ON FRONT PAG E N O R T H E AST V I C TO R I A , A L P S A N D H I G H CO U N T RY
MARCH 17 - 23
| 2017
> available online - www.nemedia.com.au
LONGER SPARK: Distinctive styling of the BMW i3 electric car draws plenty of attention.
BMW i3 with added grunt BMW has introduced a second-generation drive system to its all-electric i3, giving it about 50 per cent greater range, as well as increased performance. The batteries now have 94Ah (Amp hours), the original 2014 model i3 had 60Ah. The BMW i division and technology partner Samsung SDI have managed to gain the substantial battery capacity improvement without any increase in the exterior dimensions. We’ve just experienced a most enjoyable week in this ‘car of the future’, covering mainly suburban use with occasional runs on motorways to test the little electric Bimmer in what we consider normal motoring. Our test i3 94Ah with range extender was priced at $71,990 to which on-road costs have to be added. Note that the BMW i3 with the 60Ah powertrain is still offered.
By EWAN KENNEDY The new 90Ah unit adds just $2000 to the price of that car. Full marks to BMW to throw away existing small-car ideas and start with a fresh computer screen. Cute and very different was the opinion of all those who viewed it, inside and out. The high-voltage lithium-ion battery consists of eight modules with twelve storage cells located within each module. Cooled via the air conditioning’s coolant system, the cell-internal packages have been optimised with increased electrolytes. Gross battery energy increases to 33kWh, of which 27kWh can be effectively used. The i3’s 60Ah capacity produces 22kWh gross with 19kWh of usable energy. The BMW i3 94Ah’s eDrive synchronous electric motor generates 125kW of power
and 250Nm of torque. There’s the option of range extender engine, a small twin-cylinder petrol unit that never powers the i3 directly but only maintains the battery charge at its current level, it doesn’t increase the amount of energy in the batteries, simply adds to the overall range of the vehicle. As in most electric cars there’s no gearbox as such. All ‘gearing’ is done by the speed of the motor. The biggest plus of electric and hybrid vehicles is that energy is put back into the batteries when slowing down or descending a hill. There are a number of charging options, varying in time from about 12 hours for a full charge through a standard domestic 10-amp power point; eight hours using a BMW i Wallbox accessory (approximately $1750 plus installation); and down to just
30 minutes at a DC fast charging station. The latter are still a rarity in Australia, until we see many more full-electric cars on the road. Most of our driving was done in Eco Pro mode. Unlike our previous i3 60Ah testing a couple of years back where we found this mode was too sluggish for our tastes, the 94Ah has plenty of grunt. Around town 190 to 225 kilometres was possible in the Eco Pro mode. That’s more than enough for normal suburban daily use. Motorway driving, again in Eco Pro mode, gave an electric-only range of about 160 km. Enough to get from Gold Coast to Brisbane with plenty to spare for example. The shorter range is due not to the higher speeds, but also because constant speed running means there’s little or no energy regeneration.
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