BMW I3 -Most Dangerious Steering Of Any Car I've Owned!

[I33t]

Yes, I have driven now 7 different I3's they are all the same - as I mentioned, BMW is well aware of the problem

I think you're right. BMW is aware of a 'problem' The problem is not the steering, it's the driver perception. Apparently 1 in every few thousand doesn't like the steering and calls it 'dangerous' on a forum. Nothing BMW can do to fix that.

The only fix is for BMW to make sure prospective buyers do a proper test drive and inspection of the options list before they sign the order. Not going to happen, dealers and hasty buyers are in the way of anything like that happening.

 

[Idleup]

Looks like the Mercedes C300 is going to be my I3 bail out!

The model I drove is $6,480 MSRP less than the stripped out I3. This beautiful German engineered car is light years ahead of the I3 with all its massive problems.

Check out the video guys - it might be your next car!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7pjIgcQ5Vww

 

[alohart]

Looks like the Mercedes C300 is going to be my I3 bail out!

Congratulations for stepping back to the past.

This beautiful German engineered car is light years ahead of the I3 with all its massive problems.

My i3 BEV has never had a problem.

Your conventional steel-bodied ICE Mercedes C300 is years behind the i3 (light years is a distance, not a time).

Check out the video guys - it might be your next car!

Not a chance! I've experienced the future and will never go back as you have chosen to do. If you prefer a Mercedes (no problem with that), why not buy a B Class ED?

 

[Idleup]

Looks like the Mercedes C300 is going to be my I3 bail out!

Congratulations for stepping back to the past.

This beautiful German engineered car is light years ahead of the I3 with all its massive problems.

My i3 BEV has never had a problem.

Your conventional steel-bodied ICE Mercedes C300 is years behind the i3 (light years is a distance, not a time).

Check out the video guys - it might be your next car!

Not a chance! I've experienced the future and will never go back as you have chosen to do. If you prefer a Mercedes (no problem with that), why not buy a B Class ED?

LOL You say; "My i3 BEV has never had a problem." you're remind me of the lady I was talking about who drove 4 miles on a flat tire and when I chased here down and stopped her - she rolled the window down she said I had no idea - I didn't feel anything" LOL

Don't worry about it - everything is fine, you only lost a mere $22,000 of your investment in 4-5 months (check Nada) In another 6 months the Pinto's and Edsel's will start to look good compared to the I3.

Guys are dumping them as we speak. Enjoy!

 

[WoodlandHills]

Why would anyone buy a i3?
I might be totally disillusioned with BMW and the way they treat their customers and my i3 might have a constant annoying noise whenever it moves, but at least my troubles are over after my lease ends!!!!! Even if this particular EV was not such a huge disappointment, the industry and technology is changing so rapidly that buying and being wedded to a given level of tech just makes no sense. Having a factory guaranteed resale value (residual) is nice too when used EV prices seem to be quite soft and do not look like improving in the future as older cars become obsolete with the introduction of next generation models.

 

[Idleup]

Why would anyone buy a i3?
I might be totally disillusioned with BMW and the way they treat their customers and my i3 might have a constant annoying noise whenever it moves, but at least my troubles are over after my lease ends!!!!! Even if this particular EV was not such a huge disappointment, the industry and technology is changing so rapidly that buying and being wedded to a given level of tech just makes no sense. Having a factory guaranteed resale value (residual) is nice too when used EV prices seem to be quite soft and do not look like improving in the future as older cars become obsolete with the introduction of next generation models.

Thanks for the reply - yep, the thrill is gone, incentives have disappeared and in Ga they are going to tax all electrics because they feel we're getting away with murder by not paying gas tax! What the hell happened to cleaning up our environment ???? Now that gas is back down to a few dollars all the reasons for buying an electric to save money have disappeared as well.

To be honest with you, I really like the I3 car & concept - its a perfect size for jotting around town, roomy, its got 4 doors, plenty of power. I like others, bought the car with the concept that BMW was one of the best car manufactures, but they let us down.

Bottom line, BMW was in a rat race to get there so-called "electric" out first, and the car was simply not ready, so here we are like "Cattle" mooing around crying and paying for BMW's research and Development with our horrifying trade in values. Its a lesson learned, my little BMW dream electric fell on its face and I lost $22K value in just a mere 5 months, I'll get over it, but as far as I'm concerned, BMW will never see a dime of my money again.

Here's an image that says it all and shows the "Retail" cost of the missing back-up camera for $15, they would pay maybe $5 for this item yet they choose to leave it off a $55,000 car and maybe risk the possibility of a child losing their life, or an avoidable accident so they could scam you out of another $1000 on a package that no one needs or wants. All the BS about BMW worrying about its "drivers safety" is pure 100% BS, they could care less about us!

 

[Jeffj]

Anyone arguing EV depreciation that ignores the tax credits is seriously slanting the picture. With tax credits my car was only $35,500 last year (loaded '14 Giga with 19's). Being told that its dropped to $28,500 after a nominal year of ownership is only a $7,000 reduction or 19.7%. I can live with that. And if you aren't planning to sell it any time soon, then its a moot point.

As for why anyone would "buy" a car, maybe some of us plan on driving it for 6 or 8 years as it meets our needs. I've got no problem with anyone leasing, especially when the manufacturers are offering ridiculously cheap leases in the US, but personally, I like having no car payments for a substantial portion of my ownership. After 6 or 8 years, I'm not really worried about the resale, and I'll look for something else.

I'd probably feel quite differently if I was having problems with my i3 (I'm not, btw), but that would be the case no matter what car it was - BMW, Merc, Chevy, Kia. I had a Saab that was reviewed by Consumer Reports as the "best car Saab has ever made" when it came out. My car had a seemingly endless stream of annoying problems (computer, water pump, fuel pump, constantly burning out headlights, alternator, etc.). If you get a bad car, you'll never be happy. If you get a good one, you're content.

 

[Idleup]

Anyone arguing EV depreciation that ignores the tax credits is seriously slanting the picture. With tax credits my car was only $35,500 last year (loaded '14 Giga with 19's). Being told that its dropped to $28,500 after a nominal year of ownership is only a $7,000 reduction or 19.7%. I can live with that. And if you aren't planning to sell it any time soon, then its a moot point.

As for why anyone would "buy" a car, maybe some of us plan on driving it for 6 or 8 years as it meets our needs. I've got no problem with anyone leasing, especially when the manufacturers are offering ridiculously cheap leases in the US, but personally, I like having no car payments for a substantial portion of my ownership. After 6 or 8 years, I'm not really worried about the resale, and I'll look for something else.

I'd probably feel quite differently if I was having problems with my i3 (I'm not, btw), but that would be the case no matter what car it was - BMW, Merc, Chevy, Kia. I had a Saab that was reviewed by Consumer Reports as the "best car Saab has ever made" when it came out. My car had a seemingly endless stream of annoying problems (computer, water pump, fuel pump, constantly burning out headlights, alternator, etc.). If you get a bad car, you'll never be happy. If you get a good one, you're content.

Don't confuse tax credits with deprecation value - the tax credits are an incentive to save the planet and not a means to lower your trade in value - if tax credits were real money - then they would just deduct that amount from the price and they don't.

 

[Jeffj]

You could argue that tax credits are just white-collar welfare, or that they are just a way to move money into the hands of the manufacturer. Both arguments can hold water. The bottom line to me, however, is that I paid a lot less than MSRP as a result of them. And the re-sale prices of any cars that have tax credits associated with them reflect the value of the tax credits based on the researching that I've done. I didn't make the rules, but the "market" seems to be factoring the tax credits into the re-sale cost. The real losers in this are the people who aren't getting the tax credits and are still suffering from rapid depreciation.

 

[Idleup]

Well said . . .

 

[PluviaPlumbum]

Well Let me offer you an olive branch, you are not an Industry Shill I was wrong about that , happy to admit it.
Given your extensive car collection worth what ? @ $500,000, (liking the Polaris Slingshot which I initially took for a KTM X bow BTW). One thing still puzzles me having dropped about $180,000 into your local BMW i retailer, how come you didn't get an acceptably good deal to swap into a 3 series sedan. Most dealers worth their salt will bend over backwards to keep a high net worth customer happy?
Good luck with your Merc C class. I hope it's more reliable than the S class I traded for my i3 Rex. I am more than happy with my decision as I am sure you are with yours.

 

[Electron15]

As for the original thrust of this thread. Please watch the video of the Motorweek test of the i3 - around the 4 minute mark, doesn't seem to be any issues with steering at all.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-TK3X4kKRU

 

[I33t]

Buying a Merc C300 to replace an i3 is just more evidence Idleup bought the wrong car in the first place. The C300 is absolutely nothing like an i3.

Attacking a car you don't want because of a poor decision reflects on you, not the car.

Hopefully the steering on the C300 is delightfully vague at center.

 

[epirali]

Lol. Good response for someone caught out. The original vehicle crossing into your lane was a TRUCK (you said) and you forgot.

Probably never happened!

You're a Volt salesperson or something? Why would anyone be so anti.

I'm happy to discuss issues with the i3, but I have no time for haters or industry shills. Especially when they reckon the steering is 'dangerous' when there is no one agreeing other than one other hater who complains about not having stuff they didn't even order.

You know every post makes you seem less and less credible right? I mean you are just making stuff up in your head here.

 

[epirali]

Two comments:

1.) Wow, those are nice and shiny cars. I have never had cars that clean. You even polished the treads.

2.) People will continue to have opinions and disagree with yours. You are entitled to evaluation and comments. I would accept that you have made your point and be satisfied. Don't respond to people who ask that you prove your ownership or worth.

I'm outta here. Time to move on. :arrow:

Thanks for the reply - and you're right!

I'm not trying to upset anyone or ask them to stop driving or sell their cars. I started the steering thread in hopes of making drivers aware to the fact the over-sensitive steering could and will be dangerous in some driving situations where if a driver over-reacts it could result in total loss of control.

I'm the good guy here!

Regards!

PS the threads are shiny because It just rained - the dark blacktop and slick threads looks pretty neat right!

Love the cars. It is kind of a waste of breath and energy to respond to some of the people here. I mean why do you even bother with the ones that are obvious trolls (do you even own an i3? etc).

I should follow my own advice obviously...

 

[I33t]

Lol. Good response for someone caught out. The original vehicle crossing into your lane was a TRUCK (you said) and you forgot.

Probably never happened!

You're a Volt salesperson or something? Why would anyone be so anti.

I'm happy to discuss issues with the i3, but I have no time for haters or industry shills. Especially when they reckon the steering is 'dangerous' when there is no one agreeing other than one other hater who complains about not having stuff they didn't even order.

You know every post makes you seem less and less credible right? I mean you are just making stuff up in your head here.

Ignoring your error and attacking the messenger.

Was it a TRUCK or a CAR?

I agree you should follow your own advice.

 

[epirali]

Lol. Good response for someone caught out. The original vehicle crossing into your lane was a TRUCK (you said) and you forgot.

Probably never happened!

You're a Volt salesperson or something? Why would anyone be so anti.

I'm happy to discuss issues with the i3, but I have no time for haters or industry shills. Especially when they reckon the steering is 'dangerous' when there is no one agreeing other than one other hater who complains about not having stuff they didn't even order.

You know every post makes you seem less and less credible right? I mean you are just making stuff up in your head here.

Ignoring your error and attacking the messenger.

Was it a TRUCK or a CAR?

I agree you should follow your own advice.

Ignored.

 

[spinball]

epirali, not sure how you can call others trolls and defend a guy going on and on about his poor choice. No one magically took away his backup camera after he bought the car!

 

[I33t]

Ignoring your error and attacking the messenger.

Was it a TRUCK or a CAR?

I agree you should follow your own advice.

Ignored.

Not a problem. Other readers can see and make up their own mind.

Maybe this thread can fade away at last.

 

[epirali]

epirali, not sure how you can call others trolls and defend a guy going on and on about his poor choice. No one magically took away his backup camera after he bought the car!

He may be unhappy, and you may disagree (which honestly I get), but he doesn't just post offensive and twisted comments on everything someone posts. I don't personally think disagreement is trolling. Trolling is just posting personal attacks, hijacking threads, making false arguments.

Has OP ONCE posted a comment about anyone or personally attacked anyone?