2014 BMWi3- bad cell-Any EV repair shops in San Diego

[shawns92130]

Our i3 was diagnosed with a bad cell, dealership in Phoenix wanted $7500 to replace 1 cell. Towed the car back to our house in Phoenix where it sits in the driveway. Can't even get it out of park. Does anyone know of a place in San Diego that does battery pack replacement? Thank you, Shawn

 

[agzand]

Is it REX or BEV? The REX has 10 year warranty for battery, so it could be still under warranty.

 

[alohart]

Our i3 was diagnosed with a bad cell, dealership in Phoenix wanted $7500 to replace 1 cell. Towed the car back to our house in Phoenix where it sits in the driveway. Can't even get it out of park. Does anyone know of a place in San Diego that does battery pack replacement?

An individual bad battery cell can't be replaced. The smallest replaceable unit is a module of 12 battery cells. Much of the expense is likely labor since the A/C refrigerant and the refrigerant lines must be removed, the entire battery pack must be dropped from the underside of the car, the battery pack enclosure opened up, the old module replaced with a new one, the enclosure closed up, the battery pack lifted into position and secured, and the A/C system recharged.

I suppose you might be able to save some labor cost if you could find an independent mechanic willing to do this. However, independent mechanics willing to work on anything electric or electronic on an i3 seem to be rare in the U.S. California might be more likely than anywhere else in the U.S.

Good luck!

 

[shawns92130]

Thank you for the reply

 

[frictioncircle]

Hello shawns92130 –

As agzand points out, for a 2014 i3 REx, California (and a few other states) requires a 10-year / 150,000 mile manufacturer's warranty for the high-voltage traction battery.

Take a look at the warranty documents that were included with your car.

Arizona and California treat vehicle emissions differently (California being more stringent) so making a warranty claim in one state for a car that's registered in the other might make for some interesting negotiations.

Here's the perspective of a new California resident that purchased a 2014 REx and got their battery replaced under warranty:

https://www.theautopian.com/i-bought-a-high-mileage-electric-car-with-a-bad-battery-heres-why-that-was-actually-a-stroke-of-genius/