LA to Tucson and back by REx

[WoodlandHills]

Lots of fuel tank posts here with many reasons why it won't ever happen. The tank is actually 2.4 gallons, but for the NA market you are only permitted to access 1.9 of them. You need to code your car to get the extra .5 gallon, also lots of info on that subject here too.

 

[jadnashuanh]

IMHO, if you want a hybrid with unlimited range like your ICE, don't buy the i3 in either flavor. Yes, some people use it that way. I'd prefer to not live with those limitations. If you can, fine by me, just don't complain...the car was NOT designed as a general ICE replacement where you can quickly just add fuel and keep going without limitations or restrictions.

 

[Sparky17]

I've been thinking about doing something like this. For me it would only be 420 miles each way, and the climate control would be largely unnecessary. But there are a couple of very long, steep hills on the way. Granted, I could get a lot of the charge back going down the other side. And there are a couple of level 2 charge points on the way. I'd probably do it in 2 days, and charge overnight with the level 1 charger.

But I have some concerns, and I wonder if the vehicle was really built to be used in this way.

1. The Rex is a scooter engine. It needs service at certain intervals. I'm pretty sure BMW does not schedule maintenance for the Rex based on the expectation of long drives in Rex mode. I expect this is especially true in the USA, where the Rex has been hobbled.

2. I wonder what effect keeping a charge at a certain level while simultaneously charging and discharging has on the longevity of the battery.

I wonder if the vehicle is marketed in Europe to be used for long distances, even occasionally. Does anyone know if it is?

Jim D: I already know what you think.

 

[jadnashuanh]

FWIW, level 1 on a nearly depleted battery is way more than overnight! And, not all level 2 units are capable of the full 7.4Kw the i3 can use.

 

[WoodlandHills]

I would not worry about the life of the REx, it racks up high mileage as a commuter in Europe and in this installation will be running in the most efficient and lowest wear conditions possible. You will get sick of the car before you wear out the engine.

Since you cannot fully charge nor deplete the batteries, repeated charging and discharging in what is essentially the middle range of battery capacity is also a best case scenario for long battery life. Driving around at 75% to 25% of SOC with the REx running is a regular routine to many i3 drivers in the UK and EU who have access to the full 2.4gal tank and can turn on their REx at 75%. There was a spate of threads on this a while back from the UK and EU, but it became so routine that people stopped posting. I only put this thread up to let Americans know that it was possible here too.

 

[justanotherdrunk]

FWIW, level 1 on a nearly depleted battery is way more than overnight!

thats for sure !!!

mine takes 19 hours on max

:lol:

 

[user 1096]

Interesting, but since I don't have a DVDinmotion mod, I don't think it is relevant to me who would like to head to MDI Maine, (from Albany) later this summer.

Also interesting reference to Salton Sea: I was musing just yesterday about the level of water there now, under such severe drought conditions. FWiW, here is my favorite picture from that former spa. http://photo.net/photodb/photo?photo_id=17259329&size=md