3 ms·

The i3 was really good in what way? Around here nobody owns one, and it seems BMW has been dumping them into the rental market with the "REACH NOW" program.

baybal2 7y ago
i3 is very expensive, very sophisticatedly engineered, but also very shoddily engineered at the same time. Despite using a full CFRP body, like that of supercars, mass savings were small. It is also heavy because of tons of German luxury features that should have no place in an entry level vehicle. It was also generically marketed on being "sporty" and "fun" to drive, while being one of the more morbid EV around, much like Chinese entry level EVs. The design suffers from usage of enormous amount of unique, custom made parts and materials. Basically it is an EV equivalent of Suzuki Mehran on performance and feel, but painted over to make it fit the "New Type Luxury EV" marketing concept.
- flavoie 7y ago
  Highly disagree about performance. I find it more fun to drive than my 2011 305Hp mustang. No lag, always full torque.
  - baybal2 7y ago
    > No lag, always full torque. Just like any EV, but without ludicrous acceleration of top tier EVs, or just that of average sport car. And despite being an RWD car, it turns and handles the road not much better than FWD econoboxes, which means no actual motorsport person was involved in its design.
flavoie 7y ago
Because they never market it seriously. Where I live, it was a challenge to try one, even harder to find a salesman that can sell you the car. Nearly nobody knows about that car. It's the only car in the industry that took seriously sustainability. (Sustainable textile, recycled material, end of life reusability and recycling. etc.) The efficiency is excellent, about 5kwh less per 100km than a tesla. It drives great, it's powerful, fun to drive. I haven't found a i3 owner that didn't like his car yet. With the range extender it removed range anxiety without add long recharge time on a trip. (granted with more frequent stop) I bought a used one last week. Maybe it's the honey moon, but it's the best car I have ever own, by far. The lack of leadership from top executive made the car unpopular, not the car itself. This also led to a lot of employee turnover because the lack of seriousness about the i series.
- windexh8er 7y ago
  The i3 may be a good car for you, but it's not an alternative to a person considering a 3 or 5 series. That's the miss. While the car may be great, it's target market is small. In the US the i3 has a very small set of buyers and those buyers, if not BMW fans, will likely buy a Model 3 or Chevy Volt before the BMW. Both cars are more bang for the buck and can handle small families better/cheaper. The i3, with the range extender, basically turns the car into a hybrid - which exemplifies BMWs miss on what people want in an EV. If I'm going to buy an EV I don't want all the maintenance hassle of dealing with IC. There have been many cars in history that have been popular beyond what top leadership has said. The failure of the i3 isn't that. It's a car that has a very small target market. If that was their goal, that's fine. But if they thought it was going to sell well BMW dropped the ball. Regardless, it's good for you since you likely got a great deal.
  - turk73 7y ago
    I kind of think BMW has generally lost its way. Their model line is bananas. They're great cars in some ways but damn the electronics are a pain in my ass! Like the battery registration--no reason why you can't add a menu that tells the computer "new battery installed" oh no, can't do that, have to have dealer-level software and equipment. I had to buy a code reader type tool for $150 that can do that instead of it just being a built-in feature. This is design for purely post sales profit margin enhancement. Also, why do automakers keep taking the spare tires away? If you live near a city, well, great, but anyone who lives outside of "town" needs to be self-sufficient. I appreciate a lot about the car, but its time is almost up. There are some screwy German things about it that just get more annoying as time goes by and lots of things broke before even 50K miles that never broke on Toyotas and Hondas I owned. BMW needs to go back to making cars, not computers on wheels.
  - rhizome 7y ago
    The i3 isn't even in the same family as the 3 and even less the 5. Think more a Toyota C-HR, Mini Cooper, maybe Fiat 500.
    - 7y ago
systemBuilder 7y ago
I3 has always been a nutty car at an outrageous price ($50k) with a $20k discount if you were a savvy shopper, but still a stupid compliance car that uses motorcycle wheels and is too small and had deep subsidies to allow BMW to play in the USA market without disturbing their precious ICE car lines ...
- perl4ever 7y ago
  I couldn't imagine buying one new, but there seem to be a fair number of used i3s that are 4-5 years old and well under $20K.

baybal2 7y ago

i3 is very expensive, very sophisticatedly engineered, but also very shoddily engineered at the same time. Despite using a full CFRP body, like that of supercars, mass savings were small. It is also heavy because of tons of German luxury features that should have no place in an entry level vehicle. It was also generically marketed on being "sporty" and "fun" to drive, while being one of the more morbid EV around, much like Chinese entry level EVs. The design suffers from usage of enormous amount of unique, custom made parts and materials. Basically it is an EV equivalent of Suzuki Mehran on performance and feel, but painted over to make it fit the "New Type Luxury EV" marketing concept.

flavoie 7y ago
Highly disagree about performance. I find it more fun to drive than my 2011 305Hp mustang. No lag, always full torque.
- baybal2 7y ago
  > No lag, always full torque. Just like any EV, but without ludicrous acceleration of top tier EVs, or just that of average sport car. And despite being an RWD car, it turns and handles the road not much better than FWD econoboxes, which means no actual motorsport person was involved in its design.

flavoie 7y ago

Because they never market it seriously. Where I live, it was a challenge to try one, even harder to find a salesman that can sell you the car. Nearly nobody knows about that car. It's the only car in the industry that took seriously sustainability. (Sustainable textile, recycled material, end of life reusability and recycling. etc.) The efficiency is excellent, about 5kwh less per 100km than a tesla. It drives great, it's powerful, fun to drive. I haven't found a i3 owner that didn't like his car yet. With the range extender it removed range anxiety without add long recharge time on a trip. (granted with more frequent stop) I bought a used one last week. Maybe it's the honey moon, but it's the best car I have ever own, by far. The lack of leadership from top executive made the car unpopular, not the car itself. This also led to a lot of employee turnover because the lack of seriousness about the i series.

windexh8er 7y ago
The i3 may be a good car for you, but it's not an alternative to a person considering a 3 or 5 series. That's the miss. While the car may be great, it's target market is small. In the US the i3 has a very small set of buyers and those buyers, if not BMW fans, will likely buy a Model 3 or Chevy Volt before the BMW. Both cars are more bang for the buck and can handle small families better/cheaper. The i3, with the range extender, basically turns the car into a hybrid - which exemplifies BMWs miss on what people want in an EV. If I'm going to buy an EV I don't want all the maintenance hassle of dealing with IC. There have been many cars in history that have been popular beyond what top leadership has said. The failure of the i3 isn't that. It's a car that has a very small target market. If that was their goal, that's fine. But if they thought it was going to sell well BMW dropped the ball. Regardless, it's good for you since you likely got a great deal.
- turk73 7y ago
  I kind of think BMW has generally lost its way. Their model line is bananas. They're great cars in some ways but damn the electronics are a pain in my ass! Like the battery registration--no reason why you can't add a menu that tells the computer "new battery installed" oh no, can't do that, have to have dealer-level software and equipment. I had to buy a code reader type tool for $150 that can do that instead of it just being a built-in feature. This is design for purely post sales profit margin enhancement. Also, why do automakers keep taking the spare tires away? If you live near a city, well, great, but anyone who lives outside of "town" needs to be self-sufficient. I appreciate a lot about the car, but its time is almost up. There are some screwy German things about it that just get more annoying as time goes by and lots of things broke before even 50K miles that never broke on Toyotas and Hondas I owned. BMW needs to go back to making cars, not computers on wheels.
- rhizome 7y ago
  The i3 isn't even in the same family as the 3 and even less the 5. Think more a Toyota C-HR, Mini Cooper, maybe Fiat 500.
  - 7y ago

systemBuilder 7y ago

I3 has always been a nutty car at an outrageous price ($50k) with a $20k discount if you were a savvy shopper, but still a stupid compliance car that uses motorcycle wheels and is too small and had deep subsidies to allow BMW to play in the USA market without disturbing their precious ICE car lines ...

perl4ever 7y ago
I couldn't imagine buying one new, but there seem to be a fair number of used i3s that are 4-5 years old and well under $20K.