Comes From the Past, Looks Like the Future

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BMW’s first EV was launched in 2013 and despite no longer being in production, the i3 still stacks up as one of the best in its class today. It’s a small car by today’s standards but is roomy and has futuristic modern styling. Older examples are still consistently hitting their range targets and they have a pretty good reliability reputation. The BMW i3 might just be a canny used EV buy. Turners Porirua has this early example to be auctioned with a very low estimate.

The i3 was designed and built from the ground up and was not based on an existing platform. The internal structure is made of carbon fibre with the batteries under the floor. It went through a few changes during its production, mostly to do with battery size. It also could be optioned with REx, which stands for range extender, which was a small, two cylinder petrol engine that worked as an onboard generator when the battery was getting low. The early model, such as this one, has the smallest battery and a range of 130kms, so very much a city car. In late 2017 the battery size was increased along with the range to around 185kms. The final version has a bigger battery again and range went to 246kms

It’s fair to say the BMW i3 is a city car. It has fairly short range by modern standards but more than enough for most city drivers. But the later models with increased battery capacity can happily take on a road trip with fast charging stops along the way.

The i3 has a real premium feel to it. There were different trim levels and option packs but all are very well made and very comfortable.

Now some will view the i3 as a bit dorky while others love the styling. But it also performs very well. It has that sleeper quality, in that it doesn’t look fast but can embarrass some outwardly much faster cars. For example, it can dash from 0-100kph in 7.2 seconds, quick enough, for sure. But 0-50kph takes around 3 seconds. That’s quicker than BMW’s own M4.

This car has a very low estimate of just $4000 - $6000. But if you want a later model with one of the larger batteries expect to spend $20,000 - $30,000, which makes them a good alternative to a new BYD or similar. More details here.