Using range extender only for electric charge

[Karen Chambre]

I so appreciate your answers. My car has a range of 60 miles, and I live in Los Angeles. I hardly drive it; I had to go somewhere last weekend and ran out around two I had charged it overnight and even charged it at a charging station, I can't afford to get rid of it at the moment I am just trying to be safe, I thought if i had a generator I could fill it, if it runs out I do have a portable charger

 

[mojo]

Apologies - I failed to notice that you already have the car! I thought you were looking to buy one.

The problem with a generator is that it would be tediously slow, unless you have a huge rig that fills the whole of the back of the car. A typical "slow" mains charger runs at 32A, and you need a big generator to sustain that level of power delivery.

 

[Karen Chambre]

Apologies - I failed to notice that you already have the car! I thought you were looking to buy one.

The problem with a generator is that it would be tediously slow, unless you have a huge rig that fills the whole of the back of the car. A typical "slow" mains charger runs at 32A, and you need a big generator to sustain that level of power delivery.

Thanks. What would the numbers be on a generator even if it fills the back of the car?

 

[alohart]

The problem with a generator is that it would be tediously slow, unless you have a huge rig that fills the whole of the back of the car. A typical "slow" mains charger runs at 32A, and you need a big generator to sustain that level of power delivery.

Some have reported problems using a generator to charge their i3's. Improper grounding can prevent charging from occurring. Relatively inexpensive generators might produce modified square wave rather than sine wave power. This might cause charging problems as well because the on-board charger probably prefers sine wave power which is what's on the electricity grid.

 

[alohart]

I owned a 2012 Mitsubishi i-MiEV (62 miles E.P.A. range) for 2 years and a 2014 i3 (81 miles E.P.A. range) for over 9 years. Like most EV and even ICE drivers, I learned how far I could drive without running out of charge. EV drivers who might be driving farther than their existing range learn where public DC fast chargers are so that they could stop for a relatively quick charge before they run out of charge. Hopefully, your i3 has the DC fast charging option so that you could charge when necessary while driving. DC fast charging would be much more preferable and take much less time than using a portable generator.

 

[Karen Chambre]

I am curious if it has a DC charger. I will have to look it up and see if I have one; thank you so much for your time. I like the car, but somehow, I just realized its range was only 60 miles. It's too hard in a city where you need a car; I will have to buy a cheap car till I can pay off the loan. I appreciate all the answers,

 

[EvanstonI3]

I am curious if it has a DC charger. I will have to look it up and see if I have one; thank you so much for your time. I like the car, but somehow, I just realized its range was only 60 miles. It's too hard in a city where you need a car; I will have to buy a cheap car till I can pay off the loan. I appreciate all the answers,

You can easily see if you car has DC charging capability by opening the charging door and looking at the Port.
If it just has the circle port as a the top of this pic, you do not.
If it also has the additional "pill-shape" port under the circle, they you do.

 

[Karen Chambre]

You can easily see if you car has DC charging capability by opening the charging door and looking at the Port.
If it just has the circle port as a the top of this pic, you do not.
If it also has the additional "pill-shape" port under the circle, they you do.

Thanks again! Based on the picture, it looks like I have two holes at the bottom. So what would i have to get to charge it, and would it just charge it faster ?

 

[Karen Chambre]

I'm to see this on eBay. i assume it is not for an all-electric i3, but i thought I would ask

 

[EvanstonI3]

Thanks again! Based on the picture, it looks like I have two holes at the bottom. So what would i have to get to charge it, and would it just charge it faster ?

You don't "get" anything to use a DC Fast Charger. You have to find one and then pay to use it. It charges a LOT faster. For your car it would probably charge 10% to 80% in less than 30 minutes.
The pic you posted is of a BMW-branded ESVE (charger) that you would use for L1 (120v) or L2 (240v) depending on what is available to you. I don't know why you would think it is NOT for an "all-electric i3" ?
There is no difference in charging requirements between the BEV (Battery Electric Vehicle) which you have and the REX (Range Extender) models.

 

[accidentalyEV]

Can a range extender be added to a BMW i3 2015? If so does anyone know who can do that in the Los Angeles area

I doubt it is reasonably possible or cost effective. Why not look at selling your I3 and purchasing an I3 with REX?

 

[accidentalyEV]

I'm to see this on eBay. i assume it is not for an all-electric i3, but i thought I would askView attachment 852

If you are in the US I suggest you look on Amazon for a UL listed charger and stay away from EBAY.

 

[accidentalyEV]

Can a range extender be added to a BMW i3 2015? If so does anyone know who can do that in the Los Angeles area

LA Car Max 2017 BMW I3 Deka World Range Extender $18,998*35K miles https://www.carmax.com/car/25126466

 

[ksnax]

I suspect that if your circumstances are such that you couldn't be sure about length of journey, a better bet would be a true hybrid, rather than a "range extender" of any sort.

Not to derail the thread, but the REx is a "true hybrid". People are simply more familiar with parallel hybrids where both motors can power the drivetrain directly, unlike the REx, which is a serial hybrid. More specifically, it is a 'serial hybrid plug-in electric vehicle'.

 

[Skye2002]

Well said. Here in Australia (and I presume elsewhere) Nissan has just released their Qashqai and X-Trail models with series hybrid power which the call e power...

 

[Candece]

Based on your replies, I'm going to assume you're not in the US. The rex is essential ly a backup. It will keep the charge but not charge more than the battery already has. In the US, we cannot turn on the tex manually, it will only come on automatically at 6% and if you stress the car at that time it will go into low power more

Unless you get a OBD and unlock it, that's what I did.