sasman said:
This is an interesting comparison.
That model suzuki isn't available where I live. (Canada) but I wanted to do a cost comparison to see what the difference would actually be.
I went to the Suzuki UK website and decked out a swift with all the options. There are options below that my i3 didn't come with like an optional shift knob etc. but I am more than certain that the fully loaded i3 I ordered has waaay more options than the swift. Like (leather, navigation, automatic cruise control, self paking, etc etc.)
Here is the quote
Engine
1.6 Petrol Manual £ 14,499.00
Spec Level
Sport 5dr £ 14,499.00 Swift Sport Standard
Colour
Cosmic Black Pearl Metallic Standard Sport Standard
Accessories
Gear shift knob £ 109.44
Carpet mat set £ 78.28
Ashtray £ 31.57
Centre console silver finish dash trim set £ 56.17
Centre armrest with CD storage £ 152.17
Pioneer AVIC-F50BT multimedia unit £ 1,326.00
Pioneer AVIC-F860BT multimedia unit £ 1,194.00
Front spoiler (primed) £ 435.91
Rear lower spoiler (primed) £ 435.91
All weather mat set £ 69.51
Side body moulding set £ 60.25
Rear parking sensor kit £ 195.40
The total came to £ 18,644
I converted this to CAD which is a total price of $33,242.40 (I am assuming this includes their VAT?)
I then assumed that I would dive this car for 200,000km at the same fuel cost of my current base Mazda 3 sedan which costs 0.12/km in regular gas to drive.
200,000km X 0.12/km = $24,000
Taxes in Purchase Price 33,242.40 + Fuel Costs 24,000 = 57,242.40
It costs 57k CAD to drive a swift 200,000km
Fully Loaded i3 REX costs 58k taxes in, (after government rebate)
fuel costs should be 0.02 per km x 200,000km - $4000
Suzuki Swift Total Cost = 57k
BMW i3 REX Fully Loaded Total Cost = 62k
BMW i3 BEV well equipped (no extra Options) Total Cost = 58k
Total cost of ownership is very similar for these two cars. Not sure who in their right mind would choose the suzuki. I would rather put my money toward the carbon fiber feat of engineering with luxury features, the latest tech and the better badge up front.
Also, not sure about other countries but bmw Canada includes their service costs for the first 4 years / 80,000km no charge schedule maintenance. Lets call that even for the gasoline costs I didn't include to calculate for the REX.
People are short sighted, they compare sticker prices and not cost of ownership.
If you only needed a base BEV and compared it to the swift with only a 1k differnce, it's a no brainer.
I would also care to wager that when I am done with the car, it will still hold a significant resale value compared to the swift. Feel free to look up what a 6-8 year old suzuki sells for on the used market. I am guessing you could pick one up for less than 3k.
If I wanted to go fast around a track, the Suzuki I would buy would have 2 wheels.
Let me know if I have missed something, or if you have anything to add.
Happy Driving.
