Why we aren't ordering an i3

[robster1979]

@Stevei3: Hi Steven, may I ask which I dealer you're doing business with? I am with the BMW dealer in Amsterdam for my 1 series and very pleased with their service. Just wondering whether their I service might be totally different, due to a lack of training, interest, ignorance or whatever. Thanks!

 

[Stevei3]

@Stevei3: Hi Steven, may I ask which I dealer you're doing business with? I am with the BMW dealer in Amsterdam for my 1 series and very pleased with their service. Just wondering whether their I service might be totally different, due to a lack of training, interest, ignorance or whatever. Thanks!

Hi Robster, it is not that folks @my agent or BMW NL are unfriendly, far from, but it's more that the process of research/buying/trade-in is not realy 'user-friendly'. This will get better over time, but I just encountered lots of 'speedbumps' since may '13.

Steven

 

[AndrewDebbie]

I'm resurrecting my thread from 2013 because . . .

5 years, and two LEAFs later I just signed a lease contract for an i3 S

Why?

Our closest Nissan dealer went out of business last year. I have to drive 90 minutes to Chester for sales and service. Taking the LEAF for annual service costs me a day and half.

Chester Nissan cancled a test drive appointment at the last minute. Dealer traded away their demonstrator.

LEAF 40 is expensive in the UK. Best quote I had was £2000 down £463 a month, 3 years, 12,000 miles a year. That is a big jump in cost. My LEAF 30 was £199 down and £226 a month.

BMW have improved the i3.

While not cheap, I managed to get an i3 S for less than the LEAF 40.



i3 S 94Ah Range Extender, Imperial Blue, Lodge Interior World, Front/Rear PDC, concierge service


The car is an unsold left over 94Ah. I would not have picked that exact set of options if I was ordering one. I'm going to miss not having the H/K audio but otherwise looking forward to the car. It should be here late March. I asked the leasing company to delay delivery until I hand back the LEAF to the finance company.

 

[Boxbrownie]

I thought you hated the look inside and out so much that was the major point of failure?

Personally we both love the look and execution of the styling and find the seats really comfy and the ride very BMW but not hard.

Ours is due for re-placement this September, but without the REX we are dithering........not sure what to do. To be honest the 120 would most likely be fine for 90% of our trips.......but the comfort of having that “lifeboat” in the trunk has made any long trip stress free.

 

[AndrewDebbie]

The i3 has changed since 2014. After 5 years with a LEAF so have my expectations.

In 2014 we were looking a base Atelier interior with cloth seats and plastic trim. BMW chose colours that contrasted with the black roof and hood. There wasn't a colour scheme that we liked. In 2014 the closest BMW-i dealer was beyond single charge range and there was no CCS network.

In 2014, very little came as standard on the UK i3. Even CCS was an option. To keep the car affordable, we were going to get heated seats, the heat pump, DC Charge Prep and nothing else. Small nav screen, style 427 wheels, no extended storage or lighting, no comfort pack. The car looked cheap but cost plenty.

2014

Fast forward to 2019... I've grown tired of driving an electric marshmallow. Parking lots in north wales are not designed for a car that turns like a supertanker. Did you know that LEAF and Outlander have the same turning circle?

The local BMW dealer now has BMW-i sales and support.
The local Nissan dealer closed. Now the nearest one is in England and I live in Wales. Their service department phone is disconnected which makes me wonder if they will survive until next month.

i3 LCI looks less ugly and there are better colour choices. The base car is nicer. UK now gets Pro Navigation, DC Charge Prep, Comfort Package, Extended Storage, Heated Seats, Rain Sensor, better looking wheels, staggered tires and other goodies as standard.

The Faster, better handling and better looking i3 S wasn't available in 2014.

I'm shopping at just the right time to catch good lease deals on left over 94Ah i3 and i3 S. I can get a much better i3 for less money than I could in 2014.

2019

 

[jadnashuanh]

One reason why the i3 is rear wheel drive is probably in that allows a (much) smaller turning radius since it doesn't have to deal with drive shafts to those wheels. As you noted, maneuverability is a sometimes significant factor, especially in older cities like seen more often in Europe versus the USA.

 

[AndrewDebbie]

Narrow tyres can turn in farther without hitting some part of the car. The short wheelbase helps too.


LEAF has large turning circle for FWD car of that size. The much larger AWD Outlander PHEV has an indentical turning circle..

I'm not sure why. Possibly Nissan reused parts from another, larger car. Or maybe there was a stability issue. LEAF isn't great at the limits. Or maybe they just didn't see a need to make the car turn sharper.

It wasn't a deal breaker but LEAF is annoying to park.