Standard charger enough at home

[bmwi3ownercom]

After more than two weeks with the brand new BMW i3 my conclusion is that the standard charger is sufficient. We always charge the car over night and it is always fully charged in the morning. If you are thinking of buying an i3 and are considering a Wallbox or similiar (just like I did) I think you should really think about the situations that you will arrive in the evening and need the car fully charged again by nine in the evening.

Read more on http://bmwi3owner.com/2014/02/charger/

 

[MikeS]

Good information, especially in the link, thank you.

Can you preheat the car OK using the standard charger? Do you use the BMW smart phone app for this?

 

[bmwi3ownercom]

Yes. Pre-heating is possible also with the standard charger. I do it almost every morning either by setting a departure time or by activating it through the iRemote app some 15 minutes before leaving.

 

[swissmot]

I dare to question whether charging through the standard home power outlet is sufficient indeed.

I came home at midnight today with a remaining range of 7km. The car/iPhone display show an expected charging time of 14h, for both charge settings reduced and maximum. Meaning only at 2pm tomorrow, the car will be fully ready.

Charging times of 8-10h might work reasonably well for overnight charging, yet 14h makes one rethink how to charge.

 

[Lecram]

It depends on the particular situation. In the Netherlends we have interesting tax benefits. We pay nett less than 500 euros for a 3000 euros charger (in my case, not for private persons).
With a 24A charger, I am prepared for the situations that I just need more charging speed

 

[bmwi3ownercom]

I agree that if you often need to use the full range many days in a row and arrive very late in the evening so that the charging time is crucial then the standard charger will not be sufficient.

However, I believe what I have realized from my own driving pattern is that I usually go 40-50 km in day and those days that I use the full range and arrive home with the care with a flat battery, well then it is either early enough that the car will still have time to charge overnight or I will not actually need the full range the next day and I am fine to leave home with a 75% charged car.

Also, the chargers seem to be much more expensive in Sweden. Maybe because there are no tax benefits or other subsidies. Had it been considerably less expensive I would have considered it.