Official BMW i3 thread

[Boomer23]

I appreciate you being up front. I find it somewhat annoying that some of the folks on i3 Facebook group are BMW fanboys are willing to be WAY too forgiving and some seem to engage in Leaf bashing. After having experienced Japanese cars from at least decent to pretty good reliability (and fairly crappy GM cars before), my tolerance level is fairly low. I have no time for a new hobby of taking my car into the "spa" frequently.

Yep, I'm on that Facebook group, too, and I read it as avidly as you do, so I know what you're talking about. I think I'm ready for some issues with the car, but hopefully not many, we'll see. The car already has the new KLE and recent software, but not the SOC gauge yet. I'm going to have them do that update since they have the car anyway.

[edatoakrun]

I picked up a fully loaded 2014 i3 with the REx range extender on a 3 yr lease as a replacement for my 2013 LEAF SL that's coming off lease in mid-June...
And here's the reliability issue...

Please do report back.

I still think the I-3 is the most likely candidate today for eventually replacing my LEAF, particularly if BMW comes through on its promise to put DCs on North California Freeways by the end of this year.

But, the reliability issue has been a recurring consideration for me in my thinking on replacing my LEAF with any other BEV.

Four years of driving my LEAF without needing either a tow or a roadside repair (I was the primary mechanic on all my previous ICEVs) have really spoiled me.

I now have breakdown anxiety just thinking about all that crap under the hood whenever I get in an ICEV.

The last thing I want is to have to worry about my BEV's reliability, particularly in that I do a great deal of my driving along lonely roads and/or beyond range of cell phone reception.

And even for minor glitches, the fact that the nearest BMW dealer is ~90 miles away (Chico), makes the reliability issue a significant potential negative, for me.

[Boomer23]

I picked up a fully loaded 2014 i3 with the REx range extender on a 3 yr lease as a replacement for my 2013 LEAF SL that's coming off lease in mid-June...
And here's the reliability issue...

Please do report back.

I still think the I-3 is the most likely candidate today for eventually replacing my LEAF, particularly if BMW comes through on its promise to put DCs on North California Freeways by the end of this year.

But, the reliability issue has been a recurring consideration for me in my thinking on replacing my LEAF with any other BEV.

Four years of driving my LEAF without needing either a tow or a roadside repair (I was the primary mechanic on all my previous ICEVs) have really spoiled me.

I now have breakdown anxiety just thinking about all that crap under the hood whenever I get in an ICEV.

The last thing I want is to have to worry about my BEV's reliability, particularly in that I do a great deal of my driving along lonely roads and/or beyond range of cell phone reception.

And even for minor glitches, the fact that the nearest BMW dealer is ~90 miles away (Chico), makes the reliability issue a significant potential negative, for me.

Ed, is it the comparatively light weight and efficiency of the i3 that attracts you?

[edatoakrun]

Ed, is it the comparatively light weight and efficiency of the i3 that attracts you?

Short answer, yes, particularly for the BEV (no x).

Long answer, posted previously...

BTW, is their an easy way to search a single thread for one member's (your own?) comments?

[lorenfb]

Four years of driving my LEAF without needing either a tow or a roadside repair (I was the primary mechanic on all my previous ICEVs) have really spoiled me.

The last thing I want is to have to worry about my BEV's reliability, particularly in that I do a great deal of my driving along lonely roads and/or beyond range of cell phone reception.

You've fully expressed my thoughts and I totally agree!

[cwerdna]

I picked up a fully loaded 2014 i3 with the REx range extender on a 3 yr lease as a replacement for my 2013 LEAF SL that's coming off lease in mid-June...
And here's the reliability issue...

Please do report back.

I still think the I-3 is the most likely candidate today for eventually replacing my LEAF, particularly if BMW comes through on its promise to put DCs on North California Freeways by the end of this year.

But, the reliability issue has been a recurring consideration for me in my thinking on replacing my LEAF with any other BEV.
...
The last thing I want is to have to worry about my BEV's reliability, particularly in that I do a great deal of my driving along lonely roads and/or beyond range of cell phone reception.

And even for minor glitches, the fact that the nearest BMW dealer is ~90 miles away (Chico), makes the reliability issue a significant potential negative, for me.

Join the i3 Facebook group, if you haven't already.

I have links to a few posts of reliability problems, breakdowns and extended "spa time" but you need to be a member to view them.

[edatoakrun]

...Join the i3 Facebook group, if you haven't already.

I have links to a few posts of reliability problems, breakdowns and extended "spa time" but you need to be a member to view them.

I just peruse "active topics" on the I-3 forum.

http://www.mybmwi3.com/forum/search.php ... 957b30d069" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Four most recent topics, at the moment:

Does anyone else feel let down about their BMW i3 BEV
[ Go to pageGo to page: 1, 2, 3, 4 ]

Occasional use charger nearly started a garage fire
[ Go to pageGo to page: 1, 2, 3 ]

Rex Gas Cap Won't Open
in BMW i3 Rex Specific Discussions

Level 2 charging problem
in Problems / Troubleshooting

And you thought LEAF owners spent a lot of time bitching...

[JeremyW]

The last thing I want is to have to worry about my BEV's reliability

I agree. I have a job that is time critical (shift work where I'm relieving someone else working) and having reliable transportation is critical. The amount of issues that these cars are having is pretty comical, especially considering there were two pilot programs beforehand with the mini-e and active-e. The car was a really good drive when it does work, so the fanboys have some justification for glossing over the bad parts.

What sealed the deal for me not getting an i3 was knowing that there is a flaw in the generator housing for the rex (not the ice, the generator/motor it drives) which causes moisture to stay within it, causing DC isolation issues, and possible corrosion to parts in the housing. I could forgive a few things, but this car seems to have a ton of these kind of design flaws all over it, only some of which we've seen (discovered?) in the field. KLE and motor mounts are the big ones (besides the rex generator housing), but there's also the seriously flawed "self parking" that slams into curbs, airbag issues (a few besides Boomer have reported it), and adaptive cruise control that disengages in bright oncoming sunlight (because it only uses cameras)...

On top of it all, there's no easy way for me to get to the CAN busses! (I have to have a playground!)

[cwerdna]

The amount of issues that these cars are having is pretty comical, especially considering there were two pilot programs beforehand with the mini-e and active-e.

Yep.

The car was a really good drive when it does work, so the fanboys have some justification for glossing over the bad parts.

The car is quite fast. I've never had a huge amount of time to test out its handling thoroughly, but it definitely wasn't bad, despite the skinny tires. Maybe I'll have to eventually take advantage of their multi-day test drive program...

What sealed the deal for me not getting an i3 was knowing that there is a flaw in the generator housing for the rex (not the ice, the generator/motor it drives) which causes moisture to stay within it, causing DC isolation issues, and possible corrosion to parts in the housing.

Oh... I either forgot about that or missed it.

I could forgive a few things, but this car seems to have a ton of these kind of design flaws all over it, only some of which we've seen (discovered?) in the field. KLE and motor mounts are the big ones (besides the rex generator housing), but there's also the seriously flawed "self parking" that slams into curbs, airbag issues (a few besides Boomer have reported it), and adaptive cruise control that disengages in bright oncoming sunlight (because it only uses cameras)...

Re: KLE, indeed. It was crazy that it was discovered KLEs were being fried here in the US and thus BMW put on a "band aid" of turning down the L2 charge rate until a redesigned part was available (months later). Really?

Yeah, very buggy self-parking that hits curbs and sometimes damages wheels is odd. I don't think I ever heard of complaints like that w/the self-parking that was available on the 2010-2011 Prius.

As for adaptive cruise control disengagement issues, yeah, how could they ship a feature like that coupled w/the strong regen? There have been numerous complaints on the i3 FB group about that. And, there are been numerous reports about they almost got rear-ended or really pissed off someone behind them because the ACC decided suddenly disengage, causing the VERY strong regen kick in. If BMW knew this could happen, they should've yanked the feature or at least give some audible and visual warnings and NOT engage the crazy strong regen when ACC unexpectedly disengages.

I don't monitor the mybmwi3.com forum much anymore, but someone else who I know is semi-interested (he's had a few Priuses and now a Volt) is on both that fourm and the FB group and has msg'ed me privately that the reliability problems seen on the forum are similar to that of the FB group.

[Beleaf]

Cars are cars, and in a community of owners of the same car we will hear about every problem even when it only effects a handful of owners, and sometimes a single instance.

Does the i3 have any problems? Of course it does, just like every other mass produced vehicle. Have a look at the Problems/Troubleshooting section of this forum and there are plenty of Leaf problems too. I cancelled the Leaf on the basis of posts regarding capacity losses in a similar climate to the one I live in, as well as poor Nissan corp and local dealer service.

Does that make the Leaf a high problem vehicle? No it doesn't, and neither is the i3. Forums bring out the problems, but not so many owners posting about zero problems. The top quoted topic from the i3 forum above "Does anyone else feel let down about their BMW i3 BEV " has more people saying they don't have any problems than the few feeling let down by their BEV. Go read it: Does anyone else feel let down about their BMW i3 BEV

I have an i3 BEV and it has been exemplary since delivery, not a single issue so far (touches wood)