RE: The i3 and BMW 360-degrees Electric

RE: The i3 and BMW 360-degrees Electric

Tuesday 22nd October 2013

The i3 and BMW 360-degrees Electric

Munich believes it has solved our EV concerns with the i3 support package - has it?



Following last week's BMW i3 review, we can say with some authority that it is A Good Car. To be honest, who expected anything less? But now it should be considered as something to own, again, with further detail. BMW peppered the launch with programmes, arcane terminology and incentives which just couldn't be given sufficient coverage in the drive story. Here we'll attempt to detail them as far as possible, and evaluate the prospects of the i3 as a day-to-day car.

Price
With the Government's OLEV grant, the BMW i3 costs £25,680. To lease, it is £369 a month over three years and 24,000 miles with a £2,995 deposit. The range-extender model will cost £28,830 or £480 a month. Just a quick clarification point on the range-extender too; the 34hp, 650cc bike engine drives only a generator, and kicks in when the batteries have reached 18 per cent charge level. It is used to maintain the charge at that level and extends the range to around 185 miles.

Inevitable extensive options list awaits perusal
Inevitable extensive options list awaits perusal
Spec
The i3 wouldn't be a BMW without a 'comprehensive' options list. Standard 'Atelier' trim can be enhanced though the 'Loft', 'Lodge' and 'Suite' spec, bringing even more exotic cabin materials and pushing BMW's 'next premium' ethos. They cost £1,000, £1,500 and £2,000 respectively.

The seven-page extras catalogue also includes fairly conventional items such as a Professional Media upgrade (Professional Nav is a free upgrade on all i3s ordered before February), wheels, paints, park assist and voice activation. Be prepared to spend a while with it when speccing an i3 though, it's fairly detailed...

360-degree Electric
"The 360-degree Electric packages of services turn zero emissions urban mobility into a compelling everyday driving experience". BMW believes 360-degree Electric gives i3 customers the benefits of EV motoring without the drawbacks, so has it?

The charging solutions appear rather clever, both at home or in public. So, when your i3 needs a charge after 80-120 miles, there are a few options. An 80 per cent charge at home through a conventional socket will take around eight hours. With a BMW I Wallbox (£315 to you sir, installation included), this drops to three hours. Moreover, with the BMW i Remote app (more on which soon), charging can be timed to take advantage of low-cost electricity. It can also pre-heat the car to save energy on the move. If you so desire, BMW will assist in the installation of a car port with solar panels.

The Bad Parking thread enters the electric age
The Bad Parking thread enters the electric age
In Germany, customers can also sign up to an agreement to provide carbon-neutral electricity. BMW claims this gives the i3 an overall carbon footprint half that of a 2008 118d, taking into account the renewable energy used at the Leipzig and Moses Lake factories too.

With a rapid charge public station (145 currently in Britain), the i3 can be 80 per cent replenished in half an hour. Customers will be issued with a ChargeNow card, which facilitates cashless charging at around 70 per cent of the country's stations. These are in BMW's i network, where the card authorises the user, who subsequently receives a statement at the end of the month with usage costs.

Furthermore, BMW has teamed up with ParkAtMyHouse in Britain to offer users further parking and charging facilities. What you're meant to do at a stranger's house for eight hours whilst your i3 is charging though is anybody's guess...

ParkNow long term (still with us?) can reserve users a parking space for their i3 near home or work with one of the I network partners to allow for charging if they don't have a private parking area. Availability information goes back to the nav and app.

Fine in the city; 'proper' BMWs for out of it
Fine in the city; 'proper' BMWs for out of it
Driving abroad for a family holiday? Worry not, the 360-degree Electric programme provides an annual quota of time in a conventional BMW for when those situations arise. You won't be able to show off your futuristic EV, but it seems like a sensible solution.

Finally, if you do actually run out of electricity, phone BMW Mobile Service. They will arrive with a 'sort of spare fuel can' (that's a direct BMW quote) to charge the battery and get you underway again.

The app
The BMW i Remote app is a very clever thing. And yes, it's available on Android. It's also part of the 360-degree Electric package and BMW's ConnectedDrive services, working with a sim card built into the i3 to provide access to the BMW server.

The app provides charging information, informing the user when the battery is fully replenished. It also rates the efficiency of your driving and offers tips to improve it. But perhaps its biggest asset is how the app works with the 'intermodal routing' sat-nav option. This provides real time public transport information though the server plus mapping to complete your journey via other means if necessary. The images below should give you some idea of how it works. Unfortunately we weren't given chance to in Amsterdam, BMW (wisely) deciding hacks shouldn't be wandering around an unknown city with an iPhone.

BMW matchmaking i3 with charge points
BMW matchmaking i3 with charge points
Conclusion
With the i sub-brand, BMW does appear to have mitigated against many of the perennial EV concerns. However, it is far from flawless. The charging cable remains a bulky thing, one that you can imagine becoming filthy over winter as it's dragged across tarmac. And whilst public charging makes sense in big cities like Amsterdam and London, Britain's EV infrastructure isn't as advanced elsewhere in the country. Perhaps that's why around 80 per cent of BMW's initial interest on the i3 has been towards the range-extender version.

And whilst the car worked unsurprisingly well on a prescribed launch route, how well it fare out in said real world? We want to see the i3 succeed as it's an original and innovative take on long-standing problem. With a couple of owners already popping up on PH, we should be able to find out!


This should have covered all the vital points of interest around the BMW i3. If there's anything else specific, leave a comment and we'll delve back into the massive press pack and attempt to find out!

[Sources: sourcelondon.net, nextgreencar.com, BMW i website]

Author
Discussion

elephantstone

Original Poster:

2,176 posts

156 months

Tuesday 22nd October 2013
quotequote all
Is it wrong that i would really like a range extender version?

Petrolicious

19 posts

175 months

Tuesday 22nd October 2013
quotequote all
Yes

loveice

646 posts

246 months

Tuesday 22nd October 2013
quotequote all
I'm a bit confused about the 'range extender' model. I understand the 660cc bike engine acts like a petrol generator. So, does this mean an i3 with 'range extender' works like a locomotive? As long as you can top up the petrol tank, it will go on 'forever'... Or 185 mile is the max distance it will go even if there is still petrol left in the tank?

I guess BMW wants to play down the range extender model. Coz, there's nothing new here. The concept has been used for 100 years in different form of transportation. But clearly the range extender model makes more sense to most buyers if it does work like a normal locomotive engine.

Oz83

687 posts

138 months

Tuesday 22nd October 2013
quotequote all
Please correct me if I'm wrong, but I imagine that the range extender generator cannot produce enough power to fully recharge the batteries. So it would kick in when the batteries reach 18% then allow that 18% to be eeked out to achieve the extended range.

Oz83

687 posts

138 months

Tuesday 22nd October 2013
quotequote all
Not a bad idea. Don't the batteries weigh 200+ kg?

buggalugs

9,243 posts

236 months

Tuesday 22nd October 2013
quotequote all
The REX is about average power, your average car with 100bhp only needs say 20hp to do 30mph, a bit more to do 60 etc.

So if the REX unit is belting out 40bhp constantly, there will be times under acceleration you will be running the battery down and times when you're cruising you're charging it up, it should even out.

Shame about the 9L tank, nothing a few jerry cans in the boot won't fix hehe

loveice

646 posts

246 months

Tuesday 22nd October 2013
quotequote all
Purity14 said:
For extending range on electric cars, I came up with an idea.

Basically you buy a battery, like a big box with handles.

It can be plugged into your car, think using existing child seat isofix, which could be easily modified to either hold a child seat or a range extender pack.
This would make the batteries universal..!

You could plug two of them in on each rear seat simultaneously to extend your range even further.

Dreamt it up the other day.
Well, I had the similar idea before. With my cordless lawn mower I have two batteries with handles like you said. When one used up, I simply take it out and drop in a fully charged one. Just imagine in the future all so called electric 'patrol stations' provide this kind of service...

BP battery or Shell...

But, all batteries from any manufactures have to be universal. Or, why not just use the old locomotive technology instead. So, for everyday cars electric motors will play main roles. And fossil fuel engine can simply be the back up generator.

mrmr96

13,736 posts

203 months

Tuesday 22nd October 2013
quotequote all
I must admit, I'm actually pretty impressed with this offering, how they've attempted to design a package to allay the typical concerns of a prospective EV purchaser. I particularly like the 'loan' of a regular petrol/diesel BMW for those times when you need to do a long trip like a holiday. It's that kind of thing which might sway someone. Someone who normally just drives to the station and back everyday with the odd longer trip around the county that the REX could cover. But they might be put off the EV because of the ONE time a year when they like to drive through France/Europe which would otherwise be a deal breaker, but for the inclusive 'time in a regular BMW'. Yes, I'm impressed with the thought that's gone into it, even the "what happens if I run out of power" answer: "We'll come and get you!". smile

garypotter

1,483 posts

149 months

Tuesday 22nd October 2013
quotequote all
£25,680 for the i3!!! the bmw accountants must be rubbing their hands together not a lot of car for that money even if ti green, surley looking at other petrol, disiesel hybrid offerings for much less money to purchase and run, a big saving on this gizmo i3.

We do need alternative powered cars but not at double the cost of normal powered car

But is it as good as a 135im........

Roma101

835 posts

146 months

Tuesday 22nd October 2013
quotequote all
I'm very tempted by this. But only because it would be a second car (or the first out of two). I still think there is an underlying issue with the range thing - i.e. it would be a problem if you had this as your only car and you travelled further than 185 miles say a dozen times or more a year. Unless, BMW's offer is to drop off the fossil fuel car at your house whenever you want it and collect it from you and the whole rental is at a reasonable cost of say no more than £125 at a time (excluding fuel). Problem is, BMW does not share the same meaning of reasonable as normal folk! PH - any further information on this rental service?

Having said that, I am impressed by how much thought has gone into all of this by BMW.

DoctorX

7,240 posts

166 months

Tuesday 22nd October 2013
quotequote all
Looks OK in that red colour, not yet seen one without the ubiquitous silver paint. £480/month sounds a bit pricey to me for a private 'buyer'.

covmutley

3,012 posts

189 months

Tuesday 22nd October 2013
quotequote all
But a 316d is £25k, so im not sure it looks that expensive to buy.

mrmr96

13,736 posts

203 months

Tuesday 22nd October 2013
quotequote all
Roma101 said:
I'm very tempted by this. But only because it would be a second car (or the first out of two). I still think there is an underlying issue with the range thing - i.e. it would be a problem if you had this as your only car and you travelled further than 185 miles say a dozen times or more a year.
I'm sure that you'll be able to think up lots of scenarios where this is not an appropriate vehicle.
But by offering a fossil car for use some times, it does mean that this is a more viable option for more people than most EV's that have come to market in the past.

I.e. it's still not 'right' for everyone, but it could be 'right' for more people than before.

Technomatt

1,085 posts

132 months

Tuesday 22nd October 2013
quotequote all
Or....

Avoid all of those numerous hassle riddled and variable charging options, a real car for holidays, the beard and sandals carbon offset special and just buy a car with an ICE and a 600 mile range.

Simplify your life.

Technomatt

1,085 posts

132 months

Tuesday 22nd October 2013
quotequote all
Purity14 said:
For extending range on electric cars, I came up with an idea.

Basically you buy a battery, like a big box with handles.

It can be plugged into your car, think using existing child seat isofix, which could be easily modified to either hold a child seat or a range extender pack.
This would make the batteries universal..!

You could plug two of them in on each rear seat simultaneously to extend your range even further.

Dreamt it up the other day.
Similar stuff is already around. Tow a battery/generator hooked up to your EV.

This sort of amuses me no end. Buy an EV that is inflexible and technologically limited and then bolt bits to it to make it viable:



Craiglamuffin

358 posts

179 months

Tuesday 22nd October 2013
quotequote all
Is the charging cable secured to the vehicle in a way that stops someone walking past and unplugging it for a laugh?

binnerboy

486 posts

149 months

Tuesday 22nd October 2013
quotequote all
I live in the burbs and currently work in the same city. My current commute is a 12 mile round trip. I drive an E39 530d that I own outright. My wife has a focus mk1 also no finance. My current commute fits the EV model as I could do 1 week on a single charge. Unfortunately I have a family which means I need a larger car as occasionally we like to go camping/visiting family so need boot space and range. The focus could do the visit but not the camping. The tesla S or X would be a better replacement but at the moment the finances of these do not stack up for me as the monthly loan payment would be more that the fuel cost I pay. If either the BMW or the tesla were on the company car scheme I would consider them as I wouldn't haven't pay tax (BIK currently 0%) or lease costs.

I cannot see the BIK remaining 0% if these become popular though. EVs are getting there.


mids

1,505 posts

257 months

Tuesday 22nd October 2013
quotequote all
Roma101 said:
Any further information on this rental service?
They offer a number of 'packages' which are all on a monthly subscription. The cheapest package including the car rental is £40/month.

DoctorX said:
£480/month sounds a bit pricey to me for a private 'buyer'.
It's cheaper than that, not sure where PH gets that number from. £480/month is one of the example figures in the brochure but that's for the REx with the £2k leather interior.

Craiglamuffin said:
Is the charging cable secured to the vehicle in a way that stops someone walking past and unplugging it for a laugh?
Yes, it's locked whilst charging.

Craiglamuffin

358 posts

179 months

Tuesday 22nd October 2013
quotequote all
Cool, thank you mids.

MikeSpencer

46 posts

130 months

Tuesday 22nd October 2013
quotequote all
'The charging cable remains a bulky thing, one that you can imagine becoming filthy over winter as it's dragged across tarmac.'

Why don't EV manufacturers make their charging cables coiled like the air lines you see connecting HGV tractor units and trailers? I think their drivers call them 'suzies', no idea why that is. Less likely to get dirty if raised off the floor, surely?