The storm has moved on and been replaced by.........

a2sumo

a2sumo

A2OC Donor
Hi folks i thought it was about time made it official. Most will probably know but i have handed the yellow colour storm over to a new keeper and what a lovely couple they are. I had never thought the day to sell it would come but it did. For years i have wanted a BMW I3 FULL ELECTRIC. When they released the "S" version i could not resist so money wise something had to go.
I ordered the i3s 120 on april 23 and it finally arrived and ready for me on july 31st. So i welcome you to my storm trooper
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Very close to my colour storm-hard ride - black arches-and general body shape. The one pedal driving is fab as only needing to hit the brakes when you really need to. Range is circa 200 miles, 0-60 in 6 seconds, 101mph top speed and rapid charging from flat to 80% in 40 mins.
 
That looks great!

Now that the i3 is only available as a fully electric model, have they liberated any extra space from where the REX unit would have been installed?

Interested to know if there are any areas where it’s more practical than your A2 - e.g. does the front passenger seat fold flat, etc.
 
sailesh said:
That looks great!

Now that the i3 is only available as a fully electric model, have they liberated any extra space from where the REX unit would have been installed?

Interested to know if there are any areas where it’s more practical than your A2 - e.g. does the front passenger seat fold flat, etc.
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No nothing official to give extra storage now the rex engine has gone.BUT you can get a 35litre plastic storage box from germany to replace the floor and utilise the space. Not got one yet. cheers mike
 
The i3S looks amazing, I've been looking at these for the past two years, especially now that second-hand prices have plummeted. Is there a decent forum to glean more owner-experiences and info from?
 
I've read that there's hardly any new cars that are now purchased directly? It seems that lease-hire contracts are now the norm? Do you have any information regarding the ways to end up using one of these vehicles? i.e., deposit required, monthly lease payment, (based on mileage, I believe?) Typical cost to then purchase the vehicle after the lease has ended.? What is the stated life of the batteries? What is the price to just purchase the vehicle in one hit? Do you have a higher-rated charging facility installed in your property? Finally, have you been able to obtain any figures for range, yet? That would be just how far you could confidently go on a full charge? Thanks.

David
 
The batteries are warranted for 8 years (or 100k miles I think). But warranted means they are guaranteed to operate at a certain % of original specification - I think it is 70/75% after 8 years - as all batteries deteriorate over time. So range in year 8 (for anyone contemplating long term ownership) won't be the same as range in year 1. (Sadly I have to admit to actually reading the BMW warranty terms and conditions!!!)

I have test driven the i3 and read plenty about them. Range for one person is not range for another. There are 3 driving modes to start with and everybody will drive differently in each mode. But I have seen a number of people comment that driving at 65mph on the motorway will give a significant increase in range compared to 70-75mph which is I suspect the average at which most people drive. David - if you are interested, watch some of the Youtube long term owner reviews. Just don't confuse the 60 / 94 /120ah models. 120ah models like Mike's have only been available for a few months.

There are electric cars coming out now where range is a big step up - Kia Niro etc and next year there is the VW ID3. The latter could be the first car to bring electric into the mainstream. And VW are doing a strange thing. They are actually building up a good stock of cars before they launch it in 2020. So there will be quite a lot on the road quite quickly.

For anyone leasing an electric car you really have to work on the basis that you are going to return it at the end of the lease. Technology is changing so quickly that by 2022 the game will have moved a lot further ahead.
 
mjsbrabus said:
Technology is changing so quickly that by 2022 the game will have moved a lot further ahead.
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Yes, that's always the case! I remember the first plasma tv's were £8,000! Now you buy a better type with your general shopping. The first CD's were £15 ..... later given free with a newspaper. So how long DO you wait? OR, how long can you AFFORD to wait? :) I think that when they can easily achieve a range of over 200 mls, then that will be a game-changer. What would really interest me is if I could buy a conversion kit and be able to do this myself. I've got the time and I just love anything practical. I have done a couple of electric bicycles, so that's a start!

David
 
Think you are right about the 200 miles and the word easily underlined.
Cars like the 120ah i3 can just about do the 200 miles but it would be interesting to hear from Mike when he has some more mites on the car how easily it can be achieved.
And 200 miles in the summer is probably 160 in the winter with lights / wipers / heater / seat heater etc all draining the power.
 
I would say;

1) range is overrated; average daily driven distance is 20 miles
2) battery detoriation is neglectable. Remember you will like to keep your battery between 20 and 80%. That alone is 40% detoriation...
3) once you buy electric, you would never go back to any ancient fossilecar
 
Average might be 20 but most people have long journeys that they do infrequently. An electric car needs to be able to cover those infrequent longer journeys if people are going to have the confidence to ditch their petrol/diesel car and use electric for everything without range anxiety.
Of course some countries (possibly Norway) have something approaching a fast charging infrastructure. The UK does not. Lousy coverage; incompatibility; chargers out of use.
 
The infrequent long travels, you either swop cars with your parents (still sticking to their (Vauxhall) fossilecar) or rent a long range one.
The argument is similar as to the lack of proper tow-hitch on EVs but again; if you drive for «free» 99,9% of the time you would afford the £30 fee to have the goods from Travis Perkins delivered.

99,9% of the time you slowcharge at home, but charging station coverage UK does not seem too bad:

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Ha ha - at your age you might be able to borrow your parents car....
Bottom line is electric cars are still compromised and you need ‘work arounds’. In a very few years they won’t be.
Out of interest has anybody got a plan yet for the recycling of millions of Ev batteries in 10-15 years time or is that still being worked out?
Serious question.
 

Here you go they can be reused as power walls etc or just have the cells that are faulty be replaced and get put back into service.
 
Compromised, workarounds? Model S launched in 2013; 6 years ago.. Have a look at this table; prices (black) in NOK to be divided by 10 to get GPB. Range (yellow) in km.

I would say services every 10’ miles, EGR, DPF, SCR, DMF etc accompained with 30% efficiency, noise, smell and smoke are workarounds..

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Sadly the Tesla is not an option financially or practically. Ideal for the open roads of the USA - not designed for English country lanes.
 
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