rabster
Member
My rather lovely I3 arrived a few weeks ago and as you all know, there's a learning curve when coming from an ICE car.
So far I've done a good variation of journeys such as general pottering about locally in Kent, a 70 mile round trip to the coast with the family, 35 mile rush hour commutes into London and back again, 300 mile round trip to Norfolk in the rain, and last night a 150 mile round trip to Basingstoke all at motorway speed.
Key points for me:
1. If you have REX then you don't really need a fast charger. I've fitted the standard BMW three-pin charger to an outdoor wall socket and it works fine. I set it to only charge off-peak and I still have not once got up at 6 or 7am in the morning without a fully charged I3 waiting for me. I really would strongly suggest any new REX owners to wait before spending good money on a fast charger, subsidized or not. Also, the REX works so good that its got to the point now that I don't religiously plug the car in every night anymore unless there's less than 50% charge remaining.
2. The car is very comfortable. I've not once had an achy body after a long drive.
3. The standard stereo is great. I've never felt the need for more bass/treble/volume and my family have yet to notice the lack of rear speakers!
4. I tend to drive in EcoPro most of the time purely because it makes the throttle response much smoother. I only ever switch to Comfort for the traffic light grand prix, which I've yet to lose BTW
5. I'm amazed at the attention the car gets. I constantly get people asking me about the car, kids seem to love it and point at it as we go past, men more often think it looks bonkers whereas women more often think it looks cool.
What would I change?
1. The rear doors are not practical when parking in car parks. Its a complete kerfuffle getting my son out of the car. Regular doors next please.
2. When selecting Reverse, only the passenger mirror dips, would be great if they both dipped.
3. The Bluetooth and USB audio options aren't that great. Bluetooth doesn't pick up playlists so you're stuck on whatever playlist you selected on the phone, whereas USB simply does work with my Android smartphone. If you're gonna remove the CD option, which is a good idea in principle, then you need to get the alternatives options right first.
So far I've done a good variation of journeys such as general pottering about locally in Kent, a 70 mile round trip to the coast with the family, 35 mile rush hour commutes into London and back again, 300 mile round trip to Norfolk in the rain, and last night a 150 mile round trip to Basingstoke all at motorway speed.
Key points for me:
1. If you have REX then you don't really need a fast charger. I've fitted the standard BMW three-pin charger to an outdoor wall socket and it works fine. I set it to only charge off-peak and I still have not once got up at 6 or 7am in the morning without a fully charged I3 waiting for me. I really would strongly suggest any new REX owners to wait before spending good money on a fast charger, subsidized or not. Also, the REX works so good that its got to the point now that I don't religiously plug the car in every night anymore unless there's less than 50% charge remaining.
2. The car is very comfortable. I've not once had an achy body after a long drive.
3. The standard stereo is great. I've never felt the need for more bass/treble/volume and my family have yet to notice the lack of rear speakers!
4. I tend to drive in EcoPro most of the time purely because it makes the throttle response much smoother. I only ever switch to Comfort for the traffic light grand prix, which I've yet to lose BTW
5. I'm amazed at the attention the car gets. I constantly get people asking me about the car, kids seem to love it and point at it as we go past, men more often think it looks bonkers whereas women more often think it looks cool.
What would I change?
1. The rear doors are not practical when parking in car parks. Its a complete kerfuffle getting my son out of the car. Regular doors next please.
2. When selecting Reverse, only the passenger mirror dips, would be great if they both dipped.
3. The Bluetooth and USB audio options aren't that great. Bluetooth doesn't pick up playlists so you're stuck on whatever playlist you selected on the phone, whereas USB simply does work with my Android smartphone. If you're gonna remove the CD option, which is a good idea in principle, then you need to get the alternatives options right first.
