
BMW i3 Forums BMW i3 General Discussion

Post Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
      08-11-2020, 02:47 PM   #1
Soul_Glo
Major General
Soul_Glo's Avatar
United_States
13283
Rep
7,483
Posts

Drives: G20
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Manhattan, NYC

iTrader: (1)

Talk to me about the i3S.

What's real world economy like?
Is it really like lightening from 0-30?
Is it good for interstate driving?
Anything else that can be done to extend the range bar driving it slowly in eco mode?
How is the battery in winter? Do cold conditions reduce the range?
Overall is it reliable?

I'd like to hear from owners who are impressed by their i3/s and if so then what do you like about it.

Thanks

This drag race against an M3 raised my eyebrow:


Appreciate 0
      08-12-2020, 07:53 AM   #2
Nahlem
Captain
Nahlem's Avatar
Sweden
1144
Rep
890
Posts

Drives: None atm
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Sweden

iTrader: (0)

Garage List
2022 BMW i4 m50  [10.00]
Quote:
Originally Posted by Soul_Glo View Post
What's real world economy like?
Is it really like lightening from 0-30?
Is it good for interstate driving?
Anything else that can be done to extend the range bar driving it slowly in eco mode?
How is the battery in winter? Do cold conditions reduce the range?
Overall is it reliable?

I'd like to hear from owners who are impressed by their i3/s and if so then what do you like about it.

Thanks

This drag race against an M3 raised my eyebrow

Well i can try to answer some stuff.

Real world economy depends on your driving style, for example this morning i drove for 15 minutes and 13 km to work, but it was highway driving so my kWh/100 km was 17.8 witch is bad. And average for all my trips so far is at 15.8 kWh/100 km. But i also do keep my car in sport mode pretty much all the time the best so called range i have gotten on the guess o meter is 382 km in one charge. So to put it simple if you ain't driving on highways it is a pretty decent car when it comes to range. But when getting on the highway well then it kinda gets a bit worse. But the car isn't directly very Aero dynamic and it sits quite high off the ground. Lowering the car as a first mod improves handling, stability and to some extent the range. If it is fast off the line? Yes, yes it is its definitely a fun red light runner. You can surprise a lot of car owners with the i3s who isn't prepared for the wicked acceleration, it ain't no super car or a model 3 performance but it stands its ground as long as the race is only between red lights.

From my experience when it comes to ECO mode and day to day driving it ain't worth using, but if you are planning longer trips then it sure comes in handy. Then again i live in Sweden and the distance between areas here ain't that far depending on where you live but in the radius of my 280 km i can get both to our capitol city and almost to our summer home in one charge so. Winter time i get with my driving style a maximum of 250 km when fully charged and i am storing my car in a warm garage. So expect to loose a bit range so let say you keep having around 310-320 km on average if you keep driving normally and don't use the accelerations so hard during the summer the range will definitely drop to about 250-280 km depending on how much heating you are using in your car i keep about 21-22 during winter and 19-20 during summer and i stay in that range. You can mitigate some of these if you are good with using precondition of the car so it preheats during winter and pre cools during summer. Especially it should be used if your day to day driving involves being able to charge it both at home and at work. Then precondition should be mandatory. Because from what i have seen then it uses the electricity from the outlet and not the battery. Or rather say it doesn't discharge the battery due to the car being charged while preconditioning is working.

Reliable well i have had mine in for some BMW recall stuff other then that there isn't much that can go wrong with the car itself, the whole thing is one big plastic/carbon-fiber core car and it doesn't have the machinery of a regular ICE engine so yeah it is quite reliable. Except for the 12 volt battery it seems every weird issue with this car comes back to the 12v battery for whatever reason that is. Other tips i can give is always keep an eye on your Tyre pressure this has been what has done the most difference to my experience when it comes to driving the car.

I keep my front tires at 2.5 bar and the rears at 2.8 this gives best of both worlds when it comes to acceleration and being able to feel some of the road even though we know new Bimmers are quite numb when it comes to steering feel. Other tips? Well when cleaning the car the hood of the car is extremely sensitive to scratches so i would get that wrapped in a vinyl i did it to mine to avoid the scratches when hand washing the car.

Oh and the best tuning tip i can give ya is reducing weight on this car for me it was loosing about 45 kgs of my self over the last year has made some difference in how fast the car feels.

Oh and another thing it is wicked capable in how much it can transport when you fold the rear seats. Its like having a Ford Transit but more fun and better looking depending on how you feel about the looks of the car so to speak.
__________________
Current Car: Bicycle

Former Car:BMW i4 M50 Brooklyn Grey (MY22)| BMW i3s BEV (MY19)|Former Car: BMW X1 20d x-drive (MY16)|BMW m235i (MY14)|Former Car: BMW 120d (MY12)|Former Car: Volvo C30 T5 R-Design (MY08)|Former Car: Volvo C70 T5 (MY06)|Former Car: Volvo S40 2.0T(MY1999)
Appreciate 1
Soul_Glo13282.50
      08-12-2020, 04:11 PM   #3
Orange fever
Colonel
Orange fever's Avatar
Thailand
2349
Rep
2,828
Posts

Drives: E36M,E46M,E90M,X5M,i3,M2,i8
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: SoCal. in the hood!!!

iTrader: (5)

@Nahlem, answered everything correctly from my point of view. I'll give you some short answers to your questions as well.
0-50 every red light is a race waiting to happen even though the other person doesn't now there's a race going on.
With the modes
EcoPro/EcoPro+
Comfort :I use the only on local streets
EcoPro :75mph freeway Pro+ driving crazy over 80mph

battery in winter: you do loses 5-10 miles
Had my i3 since 2015 the only thing that I change was the battery 12v ....
And every year rear tires!!!
And every year looks like I lose 2-3 miles since it was new.
__________________

BMW I12 i8 Frozen Yellow- H&R springs, 22" Radenergie F10 Monoblock Forged ///
F87 M2 Aw -Vorsteiner Aero Kit, VFF-107,Macht Schnell-Springs,VF-Engineering/Hex tuning Stage Two,ER DP,Stock Exhaust,Drop-In Bmc Filter,AA Intercooler,FTP Charge pipe+boost pipe/// Wish list :Mexico delivery 2024 BMW M2 (G87)
Appreciate 1
Soul_Glo13282.50
      08-12-2020, 10:56 PM   #4
Soul_Glo
Major General
Soul_Glo's Avatar
United_States
13283
Rep
7,483
Posts

Drives: G20
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Manhattan, NYC

iTrader: (1)

How are overtaking abilities? Is there sufficient punch?
Appreciate 0
      08-13-2020, 12:55 AM   #5
Nahlem
Captain
Nahlem's Avatar
Sweden
1144
Rep
890
Posts

Drives: None atm
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Sweden

iTrader: (0)

Garage List
2022 BMW i4 m50  [10.00]
Quote:
Originally Posted by Soul_Glo View Post
How are overtaking abilities? Is there sufficient punch?
Oh good god yes throw in sport mode and overtaking is a blast A bit to much confidence inspiring, you suddenly think you can overtake everywhere & anywhere so that is a + for the i3
__________________
Current Car: Bicycle

Former Car:BMW i4 M50 Brooklyn Grey (MY22)| BMW i3s BEV (MY19)|Former Car: BMW X1 20d x-drive (MY16)|BMW m235i (MY14)|Former Car: BMW 120d (MY12)|Former Car: Volvo C30 T5 R-Design (MY08)|Former Car: Volvo C70 T5 (MY06)|Former Car: Volvo S40 2.0T(MY1999)
Appreciate 1
Soul_Glo13282.50
      08-13-2020, 01:46 PM   #6
websterize
New Member
United_States
16
Rep
16
Posts

Drives: 2018 i3 Sport BEV
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: Maryland

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Soul_Glo View Post
What's real world economy like?
Is it good for interstate driving?
Not just good, but significantly better than the non-sport i3, at highway speeds. Today, I bought out the lease on my 2018 i3 Sport ($10K incentive from BMWFS ), which is my third i3.

If you can find a Sport to test drive, you'll see what I mean -- feels like a different car.
Appreciate 1
Soul_Glo13282.50
      08-13-2020, 02:34 PM   #7
vreihen16
Recovering Perfectionist
vreihen16's Avatar
Ukraine
14882
Rep
938
Posts

Drives: 2015 BMW i3 BEV
Join Date: Jun 2019
Location: Orange County, NY

iTrader: (0)

Garage List
I have three cars in my driveway to choose from: The Audi race car, the 6-speed Ram/Cummins diesel (610 ft-lbs torque), and the i3. The i3 will hang with either of the others, and is a hoot to drive in an old VW Rabbit GTI fahrvergnugen sort of way. It actually has more lateral grip than I would expect from such skinny tires. I love it as my daily driver, but don't abuse it like my weekend race car.....
__________________
2015 BMW i3 BEV, Giga World (Lodge interior), Tech/Driving Assist Packages, 30K miles
Appreciate 1
Soul_Glo13282.50
      08-13-2020, 03:31 PM   #8
Soul_Glo
Major General
Soul_Glo's Avatar
United_States
13283
Rep
7,483
Posts

Drives: G20
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Manhattan, NYC

iTrader: (1)

Quote:
Originally Posted by vreihen16 View Post
I have three cars in my driveway to choose from: The Audi race car, the 6-speed Ram/Cummins diesel (610 ft-lbs torque), and the i3. The i3 will hang with either of the others, and is a hoot to drive in an old VW Rabbit GTI fahrvergnugen sort of way. It actually has more lateral grip than I would expect from such skinny tires. I love it as my daily driver, but don't abuse it like my weekend race car.....
That's good to know. I usually associate skinny rubber with poor road contact and handling.
Appreciate 0
      08-13-2020, 07:06 PM   #9
vreihen16
Recovering Perfectionist
vreihen16's Avatar
Ukraine
14882
Rep
938
Posts

Drives: 2015 BMW i3 BEV
Join Date: Jun 2019
Location: Orange County, NY

iTrader: (0)

Garage List
The i3s has wider tires than my regular i3 BEV. It doesn't have the grip of a wide Hoosier racing slick in the corners, but surprised me with how far their edge was the few times that I entered a turn on the road too hot.

In terms of steering feel, it is pretty numb. The electric steering rack has ZERO slop in the steering wheel, and I find it twitchy at Interstate speeds. They initially targeted the i3 as a "city" car, and it really shines in congested areas. I am pretty sure that I could make a K-turn in a parking space.

My first test drive of my i3 was around the dealer's showroom! Someone had blocked the exit door to get it out onto the street, so I asked the salesman if I could just drive it around on the showroom floor. He thought that I was crazy for a minute, but I told him that it was 100% electric so it wasn't like it would stink up their building with exhaust fumes. The other sales guy who went on break with the key to the car blocking the exit door came back about 15 minutes later, and I got to take it for a formal test drive after that.

The best feature of the i3 line is programmable departure times. You can set a recurring schedule of up to three daily departure times, and the car will automagically pre-condition the batteries and cabin temperature so that you always plop your butt into a comfy 72 degree driver's seat. I went through last winter without even having an ice scraper in the i3.....
__________________
2015 BMW i3 BEV, Giga World (Lodge interior), Tech/Driving Assist Packages, 30K miles
Appreciate 1
Soul_Glo13282.50
Post Reply

Bookmarks

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off



All times are GMT -5. The time now is 03:12 AM.




bmw
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
1Addicts.com, BIMMERPOST.com, E90Post.com, F30Post.com, M3Post.com, ZPost.com, 5Post.com, 6Post.com, 7Post.com, XBimmers.com logo and trademark are properties of BIMMERPOST