BMW To Launch Longer Range i3 At Paris Motor Show — 94 Ah Battery Cells, Real-World Range Of Around ~125 Miles

September 19th, 2016 by James Ayre

BMW will be launching its new longer-range i3 electric vehicle at the Paris Motor Show, detailing the new 94 Ah lithium-ion cells, and the overall battery pack there.

The new i3, as reported previously, will feature a 33 kilowatt-hour (kWh) battery pack and a real-world range of around 200 kilometers (~125 miles) per full charge. The NEDC-rated range is reportedly 186 kilometers. The NEDC testing cycle is of course not that relevant to the real world, though, as the testing cycle is, as far as anyone can tell, designed specifically so that it can be gamed by manufacturers.





















Interestingly, the current i3 (60 Ah, 22 kWh battery pack) will remain available for purchase alongside the new one, just as was the case with the 2016 Nissan LEAF after a version with a bigger battery was introduced. Range-extended versions of both i3 options will be available as well.

Customers who buy the longer-range i3 can also benefit from more powerful BMW i Wallbox home/business charging stations (11 kW 3-phase charging), allowing for full recharging in under 3 hours.

More details for the new i3 are:

125 kW/170 horsepower hybrid synchronous electric motor;

0–100 km/hour (~62 mph) time of 7.3 seconds;

0–60 km/hour (~37 mph) time of 3.8 seconds;

8 year or 100,000 kilometer (62,000 mile) warranty.

Notably, BMW will apparently be offering retrofits of the new battery packs for those who want to upgrade from the 60 Ah (22 kWh) offering. This option will, initially anyways, only be offered in “select” markets.

In related news, BMW will begin offering 2 new versions of the just released Wallbox, the BMW i Wallbox Plus and the BMW i Wallbox Connect, later this year. These are intended to provide for the specific needs of fleet customers and multi-vehicle households.











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