Dutch i3 introduction & assessment

[Stevei3]

Hi i3 aficionados,

I was happy to be present at the Dutch introduction of the i3 this weekend since I'm on the production list for 2013 and am ready to order our i3/REx (if at all possible because of limited availability of REx initialy). We had the opportunity to get the feel of the car during an hour after the obligatory video and bubble-talk.

FYI, here are my first impressions of the i3. Please mind that the pros and especially the cons mentioned below are only my opinion and should be interpreted as praise nor flame in the direction of BMW or others. I am still very pleased that one of my favourite brands of carmakers is trying to find a new road towards our future. Feel free to react in agreement/disagreement…

Plus:
The outside of the car is nice, albeit a bit busy. The proportions are excellent, rendering a sturdy, compact and modern impression. The rear is not its best feature, as expected, but not *too* bad. The large wheels and skinny tires suit the car very well.
The outside skin flexes nicely so it should be hard for antisocial drivers to damage it with their doors on the parking lot.
The doors and boot sound ok when closing. Not flimsy at all, although it sounds a long way away from our 3 series.
The interior space in front is quite ok. The dash is nice and deep, the windscreen a good distance away from you. Visibility around seems good because the B pillar is set towards the rear of the car. One could lightly criticise the bulk of the A pillars though.
The centre screen seems excellent.
The front seats are good, the back seats are more than adequate.
Boot space is more than adequate as well. I myself like the relatively high floor of the boot as it saves one's back getting heavy stuff out.
The backseats fold easily to create more luggage space.

Minus:
The interior is far to busy for my taste. It does work nor feel as nicely as it should for me. Chances to score are missed here in my opinion.
Perhaps due to the stage lighting, the brown leather of Suite does not combine well with the black and grey of the dash and doors.
The plastic used to upholster the B pillar, the backside of the front seats and around the rear windows is really low grade and easily scratched. This is supposed to be a different material in the actual production i3. I sure hope so. ADDED sept. 10, 2013: I'm glad to see, in pictures taken at the IAA, that the plastic upholstery of the B pillar is not the same material as in the demo's we've seen at the Dutch introduction. It seems to be regular BMW plastic, which is good.
The space for rear passengers is cramped and claustrophobic, made worse by the lack of opening windows and the (understandable) impossibility to open the back doors from the back seat. Sitting behind myself (1m85) is *just about* possible, with my knees on both sides of the back of the front seat, but only acceptable for short trips. Headroom is nothing to complain about though.
The rear suicide doors are not very practical, as to be expected. It is not that easy to get out from the back seat (again, sitting behind myself), especially for ladies wearing skirts, and it is all but impossible to get out if you have less then a meter or so between the car and a wall or other obstacle. You will find yourself 'trapped' between the front and back doors.
The front luggage-space is not easily accessed, one has to feel around for the hidden safety latch of the hood (like an ordinary car). This won't be a lot of fun with a wet and/or dirty car. The cables you are going to use will go in a crate in the boot I would guess. The coverings left and right of the front compartment, hiding the washer fluid and other fillers, are a bit flimsy (but lightweight )
The flap covering the charge port is far to large, made worse by a 'wobbly' impression.
The visibly carbon roof (nice in itself) could be coloured darker.
The sunroof (top slider) does open only +/- 20 cm.

Observations:
The front of the car can't be seen from behind the wheel. If you park a lot in tight spaces, front sensors (eg. the park assist package) should be big advantage.
The sunroof adds welcoming light to the darker interiors.

Conclusion from the static presentation: ok but not great, alas. Our party of four (all prospective i3 drivers) gave it an average of 7 out of 10. It will be a step down from our 3 and 5 series in some ways. It did not tickle our 'I want it at all cost' senses. Especially the lingering feeling of missing some chances to excel in the interior execution of this flag-bearer of our motoring future (amongst other makers of course) seems a pity. The final word: still buying one ? Because of the driving pleasure to be expected: I guess so…

Greetings from Holland,
Steven

 

[Tesla]

Hi Steven,

My wife and me were there as well (with our kids). I agree with most of your comments, except for your opinion on the brown leather. We thought it looked better then we expected. We will need it, since we have young kids who know how to make a car dirty in 2 minutes.

The space behind the wheel is very good. My wife is 1.89 meters, with long legs and she had no problems adjusting seat and steering wheel in the right position.

We first opted for the REx version, but changed our mind yesterday and ordered the full electric. The BMW sales rep told us that a range extender is for ******* (he really said it The car will be my wife's car mainly and she almost never drives very far. And if she does, she can take my Tesla Model S or rent one. For 5k less you can rent quite a few gasoline cars if you really need the range.

We hope to have the car before the end of the year, just like my Tesla. We will then be totally gasoline free. Even though we're no environmentalists it does feel special.

 

[Stevei3]

Hi Tesla,

good to hear you've got a great electric vibe goin' The fun fact of it all is that it seems to be possible to save the planet and save a few euro's along the way, all in suitable comfort, style and speed.

I agree with you and your wife about the drivers postion: it can be adjusted to suit almost anybody, which we tried, the four of us ranging from 1m70ish to near 1m90.

Greetings, Steven

 

[Tesla]

Hi Tesla,

good to hear you've got a great electric vibe goin' The fun fact of it all is that it seems to be possible to save the planet and save a few euro's along the way, all in suitable comfort, style and speed.

Yes, we started out just looking for cars that would save us money, but by getting enthusiastic we now are really electrified. Both of us currently drive big petrol burners and we love cars and speed. But once you've driven an electric car, you know that a good driving experience has nothing to do with petrol, it is even better electric because of the instant torque. Can't wait to test drive the i3. Don't have time to go to the Frankfurt auto show though.

The only thing I did not understand was: if you have no REx, why not fill the empty space (motor, gas tank) with more batteries?

 

[ChrisC]

Excellent, honest, thorough review, thanks Stevei3!

 

[Lolotte]

The only thing I did not understand was: if you have no REx, why not fill the empty space (motor, gas tank) with more batteries?

Hi!

I think that the optional heat pump is going in that space on the "all-electric" i3!

 

[Plug]

Good summary, I enjoyed reading that.

The outside of the car is nice, albeit a bit busy. The proportions are excellent, rendering a sturdy, compact and modern impression.

I agree that the external design is 'a bit busy', it's one of the reasons I'm opting for a darker colour because that plays down the front bumper and two tone details which I think could have been better.

The large wheels and skinny tires suit the car very well.

There have been a few negative comments about the narrow tyres on here already but I like them. I'm a big fan of light cars, anyone who's driven a car under 1000kg will know what I'm on about, there are so many advantages and often narrower tyres are part of that light package (although I realise that the i3 has additional design reasons for them such as reduced rolling resistance to increase range).

I can see what people mean when they say the skinnier tyres might visually put people off the car but there are plenty of drivers cars out there now with narrower tyres to increase feel (such as the S2 Elise and the Toyota GT86 etc) so the i3 isn't alone in this and hopefully people are coming round to the idea. I'm sure we'll be seeing more and more of this in future from all manufacturers.

On the subject of weight, I drove my mum's VW UP at the weekend which was a lot of fun despite it's very low power output. The fact that BMW have put such emphasis on reducing the weight is one of the main reasons that drew me to the car in the first place. I'd rather a light entertaining car than a heavier one setup for outright speed. Having fun at a lower speed is much more in-tune with the way roads and traffic are nowadays. Obviously if you take your car on track then that all changes but that's not what the i3 is about anyway is it ?

 

[Parker]

Thanks for a great review detailing the pro’s and con’s.

I feel the i3 has fallen victim to its own mission statement being turned up to 11. It’s not the first car to fall victim to adhering an over arcing theme to the point it loses sight of the paying customer.
The original Mecedes A Class and Audi A2 were similarly afflicted.

Whilst having the option of the totally recycled interior and the Olive stained leather is great for its ECO credentials, it’s a far too restrictive palette (IMV). I appreciate the volumes aren’t going to be great with the i3 but surely offering 3 or 5 Series leathers and internal trims would actually be cheaper than separately sourcing the totally sustainable recycled ones.
For a lot of people the simple act of purchasing an electric car will be an undertaking of extreme Eco courageousness ... to then not to be surrounded by the level of luxury they have come to expect from BMW could be a bridge too far.

Having seen the interior of the new i8 today I ask myself why the i3 interior isn’t offered in light grey leather (like the i8) surely a much more practical proposition than the light cloth options of Loft and Lodge.

 

[Stevei3]

I feel the i3 has fallen victim to its own mission statement being turned up to 11

Hi Parker, I think you have hit the nail square on its head. Creating high expectations is one thing, delivering them another.

Don't get me wrong, I am still highly pleased with the effort the Bavarians took. Carbon, plastic, aluminium all nicely incorporated in today's i3 with lots of future potential, nice technical execution (as we can expect) and ok sort of product focus (with and without REx) are all aspects to be proud about. But the company has driven some things a wee bit over the top, one could agree to that.

It could well be that there is a chance of some sort of parallel with the introduction of the original iPad: expectations were sky-high before Apple's product anouncement but tanked soon afterwards ("Hey, look at what it doesn't do !"). A world shattering success it became... We'll see. There is still a lot to like.

Just as with the A2 we leased for 3+ years, about which I disagree with every critic wholeheartedly. I liked it very very much, also because of its grand glass roof. A top-slider, but done right. True, the suspension was rock hard, but the 1.4, the seats, the ride, the fit and finish made it a pleasure to drive, even for long distances (eg. to the Alps and back).

Steven

PS: don't show too many pictures of the i8 for it is not electrical enough and worse: I can't afford it...