BMW i3 News
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Over its first six months of U.S. sales, the 2014 BMW i3 electric car--with or without its innovative optional range-extending engine--has done quite well in the sales charts. In each of the last three full months (August through October), BMW sold more than 1,000 i3s, giving it the highest percentage of plug-in cars sold of any carmaker in the States. DON'T MISS: Which Electric-Car Makers Are Serious? U.S. Sales Show Top Three The BMW i3 has not done so well, however, in its home market of Germany. According to a recent article in Car and Driver, BMW will boost incentives on the i3 to...
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Lexus CT 200h Hybrid Ad Slams Electric BMW i3: Gloves Come Off: FURTHER UPDATE
A new Lexus hybrid ad depicts electric cars as woefully inconvenient.
Stephen Edelstein -
BMW i3 Faces VW e-Golf, Mercedes B-Class Electric Cars In New Reviews
Opinions differ on how the BMW i3 compares to more-conventional electric cars.
Stephen Edelstein -
First Body Kit For BMW i3 Electric Car: Looks Tougher, Probably Less Efficient
A BMW i3 body kit arguably looks good, but clashes with the car's mission.
Stephen Edelstein -
BMW i3 Electric-Car Incentives: Highest On The Battery-Only Model
In just five months, more than 3,100 BMW i3 electric cars have been delivered to U.S. buyers. That's a fast pace out of the box, and it indicates that BMW is serious about plug-in electric cars in a way that many other major automakers aren't. But to keep that pace going may require what car...
John Voelcker -
2014 BMW i3 Lease Deals Appear: $369/Month For Electric Car
It's a pretty standard part of the car-launch cycle: The earliest buyers pay sticker price or more, and then the discounting starts to set in. Accordingly, with the BMW i3 electric car on the market for five months now, we're starting to see more aggressive marketing on the part of dealers. One...
John Voelcker -
An unorthodox method for charging an electric car.
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2014 BMW i3 REx 38-HP Range Extender Vs. 14,000-Foot Mountain: Who Wins?
Steep climbs are the enemy of electric car drivers. While modern electric vehicles are more than capable of powering up a hill, with ample torque, the effect on a car with limited range can be significant. It's less of a problem with a range-extended electric vehicle like the 2014 BMW i3 REx, but a...
Antony Ingram -
Who Wins Electric-Car Brand Battle? BMW, Tesla Have The Buzz Now
Sales numbers aside, are BMW and Tesla winning the electric-car brand battle?
Stephen Edelstein -
2014 BMW i3 REx Vs Chevy Volt: Range-Extended Electric Cars Compared
Until recently, the Chevy Volt was the only range-extended electric car available in the U.S. I've driven a Volt for almost three years now, and it's been a splendid car--quiet, smooth, peppy, and amazingly economical. New REx on the block But now the Volt has a formidable new competitor: the new...
David Noland -
BMW i3 To Get Fuel Cell Version With Toyota Tech?
In 2015, Japanese automaker Toyota will make a fuel-cell vehicle available to the public. It has worked on the project with German firm BMW, itself planning a fuel-cell vehicle--and that vehicle could now be a fuel-cell version of the i3 electric car. According to Motoring, Toyota USA's advanced...
Antony Ingram -
BMW i3 Electric Car Owners To Get Free DC Fast Charging Through 2015
California BMW i3 owners will get free DC fast charging on the NRG eVgo network through 2015.
Stephen Edelstein -
BMW has launched a new range of DC fast chargers aimed at providing a convenient charging standard for drivers of its i3 electric cars. Developed in conjunction with Bosch, the BMW i DC fast chargers will allow i3 owners to charge their cars' batteries up to 80 percent in 30 minutes. MUST SEE: Decoding Toyota's Electric-Car Disdain: A Role For Fuel Cells Not only is the new unit compact (31 inches high, 19 inches wide and 12 inches deep), it's also relatively light at 100 lbs, allowing it to be mounted on a wall--something BMW says is a first for DC fast chargers. It's cheaper than existing...
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Nissan Leaf Vs BMW i3 Vs Volkswagen e-Golf: German Magazine Compares
The BMW i3's styling has been divisive since its launch earlier this year but one thing that most agree on is its abilities--it's among the best electric cars yet. When Volkswagen launches its e-Golf though, BMW will face tough competition--and worldwide, the Nissan Leaf is still a best-selling...
Antony Ingram -
2014 BMW i3: Is Range Extended Version Outselling Battery Only?
The 2014 BMW i3 electric car has a unique feature offered by no other vehicle in the world: Buyers can choose to have it as a battery-electric vehicle, or add an optional range-extending engine that roughly doubles its rated electric range of 81 miles. With the i3 on sale now for two months, a mix...
John Voelcker -
2014 BMW i3: What A Tesla Driver Thinks Of New Electric BMW
Several reports in general news media recently have touted the new 2014 BMW i3 electric car as a serious challenger to the Tesla Model S. One writer even went so far as to label the i3 a "Tesla killer." Dream on. There's no way a frumpy-looking little 2+2 city car is going to challenge the mighty...
David Noland -
Skeptical German Reviewer Buys BMW i3 Electric Car: Likes The Car, Dislikes The Price
If it's worth saying once, it bears repeating a hundred times: The best way to get people to buy electric cars is to put them behind the wheel. One German journalist has done just that, buying a BMW i3 electric car despite protestations from colleagues that the price, short range and lack of...
Antony Ingram -
2014 BMW i3 Electric Car: Likes And Dislikes From An Early Owner
Many of us have experienced the highs and lows that come with getting behind the wheel of a new vehicle for the first time. In some respects, your new vehicle will be much better than the one you had before. In others, it may leave you wanting for more. BMW's i3 electric car is about as new as new...
Antony Ingram -
Electric cars can be confusing enough to neophytes--a car that you plug in at night just like a phone ?!?!?--but when you add in social status signifiers, it can all get quite complicated indeed. Which is how we end up with a Hollywood Reporter piece that asking whether celebrities may abandon their Tesla Model S electric cars for the newest, latest, trendiest electric car on the block, the 2014 BMW i3. It's a fun piece to read, and the bulk of it is a drive report of BMW's first production electric car. DON'T MISS: Want To See A Tesla Model S Chasing A BMW i8? You're In Luck... "The i3...
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Stock Commentator Jim Cramer Caught Off Guard By Tesla-Fan Ferocity
Fans of Tesla Motors, its CEO Elon Musk, and the Tesla Model S electric car are some of the most ... errrrmmmm ... dedicated advocates for the company and its products that you'll find. And loud, well-known stock commentator Jim Cramer learned that, apparently to his dismay, when he recently ran...
John Voelcker -
BMW Smartphone App Helps Cut Home Electric Car Charging Costs
Unless you're a Tesla owner with access to free Supercharger fast charging stations, there's no better place to charge your electric car than at home. Pick the right electricity tariff, and charging can cost pennies on the dollar next to even the most efficient combustion-engined vehicle. BMW hopes...
Antony Ingram -
BMW i3 Electric Car Buyers: Mostly New To BMW (But Not i8 Owners)
The 2014 BMW i3 is proving to be very effective at luring new buyers to BMW--buyers who haven't before owned one of its cars. Such buyers, known as conquests, are highly valued by carmakers, who have a much better chance of retaining a customer if they're already driving one of its vehicles. The...
John Voelcker -
Watch The BMW i3 Electric Car Park Itself, As Owner Reacts (Video)
Parking is one of those maneuvers that we all screw up now and then, no matter how experienced we are at driving. And there's nothing worse than having an audience just as you're trying to squeeze into a space. Even professional athletes can't experience that much pressure, surely? But what if your...
Antony Ingram -
2014 BMW i3 Vs 2014 Mercedes-Benz B-Class: Luxury Electric Car Comparison
This summer, buyers will have the option of two electric cars that on the surface, offer very similar attributes. Both are from Germany, for a start. Each has a very similar price tag. Each offers four doors and a liftback-style luggage area. Those cars are the 2014 BMW i3 and the 2014...
Antony Ingram