BMW i3

[GSP]

I suspect that one problem that BMW and the other automakers have is that the profit margins are not as much for EVs, or PHEVs, or even HEVs. Low volume compliance cars are even sold at a loss. Tesla has very low overhead and sell direct to the customers instead of to dealers, which only a new company can do. Elon has said that direct sales are necessary for Tesla's profitability and survival. BMW has to sell to dealers at wholesale prices, while Tesla gets "MSRP" for every car.

GSP

 

[SwedishAdvocate]

Here’s Anne Hathaway riding around some more in the i3 :

Anne Hathaway Photos - Anne Hathaway and Adam Shulman Out in LA - Zimbio

Spotted: Anne Hathaway In a BMW i3 | Celebrity Cars Blog

 

[Bearman]

The driver's seat BMW i3 testdrive:

Interesting commentary by the reviewers, maybe that is a common view by people not following the EV-world.

 

[WarpedOne]

I don't see why the dealers or investors would have a problem with i3 sales replacing other sales, as long as the profit margins are comparable.

Production capacity.
They can produce up to 10k i3s per year, maybe 20k (I don't believe it).
For anything higer they would have to sacrifice existing plants, to risky. Thats why the intentional made a halo car. Lots of talks but limited numbers.

 

[tommolog]

Production capacity.
They can produce up to 10k i3s per year, maybe 20k (I don't believe it).
For anything higer they would have to sacrifice existing plants, to risky. Thats why the intentional made a halo car. Lots of talks but limited numbers.

Actually the Leipzig plant was completely retooled for the i3. They can make 30,000 annually now with adding more shifts can push that to 40,000 if necessary.

 

[WarpedOne]

Who is producing the cells?

 

[sranger]

Who is producing the cells?

Samsung...

 

[GSP]

Samsung, if I remember correctly. They are #2 global cell manufacturer, so they should have capacity for 30,000 i3 per annum.

GSP

 

[WarpedOne]

Sure they do... if they don't sell a cell to any other costumer.

 

[sranger]

Sure they do... if they don't sell a cell to any other costumer.

BMW has stated several times that the Capacity is 30,000 per year... I see no reason to doubt them...

 

[GSP]

The driver's seat BMW i3 testdrive:

Interesting commentary by the reviewers, maybe that is a common view by people not following the EV-world.

Lots of good views of the interior in this video. Thanks.

I would say the commentary is not surprising, but I was disappointed that one of them still thinks the Model S is not up to snuff due to the ridiculous Broder NYT story.

GSP

 

[ecarfan]

The driver's seat BMW i3 testdrive:
Interesting commentary by the reviewers, maybe that is a common view by people not following the EV-world.

Those two guys are remarkably uninformed about Tesla and about electric vehicles in general. The apparently know nothing about the Tesla Supercharger network and don't know that the NYT Broder report has been thoroughly debunked. And they offer almost no useful information or insight into the performance of the BMW i3, the car they are driving and supposedly "reviewing"!

 

[DuncanWatson]

That review was miserable to listen to. Personally the BMW i3 is a completely uninteresting vehicle that only targets the deutschephile auto market. Though I lived in Munich for a while I don't care for German cars. I hate maintaining them and want to get rid of my VW TDI at my earliest convenience.

 

[surfingslovak]

EPA Range

The EPA Range of the BMW i3: A Prognosis - Torque News

 

[Mr X]

 

[JST]

Wow, it looks a lot better in black.

 

[Mr X]

Wow, it looks a lot better in black.

Looks even better with the 20's, but i don't think its actually black because there is no black color choice, its one of the greys i believe.



(from Tom's blog)

 

[tommolog]

Wow, it looks a lot better in black.

That's actually Laurel Grey Metallic. In person you can see it's not black but depending on the angle and amount of shade and sunlight it does appear all black sometimes. This is the color I ordered mine in.

 

[zax123]

I just test drove the i3 at the CES show in Las Vegas. They were doing a free test drive event and had 170 i3s there.

I kept telling myself to assess the car as a $40k car and not to compare it to my Tesla which would have been completely unfair.

My comments are that it drives well if somewhat of a boring ride. The controls are pretty logical if not excessive (I'm used to zero buttons). The inside felt a little bit cramped for me (I'm 6'3" tall). The sunroof is kinda weird and doesn't make you feel like it opens up the car because of the big beam that goes right down the middle of it.

The regen braking is aggressive and I like it that way. You just have to learn to use the "go" pedal properly.

The backseat was pretty hard to get into and I really don't understand the design thinking there besides showing off that they didn't need a B pillar.

All in all, tough, for around $40k, I think it's a good city car. I wouldn't go on a long trip in there. I'm just happy another (respected) car company has produced an all-electric vehicle.

 

[N4HHE]

All in all, tough, for around $40k, I think it's a good city car. I wouldn't go on a long trip in there. I'm just happy another (respected) car company has produced an all-electric vehicle.

Unless you are driving a $60k Model S I don't think its fair to quote the i3 at $40k. You can not get out of the dealership for less than $43k (before taxes), assuming they ever have a bare no-option car. OTOH if you really want the cheapest Model S then Tesla seems happy to build it for you.