My BMW i3 -- Range Extender (REX)

I'm leasing an i3 that has a range extender, a 675-cc motorcycle engine in the rear of the car and next to the electric motor that runs an electric generator, providing power to the battery when the charge drops below 6% of its capacity.  In other words, the BMW i3 REX is really a series hybrid.

Because BMW designed the i3 to meet California zero-emissions guidelines, this range extender can only be run in a limited way because the motorcycle engine does emit.  This is why the gas tank for REX is only 1.9 gallons and why it can't run until the lithium-ion battery drops below 6%.  As I understand from what I've read, European versions of this car do allow drivers to run REX at any time to add charge to the battery, regardless of its charge content.

Here are two pictures of the exposed rear of the i3, one with only the electric motor and the other with the range extender installed next to it:

Because the gasoline motor needs to run at times, BMW actually has designed it to be automatically turned on approximately every seven weeks, even if the i3 has adequate charge.  However, that charge must be less than 75% for the maintenance run; if the car charge is more than that, the maintenance cycling will wait until it drops below 75%.  The driver is informed on the display when the maintenance run is occurring.

I decided that I wanted to see how the range extender works, so I let the charge on my i3 drop below 6%.  You can just barely hear the motor running, and the instrument panel changes to show that the REX is running.  The picture below shows that the lower-left gasoline gauge is illuminated when the range extender runs.  That gauge will be gray in normal operation.

I don't intend to use REX because my i3 will be used as an in-city car, but it's nice to know that extended range is possible.

The speed of the motor (and motor noise) will increase when the car goes faster, but if the demand for speed or power up a hill exceeds the capability of the 25 kW REX, the i3 will slow down.  Regenerative braking can recharge the battery, even when the REX is running, and the motor will be turned off when the charge exceeds 6%.  REX will also turn off when the car is stopped.

REX is rated by the EPA at 39 mpg (approximately a range of 74 miles), so a longer trip is possible with the car as long as you're able to stop for premium gasoline to refill the small tank.

But also remember that because the i3 uses regenerative braking and has three driving modes (Comfort, Eco Pro, and Eco Pro +)  range can be extended depending on which mode you use and how much regenerative braking you can provide.

Moto E Smartphone for Tracfone

For a while now I've been using a Moto E with my Tracfone account.  I actually bought it from Amazon for around $100 and it is far and away the best phone I've had so far.  Motorola has done a great job of offering a device that is a pretty pure Android (Kitkat), and it's much faster that the others I've used.  Here's a link to specifications:  http://tracfonereviewer.blogspot.com/2014/10/tracfone-moto-e-xt830c.html .  Even though the internal storage is limited, the phone does have a slot for a micro SD card.  When you purchase minutes from Tracfone, you get triple minutes, triple text messages, and triple data in megabytes.

MY BMW i3 -- Storage

In my previous car, a 2007 Toyota Prius (2nd Gen.) I had a place where I could store lots of stuff --  in the back of the car and under the floor.  The only thing I'm not satisfied with in the i3 is the lack of space for things that I like to carry with me.  The BMW i3 has no such area since the electric motor and range extender occupy all of the space beneath the floor.

The "frunk"  (aka the trunk in the front since the electric motor and range extender are in the back and under the floor) only has a small space that where you find the convenience (110-volt) charge cable and an electric air pump with a canister to seal a tire leak.  BMW also alerts an owner to the fact that the area is not water proof and that "misting" can occur in the frunk from a car wash.  The charge cable and air pump are in plastic bags because of this.  On the passenger side of the frunk is the windshield washer fluid tank, and the 12-volt battery used for the car accessories is also to the left of it; that battery is recharged when the car is charged.

 There is a small cubby-hole in both of the front doors where a few things can be stored, like umbrellas, ice scrapers, etc.

There is plenty of space in the rear for just about anything you might want to transport in the car, especially if you lower the back seats.  Lots of room for luggage, etc.  I also like the cover that hides the back of the car when the hatchback door is closed.

The glove box has a little space, but if you carry the BMW-supplied user manual and pouch there, not very much room left.

The area between the front seats has a small space for little things under the arm rest and just below it.

One could put some things in the back seats (either upright or folded down) if there was no need for people back there.  But you just know an occasion will arise when you do need to put someone in those seats.

I'm using my i3 as an in-city car, so perhaps concerns about storage would not be very important.  If only the back seats could be raised to provide some more hidey-holes for other things I've always carried in the trunk of my other cars.

My BMW i3 -- Installing a Level 2 Charging Station

As a part of my two-year lease, I was given a BMW Charging Station ---  I think this would cost about $1000.  I finally have had it installed by Mr. Electric here in Prescott at a cost of just under $700.00.  My cost may have been cheaper than normal because my power panel for the house is on the outside of the garage and on the opposite side of the wall where I wanted to put the charging station.  An empty 110-volt receptacle box was already on that wall, and it was directly in front of the conduit for electricity wires for the house from the power panel.  The installers removed that box, installed a 40-amp circuit breaker in the panel, ran 8-gauge wire from the panel through the hole and installed a 4-prong 220-volt receptacle in place of the junction box.  A cable was then connected between that receptacle and the BMW Charging Station that was mounted on the inside wall of my garage.  The whole job was completed in about three hours.  Obviously, if the cable had to be run further the cost could have been much higher.

Now I can fill up the i3 "tank" more than twice as fast as when I was using 110 volts!  With the charging cable I'm able to reach the i3 charging port in either bay of my two-car garage.

Here's a picture of the installation:

My BMW i3 -- How Good Is the Mileage?

The i3 is rated by the EPA at 117 mpge, which is their way of looking at the cost of electricity and the cost of gasoline, how far a car goes per unit of energy consumed and making a rough comparison with the actual mpg for conventional cars.  Obviously EPA has a very complicated process to calculate mpge and has to look at types of driving conditions and the costs of gasoline and electricity across the country.

Here's my simple way to calculate mpge:
 
I also have a Toyota Prius (2nd generation) that averages about 45 mpg, and at $3.50 per gallon, this would result in about 13 miles per dollar.  The BMW i3 can go about 75 miles on a charge that costs about $2.00 from APS in Arizona, and this would be about 38 miles per dollar.  So the BMW i3 is about three times better than the Prius.  If I multiply the 45 mpg by three, I would arrive at 145 mpge for the i3.  This would obviously change if the cost per kWh from an electric utility company is different and the cost per gallon of gasoline is better or worse than $3.50.  If your conventional car gets 22.5 mpg, the i3 would be six times better.

My i3 also has the range extender, a two-cylinder BMW motorcycle gasoline motor that is activated when the charge on the battery drops to 6% of its capacity and adds about 70 miles to the i3 range.  It provides 35 hp to the car, so when the battery is low, the car runs on 35 hp rather than 170 hp.  This obviously limits the performance of the i3, especially on hills.  My BMW advisor drove the car from Phoenix to Prescott, a trip of about 100 miles with an elevation rise of about 4500 feet.  He had to resort to the range extender for the last part of the journey and was limited to about 45-50 mph.  The gas tank for the range extender is 1.9 gallons of premium fuel and the EPA fuel economy for it is 39 mpg.  The small size of the tank results from California's strict rules for classifying the BMW i3 as a zero-emission vehicle.  Since I plan to use the i3 in the Prescott area, I do not intend to use the range extender unless in an emergency.