2014 I3 REX Range Variation / Cold Weather

Hi there,

I am about to purchase a 2014 I3 REX. However, I am hesitant to commit because I do not have a charging station at the hospital where I work. Therefore, I will need to make my round trip commute to work without recharging the car. I live in Baltimore, MD and commute to Washington DC. The specifics of my commute are listed below. Based on my research, I think that I'll be fine under normal circumstances. However, I am concerned that I will have a problem during the winter months. This past winter it was below freezing during my morning commute for four months straight.

I know there are many similar threads to this topic, but I have not seen anyone specifically discuss the range capacity in extremely cold weather. Also, I plan to install the Juice level 2 EVSE in my garage... can I do any type of pre-conditioning to help me during the winter months?

Thanks in advance.

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Round Trip Commute - 70 miles
Highway - 50 miles @ 70MPH
City - 20 miles @ 40MPH, stop and go traffic, with many traffic lights
Temperature - below freezing during morning commute approx. 4 months out of the year.

With a Level 2, you'll have no problem using pre-conditioning. I am not an expert in whether or not preconditioning also works on just battery for the return trip.

I would recommend using PlugShare.com to map the L2 and DCFC, CCS, chargers. On the return trip, an L2 will give our 2014 BMW i3-REx (smaller battery) 20% per hour and our local DCFC (40kW), will give ~50% in half an hour. Regardless, you'll have a ball.

Bob Wilson

The REx should make that trip winter or summer as long as it's going and coming without lots of stops in between when it could cool off and require reheating the cabin. On a good day, you may not use the REx at all. In the winter, you might need it for a bit of the time, but all of that depends on how you drive.

Preconditioning at home while on the EVSE will help both in comfort and maximizing the range. I would not precondition the cabin at work until you see how things go, as it starts about 20-30 minutes before you leave, and while it will improve your comfort, won't aid your range. On the REx, every watt you use for heat comes directly out of the battery. On the BEV, most of the time it can create a good increase because it has a heat pump...so, one watt in might get you 3 or more watts of heat.