Recent content by Ardie

nowtta60, While I've been driving an i3+REx for over 4,500 miles now, I have yet to take a trip that exhausts both the battery and the 8-liter fuel tank. Can't say if it is what my trips just happen to be, or whether I look at iffy trips and I shrink from even attempting the task, but there...

Usually, when an Active E or the i3 had been reported has having some kind of conniption fit when it comes to (accurate and inaccurate) errors on the display, it has been diagnosed as having a low-voltage 12 volt battery. The i3 uses a 390 volt main battery pack to power the electric motor...

I don't see this as an unreachable destination. In fact, it ought to be about as ordinary as any other trip, as long as you can plan to have enough battery capacity available if/when you encounter steep grades or hills. We American's don't have that choice, and will have to, when powered...

I haven't really bothered to calculate it, but the REx is a 35 hp engine. Instead of attempting to figure in the drivetrain losses, wind resistance, temperature, existing battery level, climate control settings and phase of the moon for increased tidal pull, I'll just recall that the REx is...

Due to the flak about some of the ActiveE's 12v batteries having charging problems (and now a couple of i3's), I have a 12v solar charger on the back deck's privacy panel, with the cord snaking down to the rear 12v "cigarette lighter" outlet. The solar charger is about the size of a license...

The AeroVironment EVSE (charging station) looks like the one I have in my garage, and it is a 220v / 30 amp unit. It recharges the car at approximately 20-25 miles (32-40 km) of range per hour. They are dependable, although not very informative to us data geeks. I think that your screen is...

I was shocked (and perhaps appalled) when I found out that I paid $800 MORE to get the "premium" Harmon-Kardon sound system, and I *still* didn't get something as basic as an AM radio, or a CD player. Sigh. So now, when I wish to listen to books-on-disk, I have to take 'em all home, rip 'em to...

Yeah, the i3 is a "sprited steed," requiring a masterful hand at all times. Its touchy at freeway speeds, and even more so on grooved pavement. Crosswinds and 18-wheelers also are something to watch out for. Here in Southern California, I have yet to experience it during any kind of inclement...

Count me in. Ron from Newport Beach, Calif. 92660 i3/REx

I typically drive with the climate control in Auto mode, letting the car decide how to maintain the temperature that I dial in (72° F / 22° C). I find that with the climate control in 'Auto' mode (either Comfort or Eco Pro), the system starts out reasonably cold. (NOTE: The system could be...

Tom, You can add these to the stack. LIKES * Its electric. Soooo cool. * Its quiet. Running on city streets, its a ghost car. Practically silent. More quiet, even, than the BMW ActiveE. The A-E had a bit of a turbine-like whine to the motor as you accelerated; the i3 has almost none. *...