BMW i3 Samsung Galaxy Gear App Overview Video

I'm heading off to NAIAS in a few hours to cover the show for InsideEvs and one of the things I'll be doing there is meeting Horatiu Boeriu of BMWBLOG and Samsung to review and discuss their new partnership with BMW and the BMW i3 Samsung Galaxy Gear App. The above Samsung TV video shot at CES in Las Vegas last week gives an overview of the features. Hopefully I'll get more info on the partnership at the show. You can enjoy this video for now.

BMW i3 Cost a Hot Topic

There are lot of unknowns with the i3. BMW has been very careful to only leak out small details, much to the chagrin of journalists and enthusiasts interested in the car. However the most sought after piece of information that everyone wants to know is how much will it cost?

It seemed like we finally got some clarity on that a couple days ago when Diana Kurylko of the Automotive News wrote a story that claimed the i3's would be "priced at about $40,000". The story was of course picked up by many other outlets and suddenly everywhere you looked on the internet you saw "BMW i3 to cost $40,000". I was skeptical of his from the start. While I have no official inside information on what the price will be I do not believe it will be as low as $40,000. I'm thinking $43,000 to $45,000 as the base price, with options like the range extender and premium electronics packages pushing the price up to and even over $50,000.

Willisch handing me the keys to my ActiveE

So after re-reading Kurylko's piece a few times, it became clear to me that she came up with the $40,000 figure herself, not from anyone BMW. During her interview with BMW NA CEO Ludwig Willisch, he told her the i3 would be priced "roughly the same as a well-equipped 3-series sedan" and Kurylko added the $40,000 herself, assuming that is what a well-equipped 3-series sedan costs. Only she was wrong. A well equipped 3-series costs closer to $45,000 depending on what you consider well equipped. Realizing this I posted my doubts on the BMW i3 Facebook group page and opened a thread for discussion. John Voelcker of High Gear Media, one of the leading journalists in the US covering electric vehicles, was the first to comment and I could see he was interested in getting the facts straight. He later posted that he contacted BMW spokesman Dave Buchko to follow up on the Automotive News piece and Buchko cleared things up a bit, reiterating that Willisch only said the i3 would be comparably priced to a well-equipped 3-series and didn't offer any specific price, and that such a car costs more than $40,000 He actually said a well equipped 3-series "falls more in the $45,000 to $50,000 range." Voelckers entire follow up story in GreenCarReports can be seen here.

So the hope of a $40,000 base i3 price was short lived. Personally I never thought the price would be that low. I believe it will be in the $43,000 to $45,000 range before any tax incentives so the final cost on a base i3 without options should be under $40,000 after the $7,500 federal tax rebate for those that qualify. Add a nice array of options and the range extender and you're probably talking $52,000 -$53,000, or about $45,000 after the federal tax credit. Final pricing probably won't be announced till after the i3's official debut at the Frankfurt Auto Show in September.

New i3 "Driving Experience" Video

BMW i just posted a new concept i3 video that shows how the i3 will integrate into the owners day by coordinating charging needs with available public charging infrastructure that is along the route the person will be traveling for various appointments in the day. It doesn't reveal anything specific, but it does show you what BMW is thinking about for the car.
Perhaps more details information will be available at the Born Electric World Tour events.   

A Look At The BMW i3 Instrumentation

The display featured on the concept i3. The production version is thought to be very similar to this.

The 2013 BMW i3 will be a revolutionary vehicle. It will be be the first mass produced car that has an aluminum frame and a body made just about entirely out of carbon fiber reinforced plastic. It will use a modern version of body-on-frame design with the aluminum drive module made completely separate from the passenger cell with the latter bolted and glued to the frame near the end of the production line. It will be the first all electric car that the BMW group offers for sale and it will be one of the most efficient vehicles ever offered for sale by any major automobile manufacturer.

It will also, have one of the most advanced and connected electronics and display systems. There hasn't been much written about the i3's electronics, but from the photo's that have been leaked so far, it is obvious BMW is working hard to make the driving experience custom tailored to then needs of an electric car driver. Built in navigation system that will list all charging station within your driving range and destination routing that even includes the part of your trip after you leave the car to use public transportation.

One thing that is interesting is there seems to be two numbers offered as the driving range based on your current state of charge, one that is based on normal driving and one based on the use of the Eco Pro mode which will reduce power to the motor and other energy using devices like cabin heating and cooling system. By doing so the car will use less energy and the range will be extended. The Eco Pro mode will undoubtedly give the car a less spirited driving experience, but when your cutting it close with your available range, believe me you will gladly trade off a bit of acceleration to make your destination. By displaying both estimated ranges, it will help the driver to decide which driving mode is best for that given destination.

Besides in car electronics, the i3 owner will have the ability to perform many functions in the car by the use of a smartphone. You'll be able to precondition the battery and cabin to the desired temperature. You'll be able to plug in a destination and the application will tell you if the car can make it there based on it's current state of charge or suggest charging stations to stop at along the route. It will also alert you once a pre-selected state of charge is attained. This can be very useful. Let's say you plugged in and then went off to run some errands while the car reached a certain state of charge necessary for you to make it home, the car will then send you a text message when that percentage is met, alerting you that it's safe to return to the car and begin your journey.

It going to be really interesting to see just what BMW is working on here, but judging from what is currently leaked, I'm thinking it will be pretty useful (and cool!).