Would you buy it again?

Hi all. So about a year ago i had an i3 rex on order, but after seeing the early (us) deliveries and reliability issues, I chickened out. In that time tho I have been drooling and day dreaming about getting my i3. I have a very short commute, live in a non urban area with a nearby larger city appx 30miles away, but must have a car that i can get in and drive to work (at a hospital, often on call, i.e. day and night, multiple trips).

So my question is for those of you that do own, would you purchase (or lease, whatever your case may be) the i3 again?
I'm sure this has come up before, but another polling can't hurt, can it?

Thanks!

have only had it for 2 months, but answer is yes

YES! I love my i3 BEV. Leasing might be best for this type vehicle unless money isn't an issue.

Absolutely

Yes! No question.

YES, love it...

YES.

yes i just love driving it (and i hate driving normally)

Absolutely. Only had ours for about 4 weeks with about 1400km travelled. Did a lot of investigation of our driving patterns and was sure that the BEV would not be stretched by our expectations. I think this is the most important thing to understand i.e. know well what the car can and can't do and don't expect it to be more that what it is designed to be. That said it continues to exceed our expectations, especially in the drivability , performance, low cost of charging, convenience and around practicality - at lest for our needs - just my wife and I so it really works beautifully as a 2 door car. ON another point if you are going to spend a lot of money on a car like this ( to us it was a lot anyway) make sure you get all the bits and pieces to make it premium for you. I didn't get the HK stereo and sort of regret it now. But we did get a premium vehicle nonetheless as the base model in Australia include Pro Nav, Lodge interior, 428 wheels with 175s on rear and much more. This car is so effortless in what it does and in its performance. I could not go back to an ICE.
JTM

Most likely Yes. I like the car, it's dream to drive. I got all the addons except HK audio, Adaptive Cruise Control and Fast DC Charging. I would get the fast DC charging if buying again.

I did look at the Outlander PHEV but the driving position wasn't comfortable, I do regret not looking at the Porsche Cayanne PHEV and would look at that next time but I expect the i3 would win.

I really enjoy the car, but I'm concerned about long term reliability. It's fun to drive, economical (particularly since I charge at work and I got a good deal with all the incentives--assuming there's no surprises at the end of the OC term), and different.

However, comparing it to cars overall, at MSRP, I find it overpriced for its performance and amenities, fit, and finish. I also find the software & app infrastructure a bit underwhelming. I get that it's 'new technology', but I feel like I'm on a bit of a beta testing program, except they don't really seem to be interested in the feedback.

We'll see how it holds up over my 2 year owners choice period (it was delivered with a non-functional AC), and consider keeping it or getting another with longer range at that point. I'll be much less inclined to keep it if they don't reduce the balloon payment to be in line with market residuals(which I expect to be lower than what my contract states the residual will be), and I most certainly won't buy another BMW if they screw me by using the market wholesale value to apply to the balloon payment rather than the residual on my contract and leave me to pick up the difference to dispose of the car.

At 5100 miles, yes, but I would want a sunroof (1st car without one in 40+ years) and heated steering wheel and 5 gals gasoline capacity; screw CARB.

Schnort said:

cars overall, at MSRP, I find it overpriced for its performance and amenities, fit, and finish. .

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I don't know which "other" cars you are comparing, but held up to a BMW 3 series, I would say it is an improvement. After owning BMWs for 40+ years, I can honestly agree with the BMW description:"The footprint of the 1 series, the interior space of the 3 series and the luxury and amenities of the 5 series." To me the car is exceptionally well fit and finished, but I would be interested in what you feel in compares poorly to.

BUMWA said:

At 5100 miles, yes, but I would want a sunroof (1st car without one in 40+ years) and heated steering wheel and 5 gals gasoline capacity; screw CARB.

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I have had glass sunroofs in all the cars I have owned over the past 20 years - the double sunroof on MINIs are terrific and really opens up the interior - but I am not sure whether I would spec a sunroof again on an i3. The Lodge/Giga world interior and the large windscreen make the interior light and spacious and the two small twin portholes add very little more light nor do they let in much air - the dividing section and the short aperture do not allow any wind in the hair experience.

So far so good. I would recommend the REX to anyone doing less than 150 miles per day. Any more and the refilling of fuel could be a drag. I feel that you should be able to rely on your car to get you to the hospital when you need to, or to deal with a sprint up to the in-laws potentially a few hundred miles away in an emergency. To that end, I absolutely wouldn't recommend the BEV to anyone in the UK unless you're prepared to fund a second ICE car purely because IMO the charging infrastructure isn't mature enough to support full-EV quite yet, and too many differing standards kicking around regarding charging points/cables, etc. If you get a BEV then you would most likely need a second ICE car to deal with the weakness's of the BEV. Not wishing to start a war with our BEV friends - this is just my own opinion based on my own expectations from a car in general.

Love and peace to all

Yes! Our first BMW, bought October 2014. Don't see how we'd get used to not having one-pedal accelerating and braking again.

Lei said:

Hi all. So about a year ago i had an i3 rex on order, but after seeing the early (us) deliveries and reliability issues, I chickened out. In that time tho I have been drooling and day dreaming about getting my i3. I have a very short commute, live in a non urban area with a nearby larger city appx 30miles away, but must have a car that i can get in and drive to work (at a hospital, often on call, i.e. day and night, multiple trips).

So my question is for those of you that do own, would you purchase (or lease, whatever your case may be) the i3 again?
I'm sure this has come up before, but another polling can't hurt, can it?

Thanks!

Click to expand...

I just took delivery this weekend and luckily did not hear about any reliability issues I am really impressed with the fit and finish. Compared to my prior experiences, I think the technology is just outstanding. For example, the rear view camera clarity is way better than our last Volvo. The internet searching for destinations is really intuitive.

For your hospital duties and your occasional travel, I would recommend the REX though just for any unpredictable situations. (Coming back from a trip then getting called in multiple times in a night)

Regarding the price, I feel that MSRP is a bit high. I got a great deal on a lease with much of the incentives and a discount upfront. I am pretty sure I would not have done this at MSRP. The car inevitably gets compared to a Tesla Model S. I think they are different cars with different purposes. If cost were not a consideration, I would probably drive a P85D. A similarly optioned 70D would at least double my purchase price or lease cost. While the Model S is the superior large luxury cruiser, the i3 feels so right in the city/suburbs.

My only unknown right now is the snow/ice performance. I live on a big hill that does get some heavy ice/snow rarely. I am planning on getting a winter wheel/tire set though. (really pretty affordable and probably has a decent resale value)

Good Luck!

BUMWA said:

Schnort said:

cars overall, at MSRP, I find it overpriced for its performance and amenities, fit, and finish. .

Click to expand...

I don't know which "other" cars you are comparing, but held up to a BMW 3 series, I would say it is an improvement. After owning BMWs for 40+ years, I can honestly agree with the BMW description:"The footprint of the 1 series, the interior space of the 3 series and the luxury and amenities of the 5 series." To me the car is exceptionally well fit and finished, but I would be interested in what you feel in compares poorly to.

Click to expand...

The base model for $43K MSRP:
doesn't have leather seats
only has front speakers
no power seats
no "homelink"/garage opener

All of these things are available well below that price in Japanese or Korean cars (and that's even ignoring American cars) for similar size, power, etc.

On my particular car:
the weather stripping isn't on straight, is actually ~3/4" too short in one spot
Some of the weather trim has already broken, just by bumping into it while opening the door(more of a design flaw)

It's barely 'right priced' once you factor in the federal incentives. Barely. Even then, it's skating by on its brand to some large degree.

That said, I do like the car. It's just way too overpriced at MSRP (or MSRP - federal incentives)

The i3 is indeed a huge improvement over the 3er, which is much more a commentary on the 3er than on the i3..... After driving one for a few days while my i3 was in the shop I cannot understand why anyone would pay BMWs asking price for a 3-series. Gloomy black cramped interior, rough running ICE, jerky jerky transmission, cheesy carpet and floor mats, etc. I was really surprised.