<It won't have all the tech and BMW aura of the i3 >>>
After much study, it seems to me the tech comes down to the aluminum frame and the carbon fiber body. Now I'll admit that's a lot, but I'm waiting to see the eGolf and MB B class to see if that, plus the aura, is enough to offset the i3 minuses plus a price differential if there is one.
It's a little unsettling that nobody else is going that route, and that Tesla is going the steel frame (and probably a steel body instead of aluminum) for it's 2016 lower cost E car, which by all accounts will be close to 4000 lbs.
BUT the i3 battery is 500 lbs 22kw/18.8 usable) while the e-golf battery is 700 lbs 26.5/24.2 usable. Given the same 80 mile range, the larger battery seems pretty efficient to be able to carry the extra weight of the e-Golf
The i3 mpg rating should be higher than the e-Golf, but this UK web site gives them both 199mpg.
http://www.nextgreencar.com/electric-cars/available-models.php
So the i3 tech IS a big deal which to my mind more than offsets the i3 shortcomings. Coupled with my belief BMW is losing money on each i3 because of the tech means BMW is subsidizing each buyer and therefore inclines me to favor the i3.
Unfortunately, my wife really doesn't like the i3 for it's quirky exterior and interior looks and inability to see a hood versus the conventional looks of the e-Golf. So with one aye and one nay, the nays have it.
Ron
