Battery Range

BMW i3 Forum

Help Support BMW i3 Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

andyjack

New member
Joined
Jul 13, 2021
Messages
1
Hi Folks, I'm based in the UK and I'm hoping you can help with my query, apologies if this has been discussed elsewhere but whatever I try to search comes back as 'too common' to find any results.
I was interested in buying a used i3, it's a 2013 model though and when looking at the photos in the car advert I noticed at 90% charge it had a range of just 47 miles in Eco Pro+ mode, I did query with the dealer and this was their reply:

"This 80 mile range is quoted on a brand new battery but even then it will not do that as you can never use 100% of the power and it is dependent on perfect conditions and temperature.

The battery is 22.6kw and 18.8kw is usable from new. The battery on our car is 15.8kw as they lose cells the older they get. I don’t think you will find a 2013 i3 with more usable battery power than 15.8kw.

We have charged it to 100% at the request of a customer due in this weekend that potentially wants to take it away. 100% in ECO Pro mode (not eco pro+) gives 52 Miles of range.

Please be aware that I have not pre-heated the system nor set a departure time which may give you more range once warmed up as the system suggests. This car is fitted with the optional Auxiliary heating system at a cost of £530 which when used properly, will increase the range according to the brochure.

I imagine the range showing will also be based on the current driving style just like a trip computer may show 20mpg if the car has been driven short distances and has a lot of start stop which is always the case when the car goes to the workshop, a short road test, to the valeters, then to marketing who of course use a lot of power whilst taking photos and videos of all of the features etc. I can’t be sure but I imagine it may increase when it has had a few trips on the road just like a normal combustion engine will. "

So really I'm wondering if all that he has said is correct and is the range of an 8 year old i3 going to be really poor? I was hoping to do a straight swap for my current diesel car and not wanting to contribute much towards as a part exchange but I might have to if the batteries do deteriorate that much.

Thanks,
 
This dealer is shockingly helpful and truthful in their response. They better watch out or they'll start to give used-car dealers a good name! :lol:

Seriously: what they say is accurate. The 15.8kWh number is well within reason for an i3 of that age. Personally, I assume efficiency (fuel efficiency) to range between 2.5 and 5 mi/kWh for most drives in an i3 if you drive it like a gas car (I do). That would relate to a range being between 40 miles and 80. Even though it's the 'worst-case' scenario, if a car with 40 miles of range won't work for you 90%+ of the time you might want to shop newer. The 94ah battery started being available in 2017, that might be a better choice.
 
3pete said:
The 94ah battery started being available in 2017, that might be a better choice.
We bought a 2014 i3 BEV new and have driven it less than 12k miles. It hasn't experienced any temperature extremes, hasn't typically been allowed to remain at very high or very low charge, and has been DC fast charged fewer than 5 times, yet its usable battery pack capacity has decreased by 23%. Many 60 Ah battery packs have degraded considerably whereas many haven't. The only used 60 Ah i3 I'd buy would be one whose pack hadn't degraded much. Otherwise, I agree with 3pete's recommendations to buy a 2017 or later i3 which has a 94 Ah or 120 Ah battery pack. These packs don't seem to be degrading much at all.
 
Back
Top