[Needsdecaf]

Originally Posted by hyperzulu

Duh. I'm saying 120mi range is a sweet spot, which is pretty obvious considering how many Rex models BMW sells. I rarely hear anyone say that got the BEV, though I'm sure they're being sold.

The range should have been 120mi to begin with, not after the model refresh. It's like building a jet plane that costs as much as regular plane and saying it can only fly from Burbank to Ontario. Sure, it'll eventually be able to fly to SFO, but not for another four years, and you'll have to buy the new one if you want that.

You're not understanding the point. You're essentially saying something along the lines that the E39 M5 should have had a 560 TT V8 instead of a 400 Naturally aspirated V8. Why? Well, because you can.

Except you can't. Everything in automobiles is an engineering trade off. Don't you think if the engineers could have found a battery solution that would have yielded 120 miles at the time than they would have?

[afadeev]

Originally Posted by M3 Adjuster

.. Hey Alex! I started to disagree with you... but you know.. $45K for a total city car is a lot. I could barely even make it to Waco from Dallas.. sigh.. I'll keep looking at X1s

Hey Mark, great to hear from you !

Not to be too anal retentive, but i3 isn't a (mega-)city car, in the sense that it can't be reliably recharged in the mega-est of our cities: there are just not enough EV parking spots with L2 chargers in 'Da City to own an i3.

• Suburban forays out of your home - yes.
• Commuter vehicle to Da City and back - yes, in style.
• Rural areas with limited usable range - yes, and if you target destinations strategically, you can get free L2 recharges. Does require thorough planning and recon. Works best if you can fall back on a REX.

Some will advocate that you can always stop and recharge half way to Waco (1-2 hours on L2, half a day on L1), and that's it's cool. Good luck selling that to your SO and kids.

Or, using that logic, drive a BEV i3 to an autoX in Mineral Wells from your home.
It will get there, may be, but wont have any juice left for the actual runs. Or for driving back home.

My definition of an every day car - you can take it to an autoX, run, and come back home on one charge / tank of gas.

250-300 BEV battery will accomplish that.
i3 + REX will sort-of accomplish that, with +1 gas fill-up.
i3 original, or i3v2 BEV will not.

a

P.S.: Trading 1M for M2 yet ?
P.P.S.: I had X1 as a loaner. You can do better in lots of ways ...

[ORIGIN M.]

Originally Posted by Rennsport3.2

Point taken, but I was moreso referring to interior materials. The Leaf just feels like an average B-segment Japanese compact inside (Not a bad thing, but I expect more for $30k). The i3 - at least in Mega World trim (what a silly name for a package) - felt like a premium car inside, at least to me. Not a difference that shows up on a list of standard equipment, but a difference in the way the interior feels and how the car presents itself. You can get a low-end car absolutely packed with gadgets, but it will still feel cheap inside.

i3 is great inside. I completely agree. Great place to be.

[3s-a-charm]

The i3 is growing on me and a larger capacity would be ideal. The thought of a REX doesn't appeal to me at all... One of the (many) advantages of all-electric is no oil changes or maintenance of a complicated internal combustion engine.

[raysspl]

Definitely would lease this for the parents & siblings while I keep an i8 for myself

[ORIGIN M.]

Bingo!

Originally Posted by 3s-a-charm

The i3 is growing on me and a larger capacity would be ideal. The thought of a REX doesn't appeal to me at all... One of the (many) advantages of all-electric is no oil changes or maintenance of a complicated internal combustion engine.

[afadeev]

Originally Posted by Needsdecaf

Well in that case, you should get 50% more!

Also curious as to what coding extends the range to nearly double. Or are you talking about also using the REX?

Coding to use full gas tank for the US REX.

Assuming 70F ambient, mixed driving mode between town and highway (~4.3 miles per KWh on REX, 4.8 on BEV):
OEM BEV today: ~90 miles on BEV. Hitch hike.
OEM REX today: ~80 miles on BEV - 6 miles for REX kick-in + ~55 miles on REX == ~130 miles
Coded REX today: ~80 miles on BEV - 6 miles for REX kick-in + ~75 miles on REX == ~ 150 miles

Originally Posted by M3 Number 86

150 miles would be awesome. How many miles does the range extender add?

Assume +50% BEV range with i3v2, same 1.9 gallon stock / 2.5 gallon coded gas tank:
OEM BEV i3v2: ~90 *1.5 == ~135 miles.
OEM REX i3v2 (assume same gas tank): ~170 miles.
Codex REX i3v2 (assume same gas tank): ~190 miles.

Originally Posted by mattm123

The problem right now is they do not have xDrive and in the snowy conditions here in the northeast, you cannot drive them. I feel that an xDrive model will drive their sales up.

We got 2-3" of snow on Sunday. Didn't bother clearing the driveway. Drove to work up the 15-degree incline and over some un-plowed back-roads on OEM AS tires just fine (have other cars with winters for when things get serious). Didn't even have to turn DSC off.

a

[hyperzulu]

Originally Posted by Needsdecaf

You're not understanding the point. You're essentially saying something along the lines that the E39 M5 should have had a 560 TT V8 instead of a 400 Naturally aspirated V8. Why? Well, because you can.

Except you can't. Everything in automobiles is an engineering trade off. Don't you think if the engineers could have found a battery solution that would have yielded 120 miles at the time than they would have?

I did say "Duh." So, I understood the point. My point is that for me, the i3 was a cake out of the oven too soon.

[Imola.ZHP]

Awesome, I hope this makes my REx residual value tank. It has unlimited range with the car coded. I did about 420 miles the first day of ownership. I hope to negotiate another $10k off at lease-end, putting me at about $37k (total) for a $55,850 MSRP vehicle.

[antzcrashing]

This is starting to gain appeal. I drive 60 miles round trip commute so that would do. How does bmw add 50 percent to range in just a few years. Its taken as fact that batteries don't improve that much over a short time. More batteries? Aero? Weight? Lies? Jk about that last one

[ORIGIN M.]

Battery Tech is improving daily! The race to produce the very best is on going.

The batteries BMW uses are stacked in groups in a flat tray, and are easily optimized by rapidly changing advancements, unlike batteries that are molded into various shapes and sizes.

Originally Posted by antzcrashing

...How does bmw add 50 percent to range in just a few years. Its taken as fact that batteries don't improve that much over a short time. More batteries? Aero? Weight? Lies? Jk about that last one

[ORIGIN M.]

Originally Posted by hyperzulu

I did say "Duh." So, I understood the point. My point is that for me, the i3 was a cake out of the oven too soon.

Look at it like a 1st Gen iPhone.


Phone comes out, you want the latest tech. No BSing around you buy it.

2 years later... Better batteries, larger screen... Bam, you get a new one. See my point.

BMW jumped into the EV market as fast as possible after 2 open test-bed cars the Mini-e and 1er Electric Coupe.

[hyperzulu]

Originally Posted by red-sauerkraut

Look at it like a 1st Gen iPhone.


Phone comes out, you want the latest tech. No BSing around you buy it.

2 years later... Better batteries, larger screen... Bam, you get a new one. See my point.

BMW jumped into the EV market as fast as possible after 2 open test-bed cars the Mini-e and 1er Electric Coupe.

Yeah I see your point, both have batteries that crap out on you too early.

The i3 being a clean slate design, they could have offered a larger battery like what is done on the model S.

[ORIGIN M.]

Originally Posted by hyperzulu

Yeah I see your point, both have batteries that crap out on you too early.

The i3 being a clean slate design, they could have offered a larger battery like what is done on the model S.

BMW needs to bring to market a 200+ mile Fully Electric car in short order.

Otherwise they may be caught off guard by their competition.

I doubt they will let that happen.


"Lead, follow, or get out of the way"

[Needsdecaf]

Originally Posted by red-sauerkraut

BMW needs to bring to market a 200+ mile Fully Electric car in short order.

Otherwise they may be caught off guard by their competition.

I doubt they will let that happen.


"Lead, follow, or get out of the way"

i5.

[Rennsport3.2]

Step one was building a car suitable for short trips and commuting - a good second or third car for some households.

Step two is building a car with enough juice to overcome range anxiety, convincing a larger group of people to give it a chance. That's what they (BMW) are doing now.

Step three will be building a car suitable for long trips that could theoretically become a viable option for single-car households.

[3s-a-charm]

Originally Posted by Needsdecaf

i5.

The BMW i5 could be a huge win for the EV market in general - a little smaller than a Model S and more luxurious (not to mention lower priced). For the daily driving I do, the Model S almost has too much range - I never find myself using more than 40-50% of my battery even on a full day of driving. (Not including road trips of course).

Just dreaming here but an all electric car that you could fit in a gas engine to extend for trips would be neat. Almost like putting in a suitcase - the gas motor just clips in and when not in use it stores in the garage.

I've owned a lot of great BMWs but now that I've experienced all-electric driving I can't go back - so either BMW needs to produce a compelling electric car (functional for family/clients, and useful range combined with a great design) I will stick with what I have. BMW, make me a smaller more luxurious Model S please!

[hyperboost]

this car is really in a niche market! my mother loves her i3 Rex

[ORIGIN M.]

Your model 3 is coming. It will debut in March...Plan on waiting two long tesla years to get one.

Originally Posted by 3s-a-charm

The BMW i5 could be a huge win for the EV market in general - a little smaller than a Model S and more luxurious (not to mention lower priced). For the daily driving I do, the Model S almost has too much range - I never find myself using more than 40-50% of my battery even on a full day of driving. (Not including road trips of course).

Just dreaming here but an all electric car that you could fit in a gas engine to extend for trips would be neat. Almost like putting in a suitcase - the gas motor just clips in and when not in use it stores in the garage.

I've owned a lot of great BMWs but now that I've experienced all-electric driving I can't go back - so either BMW needs to produce a compelling electric car (functional for family/clients, and useful range combined with a great design) I will stick with what I have. BMW, make me a smaller more luxurious Model S please!

[edev]

Originally Posted by hyperzulu

Yeah I see your point, both have batteries that crap out on you too early.

The i3 being a clean slate design, they could have offered a larger battery like what is done on the model S.

Yeah, and add weight to the car. No thanks. I'll stick with my 2,600lb car.

[shivaswrath]

If they did this on Their plug in hybrids, then woah!

[-c-]

Cool! I'll be able to upgrade my current car with more miles, I wonder if BMW will offer an upgrade option for older i3's customers.

Who knows either way cool!