i3 running costs
Discussion
New to EV land and thinking of getting a late model i3 for my wife. We have PVs and battery and are on Octopus Flux. We don’t have a home charger. What are running costs like inc serving etc for say 8000 per annum (sorry broad question but weighting up pros and cons vs another VAG 2.0tdi SUV…
I would first suggest comparing your electricity bills between flux and intelligent, with intelligent’s off-peak import rate being half of flux’s and having a 6-hour off-peak window rather than 3 hours also!
With intelligent I would expect you to be able to charge almost entirely during the cheap rate (7p/kwh) meaning that after losses you are likely talking 2.5p/mile, lower if you can shove any excess solar into the car.
I’ve spent roughly £45 for the last 685Kw’s worth (2,200 miles worth) of charging my Model 3, and that includes some public charging.
With intelligent I would expect you to be able to charge almost entirely during the cheap rate (7p/kwh) meaning that after losses you are likely talking 2.5p/mile, lower if you can shove any excess solar into the car.
I’ve spent roughly £45 for the last 685Kw’s worth (2,200 miles worth) of charging my Model 3, and that includes some public charging.
Not what you asked, but obviously two very different cars and a change in the way you use them.
I had an I3S and it is a brilliant car, can seat 4 pretty comfortably if a bit jiggly in ride I imagine the I3 is better in this regard. Because it was regularly more than two people for me, the odd longish distance and I wanted to carry people and luggage it didn't work out and I replaced with a hybrid SUV.
Economy wise with what you have if you can charge sensibly at home even off a three pin it'll be cheap as chips.
I got anywhere from 3.5m/kwh to 4.3m/kwh depending on weather and driving style/type of journey which gives a range of about 140 to 170 miles, but my car was very rarely "full" I charged overnight on a three pin and fast charging isn't fast charging because the max rate is 50kw DC so journeys take a little planning. That coupled with the infrastructure at the time wasn't amazing a 100 mile round trip in winter caused a bit of anxiety.
Keep it local without the need to carry people and luggage (you can have one or the other) and it is a fantastically efficient to run, lovely surprisingly sporty drive that gets under your skin.
It is not a replacement for an SUV if you are used to it.
I had an I3S and it is a brilliant car, can seat 4 pretty comfortably if a bit jiggly in ride I imagine the I3 is better in this regard. Because it was regularly more than two people for me, the odd longish distance and I wanted to carry people and luggage it didn't work out and I replaced with a hybrid SUV.
Economy wise with what you have if you can charge sensibly at home even off a three pin it'll be cheap as chips.
I got anywhere from 3.5m/kwh to 4.3m/kwh depending on weather and driving style/type of journey which gives a range of about 140 to 170 miles, but my car was very rarely "full" I charged overnight on a three pin and fast charging isn't fast charging because the max rate is 50kw DC so journeys take a little planning. That coupled with the infrastructure at the time wasn't amazing a 100 mile round trip in winter caused a bit of anxiety.
Keep it local without the need to carry people and luggage (you can have one or the other) and it is a fantastically efficient to run, lovely surprisingly sporty drive that gets under your skin.
It is not a replacement for an SUV if you are used to it.
You should get at least 4 miles per kWh - 4.5 over the summer is a standard i3 (120). I would avoid the Rex versions.
Range 125-170 depending on weather and how you drive.
Tyres last around 20K if you rotate them on the standard car (they are staggered on the s)
Servicing is around £300 (a rip off for what they do) every 2 years / 20k miles
No faults in ours (on our second now and about 40k miles between them).
Fantastic car.
Range 125-170 depending on weather and how you drive.
Tyres last around 20K if you rotate them on the standard car (they are staggered on the s)
Servicing is around £300 (a rip off for what they do) every 2 years / 20k miles
No faults in ours (on our second now and about 40k miles between them).
Fantastic car.
I get over 4 miles per kw without thinking. 4.5 if I'm careful. Tyres will do 20k+ though they are quite pricey as they're an odd size. Brakes are more likely to corrode than require pads. If you drive carefully you never touch them and need to brake from time to time to clean the discs. It really is dirt cheap to run and still feels cutting edge and a level above other small EVs.
Downsides are the fairly small boot and the (common to all EVs to some degree) range issues. You need to plan journeys to an extent. It's also not a happy camper above 70mph.
Downsides are the fairly small boot and the (common to all EVs to some degree) range issues. You need to plan journeys to an extent. It's also not a happy camper above 70mph.
CLK-GTR said:
I get over 4 miles per kw without thinking. 4.5 if I'm careful. Tyres will do 20k+ though they are quite pricey as they're an odd size. Brakes are more likely to corrode than require pads. If you drive carefully you never touch them and need to brake from time to time to clean the discs. It really is dirt cheap to run and still feels cutting edge and a level above other small EVs.
Downsides are the fairly small boot and the (common to all EVs to some degree) range issues. You need to plan journeys to an extent. It's also not a happy camper above 70mph.
Re Motorways. The standard i3 isn’t great at speed due to tendency to wander / get buffeted. It is mainly due to front geo which is set for max efficiency with no / little toe in.Downsides are the fairly small boot and the (common to all EVs to some degree) range issues. You need to plan journeys to an extent. It's also not a happy camper above 70mph.
The S version is great on motorways.
Edited by Discombobulate on Monday 7th October 16:48
Discombobulate said:
Servicing is around £300 (a rip off for what they do) every 2 years / 20k miles
Have been looking at these recently and I did wonder about servicing costs. What do they check/replace to get to £300? I pay less than that for my petrol 1-series at the local dealer and the majority of the service cost on that appears to be because of the "special" oil it needs and everything else is just visual checks and the mandatory special scope!Chris
The brake fluid service every 2 years is OTT in my opinion. There's ways of testing brake fluid for moisture content, so arguably this could be done based on condition.
The AC system should be serviced periodically. It's quite important to keep it in good order as it's responsible for battery cooling.
Wheel spacers improve the stability a little on the non-S model. I'm running 15mm rear, 12mm front.
I cover 11000 miles a year, and charge using a 3 pin granny charger overnight at the 7p rate.
The AC system should be serviced periodically. It's quite important to keep it in good order as it's responsible for battery cooling.
Wheel spacers improve the stability a little on the non-S model. I'm running 15mm rear, 12mm front.
I cover 11000 miles a year, and charge using a 3 pin granny charger overnight at the 7p rate.
We had an i3 Rex and hence not quite as efficient as the pure BEV. I could get 3.4 to 3.6 on a good day, but I would say that living in California in summer can dramatically affect the range, more so than our current EV.
As others have mentioned, tires are stupidly expensive for what they are (look around for a deal and if you find one, snap up a set, though it seems there are a couple of alternatives these days, which should bring a little more competition). Servicing was cheap, but I had to factor in the yearly servicing for the little 600cc engine. I was seeing $250 a year in servicing, which is still great though.
I would also agree with the high speed cross wind stuff. While the i3S isn't a massive difference from the normal one, but the small changes did make a pretty big difference. If you can get one, the S is the better one to get. They are great little cars though.
As others have mentioned, tires are stupidly expensive for what they are (look around for a deal and if you find one, snap up a set, though it seems there are a couple of alternatives these days, which should bring a little more competition). Servicing was cheap, but I had to factor in the yearly servicing for the little 600cc engine. I was seeing $250 a year in servicing, which is still great though.
I would also agree with the high speed cross wind stuff. While the i3S isn't a massive difference from the normal one, but the small changes did make a pretty big difference. If you can get one, the S is the better one to get. They are great little cars though.
ScoobyChris said:
Have been looking at these recently and I did wonder about servicing costs. What do they check/replace to get to £300? I pay less than that for my petrol 1-series at the local dealer and the majority of the service cost on that appears to be because of the "special" oil it needs and everything else is just visual checks and the mandatory special scope!
Chris
Exactly. It's air filter (pollen), brake fluid, inspection, and er....Chris
It was actually £276 and I bit the bullet as it was first service and car still under warranty, It will be going to https://www.cleevelyev.co.uk for its next one.
I had 2021 i3 for just over three years and averaged 3.8 m/kWh total.
The only reason I paid BMW servicing was to ensure manufacturers warranty - once that ran out I planned to service as-and-when by Cleevely - way cheaper.
I have home charger on Intelligent Octopus which worked at at less than 0.03 per mile. Insurance wasn't bad at £285 p.a. and zero road tax - though that's coming to an end next year.
The only reason I paid BMW servicing was to ensure manufacturers warranty - once that ran out I planned to service as-and-when by Cleevely - way cheaper.
I have home charger on Intelligent Octopus which worked at at less than 0.03 per mile. Insurance wasn't bad at £285 p.a. and zero road tax - though that's coming to an end next year.
i've had a non-S 2022 i3 from new, on 17k now. BMW service was pricey but every 2 years it's not a big expenditure. Tyres look fine apart from usual bridgestone cracking. On Intelligent octopus so 7p/kWh, circa £3 per charge, 120 ish miles in the winter, 180 in the summer. I'm averaging 4.3 mi/kWh (pretty much always in Comfort, can't be bothered to switch it each time). Cheap to insure (sub 250 for me, 40+, all the NCD)
The GFV vs real world is not looking pretty, but I'm still considering buying it past PCP. No car out there that I immediately could replace the i3 with. Future 'insured warranty' from BMW looks a bit expensive but may be needed just in case of EME fail or something. Better safe than sorry.
The GFV vs real world is not looking pretty, but I'm still considering buying it past PCP. No car out there that I immediately could replace the i3 with. Future 'insured warranty' from BMW looks a bit expensive but may be needed just in case of EME fail or something. Better safe than sorry.
Edited by cvega on Tuesday 8th October 11:42
I've just bought one of the run out models "Unique Forever" for my wife. Paid top dollar for it but I've never seen her so excited about a new car for a very long time and she's had some very nice motors. We had one back in 2013 when they first came out so fully aware of the compromises but I still think after 10 years they are the best city EV available.
One thing to be aware off is some of the later ones didn't get the large infotainment screen and updated iDrive due to component shortages. The one I have just bought only has the small screen but my wife wasnt arsed about the larger screen.
One thing to be aware off is some of the later ones didn't get the large infotainment screen and updated iDrive due to component shortages. The one I have just bought only has the small screen but my wife wasnt arsed about the larger screen.
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