120Ah battery

[XXL]

I asked my dealer to give me a quote to upgrade our i3 2014 BEV 60Ah to a 94Ah battery. After a few days i still didn't get a quote so i contacted the sales person again. He said the item number is blocked by BMW Munchen. I cannot be ordered anymore.
So i guess the new 120Ah battery will be anounced soon.
There are also rumors that they would stop REX version production...

 

[neverownedacar]

If I should be starting my own thread rather than hijacking yours please let me know and excuse me as a newbie.

Given recent sales tax increases on electric cars here in Turkey I can no longer afford a new electric car with reasonable range. Also a 60% retaliatory tariff on US cars has just been imposed, which for me rules out the Tesla model 3! So I am considering buying a secondhand 2016 or 2017 model BMW i3 Rex and have a couple of questions. I asked the first to BMW directly but have not received a reply as yet, so I am asking you knowledgeable people.

1) I cannot find a 2017 model here in Turkey so if I buy a 2016 model will it be possible to upgrade the battery to 94Ah or 120Ah?
2) Similarly if I wait until 2017 models come on the secondhand market and the new models by then have a larger battery will it be possible to upgrade?
3) If so would the upgrade have to be done in the EU or could it be done here?

With the scarcity of charging stations here I am surprised none of the ads here mention the range extender. Perhaps the range extender models are only sold in certain countries. Or maybe only the models without range extenders are coming on the secondhand market here.

Thanks for reading.

 

[theothertom]

To neverownedacar:
Regarding upgrading from 60Ahr to 94Ahr, yes, BMW did that on a few test cars and they are for sale here in the U.S. So it is possible but I don't know what has to be done to the electronics, etc to make it happen. I haven't heard of anyone doing it themselves, only BMW.
I'm not to sure about the 120Ahr battery since it hasn't been officially announced.
I don't know if the Rex version is available in Turkey, but it is in the EU.

Good luck on whatever you do and I hope you get an i3 that works for you.

 

[jadnashuanh]

The battery pack weighs more on the larger battery capacity. I haven't looked at the suspension parts, but there are different springs and shocks between the BEV and the REx, but have not looked at the same model from year to year. So, that may need to be changed as well as the batteries. The battery weight isn't as great as that between the BEV and the REx, so they may not have opted for different springs and shocks.

Rumor has it that the next battery upgrade coming out may also require a larger capacity case, so that may not make it a feasible replacement. I suppose, if it isn't huge, it might just reduce the ground clearance a bit, but again, it would probably be heavier (but not necessarily).

FWIW, BMW has only chosen to offer battery upgrades in select markets. Obviously, it is possible, but since it hasn't been an option in the USA, most people don't know the details. Maybe someone from the EU on the board has had it done and could fill us in?!

 

[neverownedacar]

Thanks for your replies. Borusan (who are BMW reps here) just rang me and told me that neither Rex nor battery upgrade are available here in Turkey. So I too would be interested in any recent EU info re battery upgrades.

 

[XXL]

BMW doesn't upgrade REX models here in Belgium, only BEV models.
The quote i got for an upgrade from 60Ah to 94Ah was € 11.203,83 (21% VAT included).

Here most second hand models offered are REX models (31 out of 33 currently on autoscout24.be for 2017 models)

https://www.autoscout24.be/nl/resultaten?sort=standard&desc=0&ustate=N%2CU&cy=B&mmvmd0=20319&mmvmk0=13&fregfrom=2017&atype=C

Some good deals available with very low milage, 2017 models have the 94Ah battery.

 

[i3Houston]

The best way to upgrade the battery would be through warranty upgrade given that the there is 4 more(100K miles) years of warranty left even on early models. So no need to baby the battery.

Upgrading from 3rd party would not only void bumper to bumper warranty(4 yrs/50Kmiles) but also drive train warranty.

Since EVs are not mass produced, dont think if it will be financially sensible anytime soon(2025?) to upgrade the battery vs. buying new car+selling the old one.

But on the other hand, i3's battery is holding up great, unlike Leaf and i3 should have 50 or 70 total miles range at end of 8th year(2022-2024) for 2014 to 2016 i3s.

Maybe we will hear about the battery warranty claims once 2014-15 i3 hit 7th year, it will be really interesting to see what BMW offers then, it can be 21KW battery but smaller and lighter or 60KW battery but software limited to 21KW($ to unlock range) or a buy back program?

 

[alohart]

The best way to upgrade the battery would be through warranty upgrade given that the there is 4 more(100K miles) years of warranty left even on early models. So no need to baby the battery.

The battery warranty does not guarantee that a degraded battery pack capacity would result in a replacement battery pack. There is certainly no mention of a newer battery pack with higher capacity. BMW has highlighted the modular design of the i3 battery pack which would allow the warranty replacement of a "bad" module rather than the entire battery pack.

Due to a design fault, many of the original Honda Insight hybrid's battery packs failed under warranty. Honda ran out of new battery cells which were no longer being manufactured, so warranty replacement battery packs were rebuilt with used battery cells. These battery packs had shorter lives than less expensive 3rd-party battery packs built with battery cells from a different manufacturer. There is nothing that would prevent BMW from using, for example, used 60 Ah battery cells when new ones are no longer being manufactured.

I have read of an i3 owner whose 60 Ah battery pack was being replaced under warranty and who was willing to pay extra for a 94 Ah battery pack but was denied by BMW. I think the chances of having a battery pack replaced under warranty by a higher capacity battery pack are slim.

Because of this, I will continue treating our battery pack in a way that should decrease its degradation rate. I certainly don't want to have a battery pack whose capacity has degraded 25% when its warranty expires and thus would not be fixed by BMW under warranty. I would also prefer not to have a warranty replacement battery pack or battery module made from used cells.

Upgrading from 3rd party would not only void bumper to bumper warranty(4 yrs/50Kmiles) but also drive train warranty.

True. I will wait until our battery pack warranty has expired before considering installing a higher capacity 3rd-party battery pack.

Since EVs are not mass produced, dont think if it will be financially sensible anytime soon(2025?) to upgrade the battery vs. buying new car+selling the old one.

Considerably fewer original Honda Insights were manufactured in total than i3's in a single year, yet 3rd-party Honda Insight battery packs were available starting shortly the first battery pack warranties expired. So I expect 3rd-party i3 battery packs, likely of greater than 60 Ah capacity, to become available in 2022 shortly after the earliest i3 battery pack warranties begin to expire in significant numbers. These 3rd-party battery packs will be significantly less expensive than what BMW charges, of course. Depending on the value of used i3's at that time, it could make economic sense to replace the battery pack with a higher capacity 3rd-party battery pack rather than to buy a newer used i3 (new ones will likely not be available then).

But on the other hand, i3's battery is holding up great, unlike Leaf and i3 should have 50 or 70 total miles range at end of 8th year(2022-2024) for 2014 to 2016 i3s.

Maybe we will hear about the battery warranty claims once 2014-15 i3 hit 7th year, it will be really interesting to see what BMW offers then, it can be 21KW battery but smaller and lighter or 60KW battery but software limited to 21KW($ to unlock range) or a buy back program?

That would be kWh, not kW.

I can almost guarantee that any battery pack sold by BMW would be considerably more expensive that a battery pack of similar quality but greater capacity sold by a 3rd-party manufacturer. There would almost certainly be a core charge for a replacement 3rd-party battery pack which would encourage the buyer to return the battery modules which could be rebuilt with new cells and sold to others.

 

[i3Houston]

I have read of an i3 owner whose 60 Ah battery pack was being replaced under warranty and who was willing to pay extra for a 94 Ah battery pack but was denied by BMW. I think the chances of having a battery pack replaced under warranty by a higher capacity battery pack are slim.

Because of this, I will continue treating our battery pack in a way that should decrease its degradation rate. I certainly don't want to have a battery pack whose capacity has degraded 25% when its warranty expires and thus would not be fixed by BMW under warranty. I would also prefer not to have a warranty replacement battery pack or battery module made from used cells.
.

Brilliant point.

 

[havrla]

Have a nice day gentlemen.

Today I upgraded 60REx -> 120REx.

For infos:

http://elektroforum.cz/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=857#p9079





Havrla

 

[Star63]

This is extremely interesting - thank you for sharing!