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Help Support BMW i3 Forum:
Try to find a 2019 (sales began in late 2018) or later because these models have the largest capacity battery pack of any i3, 120 Ah (42 kWh), and thus the greatest range. They also include the mid-cycle improvements (LCI in BMW-speak).
If having the best audio in your vehicles is important, look for an i3 with the Harman Kardon entertainment system option which is better than the standard entertainment system.
If you prefer all-leather upholstery, look for an i3 with the Suite interior which is pretty dark overall. The most striking and brightest interior is Lodge, light brown wool upholstery with light brown leather trim. Loft is a light gray cloth upholstery with light gray synthetic leather trim. Atelier is dark gray cloth upholstery.
Different markets include different options and packages of options. I'm not familiar with what was offered in Italy. With the VIN of an i3 of interest, you could learn which options it has at M Decoder.
Option 5AT, Driving Assistant Plus, includes features like adaptive cruise control and a camera that assists with collision avoidance.
Option 5A4, LED Headlights with Extended Features, includes cornering lights and high-beam LED segments that are automatically turned on and off independently to provide superior lighting without dazzling other drivers.
Option 5AC, High-Beam Assistant, automatically controls the high-beam headlights.
Option 609, Navigation System Professional, includes a wider navigation screen.
Happy hunting!
If having the best audio in your vehicles is important, look for an i3 with the Harman Kardon entertainment system option which is better than the standard entertainment system.
If you prefer all-leather upholstery, look for an i3 with the Suite interior which is pretty dark overall. The most striking and brightest interior is Lodge, light brown wool upholstery with light brown leather trim. Loft is a light gray cloth upholstery with light gray synthetic leather trim. Atelier is dark gray cloth upholstery.
Different markets include different options and packages of options. I'm not familiar with what was offered in Italy. With the VIN of an i3 of interest, you could learn which options it has at M Decoder.
Option 5AT, Driving Assistant Plus, includes features like adaptive cruise control and a camera that assists with collision avoidance.
Option 5A4, LED Headlights with Extended Features, includes cornering lights and high-beam LED segments that are automatically turned on and off independently to provide superior lighting without dazzling other drivers.
Option 5AC, High-Beam Assistant, automatically controls the high-beam headlights.
Option 609, Navigation System Professional, includes a wider navigation screen.
Happy hunting!
WOW!
Thank you so much for you reply
If I ever decide to buy an i3 it will definitely be a 120Ah, HK audio would be a plus but not so important, I wasn’t aware of the different trims, will check them.
My main concern of course is with battery pack, is there a sure way to asses if the battery pack is OK?
Something like residual capacity, number of charging cycles etc.
Anyway, I will explore the forum and I’m 100% sure I’ll learn a lot about this car.
Thank you again!
I've not read of any 120 Ah battery pack failing or losing so much capacity that it would need to be replaced. The battery pack should not concern you because it almost certainly would still be under warranty. The 120 Ah battery pack was introduced in late 2018, so the oldest ones are ~6 years old. I'm not familiar with the battery pack warranty in Italy, but in the U.S., it is warrantied against defects for 80,000 miles (130,000 km)/8 years and for more than a 30% usable capacity loss for 100,000 miles (160,000 km)/8 years. I would be surprised if a similar warranty doesn't protect Italian i3's.
Residual capacity isn't directly measurable. A BMW dealer could measure the usable capacity, but this takes many hours and would really be a waste of your money.
The number of charge-discharge cycles could be estimated by assuming an average i3 efficiency, knowing the distance a particular i3 has been driven, and assuming an average usable capacity of the battery pack over time. However, I'm not aware of public specifications for the 120 Ah Samsung SDI battery cell used in an i3 battery pack, so know the number of charge-discharge cycles wouldn't be very informative. I'm pretty certain that a 120 Ah i3 would have to be driven considerably farther than most vehicles are driven during their lifetimes for its battery pack to degrade so much as to become unusable due to the number of charge-discharge cycles.
