BMW i3 REX - any deals out there for cash buyer ?

[DSLiverpool]

squirdan said:

I am also considering an i3 and tested one this week

Park lane told me 12 weeks from order for a new one

The annoying thing is s 3yr lease on a used car is hardly any different than the monthly cost of a new one

I really want an i3 because it's fun to hoon round London in silent comfort and it's perfect for my 5-6 mile commute

However the monthly cost of £360 after a £9k ish deposit is clearly miles more expensive than a Leaf or Zoe... BMW PCP
is based on 8.7% apr vs zero on the others..

So got to really really want an i3 to make it stack up

No doubt the i3 is far far faster and better built car than the Leaf - Zoe but the extra cash is huge truly huge and would pay for a nice weekend toy or a luxury holiday with spends. 2 year cost of a Leaf is £3800 inc deposit (or was up to last month)

[EddieSteadyGo]

squirdan said:

However the monthly cost of £360 after a £9k ish deposit is clearly miles more expensive than a Leaf or Zoe... BMW PCP
is based on 8.7% apr vs zero on the others..

I found exactly the same. The problem is the predicted BMW residuals at 3 years which are quite low, especially when you consider the current prices on 1 year old cars which are very good.

I asked someone I know at BMW to investigate in case they were just being pessimistic; the answer I received is that head office believe the 3 year residuals are accurate. I expect this is linked to an expectation of the new battery technology which will be along in three years which will make the i3 feel like a gen 1 iphone would seem today.

[BishBosh]

I just sold mine after 9 months of ownership. i3 REX

It is a fabulous car to drive and was always getting looks. My household electricity bill went up from £40 per month to £120 and that is with a 4kw solar panel system installed. My fuel bill went down from £340 to £120 so a net saving of £140. As you have worked out it costs about £360 per month with £9k deposit and a ballon of about £14k after 3 years. Car bought for about £32.5k after grant, sold for £27K

There are very few out there 2nd hand and sold mine at a loss of about £5500. It took ages to sell too. I think the depreciation on them will be huge when the battery starts loosing its ability to hold a charge, mine didn't by the way but then I have seen how they work on iPhones and the like. (hardly a comparison I know but it plays on your mind)

The REX part was the best feature as I didn't have any worries at all for not having a charge, the worst part was the nightmare of charging away from home. I found a lot of charging points to be out of action or you need this card or that one, some even changed hands when I did get the right card so was useless again!!! This was getting really frustrating.

When we ordered the car last January there was free electric and charging all over where we wanted to go, now they charge and its expensive!!! Just look at Milton Keynes its £1.70 per half hour and that is if they work. Charging will get worse the more there are Im sure.

The car itself was a joy to own regardless of the above but I think with the innovation in battery power forging ahead there will be a big breakthrough in technology sooner rather than later ( I have absolutely no evidence to back this up by the way but it is a scientific fact!!!! Lol) these cars will soon loose value even quicker so I pulled out.

Lastly it was really too much money for the car when there are so many cracking petrol ones out there for the same sort of cash. Thats what you pay for in buying into new tech....


Sold it to a great chap who looks like he will love it some more.

[Goatex]

Interesting reading BishBosh. Do you mind me asking how many miles you put on the car in those 9 months?

[BishBosh]

Goatex said:

Interesting reading BishBosh. Do you mind me asking how many miles you put on the car in those 9 months?

I did about 6000 miles

[dave_s13]

I love these, but as a skinflint Zoe owner they are just far, far , far too expensive.

[hartley]

This sounds like another depreciation thread ,I suspect the forecasts are wrong as is the analogy with mobile phones - if you think it is better than a petrol car now - I do - then who has to worry most about depreciation petrol cars or i3 ? If it is an iphone 1 the people who have to worry are those of you with petrol old tech - Nokia equivalent.
The fast debate is nonsense - I have a v12 DB9 and guarrantee my REX would beat it around town where most of us drive and it will cruise happily at motorway limit so you would have to break the law to be faster ( and avoid bank holiday queues which the i3 is definitely better at.)
Conclusion - you might be waiting a while for your discount.

[ORD]

hartley said:

This sounds like another depreciation thread ,I suspect the forecasts are wrong as is the analogy with mobile phones - if you think it is better than a petrol car now - I do - then who has to worry most about depreciation petrol cars or i3 ? If it is an iphone 1 the people who have to worry are those of you with petrol old tech - Nokia equivalent.
The fast debate is nonsense - I have a v12 DB9 and guarrantee my REX would beat it around town where most of us drive and it will cruise happily at motorway limit so you would have to break the law to be faster ( and avoid bank holiday queues which the i3 is definitely better at.)
Conclusion - you might be waiting a while for your discount.

So your DB9 isn't faster to accelerate out of town? Jeez. You should get it looked at.;)

BMW aren't idiots. They won't be more than a few percentage points out on the residuals.

Petrol and electric are still too different for the phone analogy to work. It's trainers and flip flops. In 5 years time, an I3 will be a relic whereas your DB9 will still be a damn good car and worth a drive.

[hartley]

ORD said:

So your DB9 isn't faster to accelerate out of town? Jeez. You should get it looked at.;)

BMW aren't idiots. They won't be more than a few percentage points out on the residuals.

Petrol and electric are still too different for the phone analogy to work. It's trainers and flip flops. In 5 years time, an I3 will be a relic whereas your DB9 will still be a damn good car and worth a drive.

Read the post - I said around town not out of town .

The comparison with a future i3 is pretty meaningless if it is 3 years away .If it is a track shoe compared to the current i3 flip flop it will cost a lot more in all likelihood, My point is that my current flip flop is better than a petrol equivalent training shoe which is why I bought it in the first place .So unless you think the battery is going to degrade and BMW do nothing about it I don't see why anybody is worried about a future better i3 .

What do you think the chances are of the electric subsidy of £5k still being available from a cash strapped government in 3 year's time for a new i3 - BMW may not take this into account but we should if we are worried about depreciation.