BMW i3: the small electric will go out of production in July

The latest example of the BMW i3 will roll off the assembly lines of the Leipzig plant on 3 July, concluding its mission to pave the way for the Bavarian brand’s electric mobility after nine years and 250,000 units sold. Launched in 2013, according to plans it should have remained in production until 2024 but in the decision to anticipate its retirement, the behavior of buyers weighed, who tend to choose inconspicuous electric vehicles and stylistically similar to traditional ones. In short, the i3 pays for its excessive personality, considered too polarizing in a market that instead focuses on homologation.

Composite materials and power up to 184 Hp

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When BMW decided to experiment with the electric car, it did so with a very pragmatic approach and with a lot of conviction. Where others would have simply electrified a model already in the range, in Munich they designed from scratch a car based on an aluminum frame, made of composite materials and carbon fiber, with a partially recycled thermoplastic body. A choice that made it possible to create an electric car weighing only 1,195 kg, which then grew with the various updates to 1,345. A very valid result considering the 22 kWh battery (which then rose to 42) and the permanent magnet synchronous motor of 170 HP (184 for the S) and 250 Nm of torque placed on the rear axle.

A superior class B segment

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An expensive choice that resulted in a model offered at certainly not popular prices, the latest price list in force starts at 41,100 euros, but capable of making clear the engineering capabilities of BMW. Also highlighted by a decidedly “breaking” interior, a mix of minimalism, recycled materials and refined taste. The completely flat floor represented a great novelty and translates into remarkable roominess and versatility in spite of the external dimensions – 4,006 mm in length by a width of 1,590 mm – which place it right in the B segment.

The baton passes to the Mini

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With the early exit of the i3, BMW loses a piece of its electric strategy, a void that will have to be occupied by the electric Mini, also in the Countryman variant, and by the future iX1, battery version of the smallest SUV / crossover of the Bavarian builder. Models that can boast undoubtedly high technological levels, but that cannot boast the same unconventional spirit of the i3. A fact to be taken into due consideration in view of a future perhaps a little less revolutionary than expectations.