The new BMW boss Oliver Zipse has decided to continue the production of the electric model i3. After sales director, Pieter Nota had said in September that there were no plans for a successor to the i3, Zipse has now put a stop to rumours of a possible production stop.

Zipse made it clear to the regional newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung: “The i3 will continue to be produced, no question about it. The car is already an icon today. Which car can claim this after only six years? Icons tick according to a different logic, they don’t have a classic successor, they always remain true to themselves in essence.” Today, the i3 is more in demand than ever and will “make another leap in battery and operating concepts”.

“We are growing with the i3 every year – in Europe this year by around 20 per cent. The investments have been written off, we earn money with every i3. Why in God’s name should we give up this car, which is now at the height of its time? We are sure that the i3 still has great potential,” says the BMW CEO.

The i3 is known as one of the pioneer electric cars on the market. BMW launched the 2013 model as a test model in order to sound out the market. It is based on a specially designed platform, which made the battery-electric vehicle an expensive venture for the group right from the start. With battery values of 60 Ah and 22 kWh, the first generation was not yet as long-range as the current generation. The first battery update followed in 2016 with 94 Ah and 33.2 kWh capacity. With the most recent switch to 120 Ah cells in 2018, the range then increased to up to 310 kilometres according to WLTP measurements. The passenger cell made of carbon-fibre-reinforced plastic has been preserved to this day.

faz.net (in German with paywall)