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BMW has raised prices of its i3 EV by £3665, meaning the entry-level car now costs from £39,690 before the government’s £3000 electric car grant.
In September, the i3 will have been in production for eight years, with its future safeguarded until at least 2024. Since it went on sale, it has been subject to minimal design tweaks, with the biggest changes being the addition of the performance-oriented i3s range-topper in 2017 and the removal of the petrol range-extender option a year later.
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by Felix Page
2 mins read9 March 2021BMW has raised prices of its i3 EV by £3665, meaning the entry-level car now costs from £39,690 before the government’s £3000 electric car grant.
In September, the i3 will have been in production for eight years, with its future safeguarded until at least 2024. Since it went on sale, it has been subject to minimal design tweaks, with the biggest changes being the addition of the performance-oriented i3s range-topper in 2017 and the removal of the petrol range-extender option a year later.
Prices for the i3s, which delivers 13bhp and 15lb ft more than the standard car, as well as improved dynamics courtesy of its wider track and firmer suspension, now begin at £42,220 before the grant – slightly more than a top-rung version of the new Volkswagen ID 4 electric SUV.
The exact reasons for the price hike have not been revealed by BMW, but a spokesman confirmed to Autocar that it was not related to a restriction of supply or changes to the model’s planned life cycle.
“There has been no change in the planned production or supply of the i3 to the UK,” he said. “Production of the BMW i3 has been confirmed until at least 2024 – far beyond the typical model life cycle. This is due to continued worldwide sales success of the model since its introduction in 2013.”
Until last year, the i3 was sold alongside the i8 hybrid sports car as part of BMW’s initial wave of electrified production cars.
With the i8 now off sale, the i3 is being joined in dealerships by the iX3, an all-electric version of the brand’s mid-sized family SUV, offering a WLTP range of 282 miles – 124 miles more than the longest-range i3. The SUV is priced from £58,850 in its limited Premier Edition guise, but cheaper variants are set to follow.
While the i3 has been signed off for an extended production run, its position in the brand’s line-up will be far less unique in the years to come. BMW is rapidly swelling its electric car family as part of a plan to launch nine new stand-alone electric models by 2025.
Most of the brand’s core combustion models – including the 4 Series, 5 Series, 7 Series and X1 – will gain fully electric variants in the coming years. Also on the cards is a fully electric version of the 3 Series saloon, which could adopt the ‘i3’ moniker. This, however, seems unlikely given the current i3 will still be on sale when it launches and occupies an entirely different market segment.
The only person who got all his work done by Friday was Robinson Crusoe.
Anything i post over three lines long please assume it is an article lol.
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I think this massive price increase will kill it off. I can’t see any reason for getting one with what is now available out there.
Really interesting the I3 is really well put together, is purely a battery driven car rather than most of its competitors which are converted ice vehicles.
That said its been out a long time and other cars are able to go further.
That said what would I change mine for at a similar price point. Its range and size don’t really cause me any issues. Maybe new Ioniq?
Really interesting the I3 is really well put together, is purely a battery driven car rather than most of its competitors which are converted ice vehicles. That said its been out a long time and other cars are able to go further. That said what would I change mine for at a similar price point. Its range and size don’t really cause me any issues. Maybe new Ioniq?
Possibly the Hyundai Kona or the Kia Soul.
By the time you’re ready to change, ID3, ID4, Enyaq, Ioniq 5, Kia EV6, or any of the other models that will arrive in the next year or two.
Liked the I3s that I test drove a lot, but it wasn’t that practical for my rural driving over the high speed potholes.
EVs are evolving quickly & BMW need to fill that space that the old range extender motor used with more batteries to keep it relevant.
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