Long-Term Test: 2015 BMW i3 – Part 2
Story and photo by John LeBlanc
We are now halfway through our 60-day test drive of the new 2015 BMW i3 plug-in electric vehicle equipped with the range-extender. So far in the past month, with its lightweight carbon fibre/aluminum chassis and powerful electric powertrain, it has been all too easy to geek out about driving one of the most technically advanced vehicles you can buy starting under $50,000.
However, after our initial behaviour adjustments required driving any range-limited (in the BMW’s case, up to 230 kilometres) plug-in electric vehicle, we thought it would be best to don our more objective toques and assess the i3 on it merits as a compact urban vehicle first — what it is like to drive, to be driven in, buy groceries with, park in tight spots or take the dog to the vet in — and as a technical wunderkind second.
One aspect we think other cars need to copy is the i3’s cabin design. As we mentioned in our first installment, the four-door, four-passenger, i3 hatchback‘s interior is not only nothing like any other vehicle from the German automaker (save for the equally futuristic i8) but also anything else on the road.
Like the contrast between having an architect design your home instead of buying a tract house, the cabin of the BMW i3 feels intelligent, user-friendly and is a good use of a small space. While compared to mainstream plug-in electric compact cars like the Chevrolet Volt, Ford Focus Electric, Nissan Leaf and the plug-in Toyota Prius, the BMW’s stylish and functional interior helps justify its $47,395 luxury-car starting price.
From the i3’s firm-yet-supportive driver’s seat, you sit relatively tall, with the front windshield screen set far ahead. BMW designers have eschewed any kind of traditional round-dial driver instrumentation. Instead, there’s a rectangular digital screen ahead of the driver. Most other functions are found on an even larger 6.5-inch touchscreen display in the middle of the dash, controlled by an iDrive controller that sits at hip level between the driver and passenger seats. And for the limited number of dials and knobs left over in the middle of the central dash for audio and climate control, they all feel up to the regular high-quality standards you would expect in this price range.
As we found in our first few days, the i3’s carbon fibre upper-body allows for thinner-than-normal roof pillars. That equals more glass, which begets excellent external visibility. Unlike a lot of small crossovers, you really don’t need the i3’s rearview camera to back into a parking spot. But if you do, you’ll find one of the best digital screens in the business with large and crisp graphics.
At first, the i3’s column-mounted PRND gear shifter garnered some strange responses. It didn’t help to get Drive you twist forward and to get Reverse you twist backwards — counter-intuitive at first, but like most new gear interfaces, after a few days, we never had a problem going in the proper direction. In fact, the design was particularly handy for tight parking spaces where back-and-forth manoeuvres are required. The column-mounted shifter and lack of central drivetrain tunnel also free up appreciated space between the front seats, creating an open area below the central dash that’s perfect for tossing knapsacks or purses.
The i3’s unique construction also eliminates any B-pillars, which prompted BMW to create clamshell doors. In most instances, the design works. Once the front door is open, the back door opens almost perpendicular from the rear hinge. Mated with the light, thin and easy-to-tilt front seats, it makes for easy access whether your dog or children are climbing in. However, the front doors have to open first before the rear doors can, so if your kids in the back are too young or too small to reach the front door inner handles on their own, you’re on the hook to get out of the car and open the front door.
The i3’s rear seat area offers plenty of headroom and legroom. I’m nearly six feet tall and had no problem sitting back there with the front seat adjusted to someone my size. That said, compared to other front-wheel drive and front-engined compacts, the i3’s rear-mounted powertrain eats up valuable rear cargo room. The BMW’s 334 litres of room behind the back seats is greater than what you’ll find in the Focus Electric, but almost half that in a Prius Plug-in. Quite often, we simply folded either of the BMW’s split- rear seats and took advantage of the extra 710 litres found there when transporting stuff like golf clubs or ringette gear.
The other area the BMW i3 Range Extender performs like a premium car is in the way it drives. For the majority of the time, it is easy to forget that electrons and not fossil fuel are powering the compact hatch. Compared to other mainstream electric compacts, the BMW is quieter, quicker and more refined to drive.
Subjectively, acceleration from the BMW’s single-gear direct-drive transmission is smooth and serenely quiet, with the electric motor’s 184 lb.-ft. of torque giving a good shove in your back. As you may have figured out by now, though, the BMW has a distinct power-to-weight advantage over its mainstream rivals. The i3 we are testing takes only 7.9 seconds to go from a standstill to 100 km/h — about two seconds quicker than the 10-second club the other electric compacts reside in, and only 0.4 slower than a gas-powered BMW 320i. Keep in mind, the lighter and all-electric i3 is even quicker by 0.3 seconds.
We found ourselves constantly taking advantage of the i3’s trio of Comfort, Eco Pro and Eco Pro+ driving modes – all of which are accessed via a toggle switch between the front seats – to maximize our precious onboard battery power.
For said acceleration runs and highway driving, where the electric BMW happily keeps up with 120 km/h drivers on four-lane highways, we’d use Comfort. To save a few kilowatts per hour, Eco Pro limited the vehicle top speed to 130 km/h and for strictly urban driving, Eco Pro+ blows only unconditioned exterior air and caps the vehicle’s top speed to 90 km/h — admittedly, a mode we avoided during some recent 30-plus degree Celsius summer weather.
Of course, being a BMW and sending its power to its rear wheels subjects the small electric car to some lofty ride and handling expectations and for the most part, it behaves accordingly. Although it sends its power to its rear wheels only, tire-squealing burnouts and parking-lot doughnuts are not part of the i3’s driving repertoire. You can’t switch the i3’s dynamic stability control off, but you can still disengage the traction control if needed. Yet despite the i3’s narrow, low-rolling resistant rubber, the small hatchback has plenty of lateral grip in dry road conditions. In the few instances where we’ve cornered hard during a rainy day, the DSC is quick to chime in.
Keen drivers will like the i3’s steering as it is heavier than most front-wheel-drive compacts. In town, the short car feels nimble in tight turns but the steering feels a bit darty out on the highway, with lane changes happening quicker than expected. However, one area traditional BMW drivers will feel familiar with is the i3’s ride. Like many BMWs with optional sport suspensions and low-profile tires, the i3 feels firm – all the time.
While its handling and steering are relatively traditional, the i3’s braking action is not. Because the i3’s regenerative braking system converts kinetic energy into electricity to recharge its batteries, as soon as you release the throttle, the brakes begin to engage — whether your foot has touched the brake pedal or not. In use, the i3’s regen brakes can decelerate so quickly the car can slow car all the way to a stop. At first, the feeling is jarring, but when under 60 km/h or so, I found I was driving essentially with only one foot on the accelerator, letting the grab brake system slow the vehicle down at stoplights and corners.
Putting down the BMW’s plug for a minute, what’s the verdict on the compact graded purely as day-to-day urban transportation? Well, aside from its distinctive braking behaviour, the range-extending BMW i3 is a standout. For starters, the roomy, stylish and functional interior is much more relaxing to be in than the typical compact car. And if your trip resides in the BMW’s electric driving range, the drive can be both entertaining and frugal at the same time.