[Bimmerfun82]

@80mph I would get about 210 miles of range in my tesla model 3 performance. So your range is awesome. Were you drafting a semi, though?

[cbertels]

I would rather eat a whole bus tire than have this sort of experience just charging up the car. This sort of inconvenience alone keeps me disinterested in EVs.

[bobkalka]

I had a similar experience. Had a 4.5 hour drive to the Texas Coast, in an M50, and was pleasantly shocked, albeit driving like a granny most of the way.

[cehrl7]

What a pain in the ass. This is why I will never own an electric vehicle. Call me old fashioned, but I stop at a gas station. I fill up. I leave. It only take a few minutes. I laugh at all the Tesla's waiting on their pos to charge.

[AndroidRobot]

Originally Posted by M3macster

@80mph I would get about 210 miles of range in my tesla model 3 performance. So your range is awesome. Were you drafting a semi, though?

The range is impacted a lot if you're running the A/C though. I'd like to see a chart of the range in such cases.

[Bimmerfun82]

Originally Posted by AndroidRobot

The range is impacted a lot if you're running the A/C though. I'd like to see a chart of the range in such cases.

Not really. Heat yes. AC not a huge deal unless it's 110 degrees

[Bimmerfun82]

Originally Posted by cehrl7

What a pain in the ass. This is why I will never own an electric vehicle. Call me old fashioned, but I stop at a gas station. I fill up. I leave. It only take a few minutes. I laugh at all the Tesla's waiting on their pos to charge.

Or charge at home every night and use the gas car for long trips.

[AndroidRobot]

Originally Posted by M3macster

Not really. Heat yes. AC not a huge deal unless it's 110 degrees

Originally Posted by M3macster

Not really. Heat yes. AC not a huge deal unless it's 110 degrees

The few times I've driven a Model 3 LR it impacted range a lot. Outside Temp was around 100F and I was going 70. My range would've been maybe 200 miles at best with a fan speed setting of 5-6 and the air recirculating.

[Bimmerfun82]

Originally Posted by AndroidRobot

The few times I've driven a Model 3 LR it impacted range a lot. Outside Temp was around 100F and I was going 70. My range would've been maybe 200 miles at best with a fan speed setting of 5-6 and the air recirculating.

Ok 100. Haha. I had one for 14 months and using heat saps the battery like crazy in the cold weather plus the battery pack itself can't get too cold so it uses energy keeping itself warm. I don't understand why people own these in places like Canada. On the flip side if your commute is short you can keep the car nice and warm when you leave work or before you leave the house. Anyway I agree in very hot weather it takes some range for sure. I think OP point was at normal temps and what not he got awesome range. At normal temps he crushed my Tesla.

[ResIpsaLoquitur]

Originally Posted by Fluid15

After a few weeks of eDrive40 ownership we took the i4 on a (short) trip from Phx metro to Tucson, est. RT ~ 250 mi. Destination was son's soccer game so we had a hard arrival time and only budgeted about an hour excess for the unexpected. Someone not-to-be named forgot to charge the car, thus we needed to charge on the way there. I was curious if the car could make it without stopping, if starting with 100% battery. I was unsure how consumption would be affected by highway speeds since my only EV experience was with my Tesla Model 3 (single motor, 200 mi range) and it appeared to drastically consume energy when above the 70-75mph range. I never did it long enough for solid data but during trips from Phx to San Diego I noticed that range almost 'halved' from 2mi per 1% to 1 mi per 1% by observing it over a 10-15 min span (flat hwy).

There is an Electrify America about 40 miles from our start so I decided to charge to 100% and monitor usage from that point forward. Our first experience with Public Charging stations (non-Tesla) was Horrible. I'd read input from other users so maybe no surprise, but this just sucked.

Stop #1: Electrify America: Total 4 stations, 2 unavailable, 1 in-use.
This was the first time I used EA and it stopped a few minutes after starting (2kW added) with a "Charging session error." I unplugged thinking I needed to reset it and the screen then showed Unavailable. Unsure why it stopped – we tried waiting in the car with the A/C on, could that have affected use?? It was ~ 100 deg F so A/C needed. So now the only station is already in use. I searched for next closest charger and found one about 4 mi away.

Stop #2: EVgo: Total 1 station, 1 available. (Currently at 38%)
The station had a credit card slot but it didn't work so I needed to download their App and setup an account. Family unsure if the A/C had anything to do with the first issue so they waited under a tree, pretty unhappy at this point (I wish I had taken a picture). We felt our schedule was now at risk so my wife calls the coach hoping he hasn't passed us yet and can stop and pickup our son, which he did. An Audi E-Tron pulled up next to me and seemed a bit frustrated there was only 1 station. They leave. After 15 min I noticed it's only charging at 47 kW and decided to abort; I explained to my family it's too slow and we'd miss the game. I made decision to continue on the highway toward Tucson and gamble/stop at another EA about 60 miles closer to destination.

Stop #3: Electrify America: Total 10 stations, 7 unavailable, 3 in-use. (Currently at 30%)
Same Lady in E-tron is there at one of the stations and is signaling to me it doesn't appear to be working for her. A guy in Porsche Taycan appears like he's about done charging so I ask him status and he says he's having trouble and tells me only two stations work; including the station with E-tron. He hasn't started yet, gets frustrated and leaves … his station now states Unavailable. Lady in E-tron isn't able to get hers to work, moves her car and looks for another station even though the remaining say Unavailable. I decide to give her station a try … after a few minutes my wife bolts into the Outlet Mall (it's hot outside) and it appears to be charging! Lady in E-tron is out of luck trying other stations and leaves again. EA App doesn't show my car is charging but MyBMW App shows its charging and I can see % going up so looks good to me .. I go into Mall area looking for wife. 52 minutes later I'm at 99% (61.2 kWh delivered @ $0.43/kWh). TRIP DATA RESET

TRIP SUMMARY:
Starting with 99% Charge I drove to destination and back home, almost all highway miles. I had A/C on, kept steady speed around 80 mph (75 mph speed limit), Eco Pro and Drive mode 'B' (and tire pressure at target +/- 1 psi)

• Total Miles driven = 133.6 mi
• Total Battery usage = 40% (started at 99%, ended at 59%)
• Avg 4.0 mi/kWh

I understand consumption isn't linear across the range, however I can use this info to estimate highway range available: 133.6 mi per 40% = 3.34 mi / %
[COLOR="Red"]--> Total Estimated Highway Range = 334 miles[/COLOR]

Next road trip opportunity I'll increase speed a bit and hold at 85 mph to see how/if that impacts efficiency.

Awesome write up, OP! Thanks for sharing your experience!

With that being said, this is exactly why I'd never go with an EV as my DD/only car. Having to go through what you've described to complete a (relatively short, especially for the southwest) road trip is just insane. Nothing better than being able to refill/refuel your vehicles entire range capability, even in the middle of nowhere, in 5 minutes without knowing what brand of charger you need, what network, what plug, what adapter, whether you need an app, what rate your charging at, are there enough stalls, and so on.

The thread seems to have a "fix"' for each collateral issue that arises from your situation. That is the problem in and of itself right there — always trying to resolve some issue. I can't come up with comparable or analogous issues with ICE vehicles as a general matter. If gas stations pulled stuff like this, we'd have a coup in this country.

Not bashing on EVs here! BMW or otherwise. Tone is hard to convey on the internet. Just stating the obvious that it's not a direct replacement for ICE vehicles…yet. Some may say, "well how often does this situation happen?" I suppose that varies from person to person, but even this one solitary experience you had would have me running out to get rid of it immediately (not that I would have gotten one in the first place). I also don't mean to minimize one of your post's intent to share range. Your numbers are impressive. But even ever having to worry about range is outside my parameters of patience.

Enjoy your new ride! For the right person and the right use case, I'll still say it's an awesome machine, having experienced it at BMW's UDE EV Experience.

[Nahlem]

Nice summary and range, i haven't had those issues here in Sweden or so, we have a standard for CCS charging and even Tesla is using it here in EU, they also recently opened up their network of superchargers for the rest of the EVs so there aint no issue finding a charging station.

Cant speak for all but the charging issues haven't been as prevalent here as you experienced so EA needs to get their act together in the US i guess but also Tesla will probably open up their charging networks soon for everyone, but i find it weird that they don't use the same standard everywhere in the US kinda ruins the experience for customers i would assume.

I got close to 304 miles on my 19" here in Sweden with the hankook tires on one of my 2nd trips with the car with the AC running and stuff so haven't had to issues with draining the battery as some experience it we had around 30-32c this summer a lot still didn't experience those issues with the battery again experience and usage may wary for some people.

Then again i am glad though to see those miles that is quite impressive. That speaks and bodes well for the future. Range won't be an issue in a couple of years if everything goes as planned in the development area we will have battery without a doubt that goes 800km/497 miles + on one charge, it will even out do the most efficient diesels out there so that is a good thing.

And gas station refiling will be a thing of the past, or maybe they will be changing to have chargers instead for their own survival, like here in Sweden gas stations are starting to add chargers to their stations so people will be able to charge at those due to the standard being CCS :-)

[perezr10]

Originally Posted by ResIpsaLoquitur

Awesome write up, OP! Thanks for sharing your experience!

With that being said, this is exactly why I'd never go with an EV as my DD/only car. Having to go through what you've described to complete a (relatively short, especially for the southwest) road trip is just insane. Nothing better than being able to refill/refuel your vehicles entire range capability, even in the middle of nowhere, in 5 minutes without knowing what brand of charger you need, what network, what plug, what adapter, whether you need an app, what rate your charging at, are there enough stalls, and so on.

The thread seems to have a "fix"' for each collateral issue that arises from your situation. That is the problem in and of itself right there — always trying to resolve some issue. I can't come up with comparable or analogous issues with ICE vehicles as a general matter. If gas stations pulled stuff like this, we'd have a coup in this country.

Not bashing on EVs here! BMW or otherwise. Tone is hard to convey on the internet. Just stating the obvious that it's not a direct replacement for ICE vehicles…yet. Some may say, "well how often does this situation happen?" I suppose that varies from person to person, but even this one solitary experience you had would have me running out to get rid of it immediately (not that I would have gotten one in the first place). I also don't mean to minimize one of your post's intent to share range. Your numbers are impressive. But even ever having to worry about range is outside my parameters of patience.

Enjoy your new ride! For the right person and the right use case, I'll still say it's an awesome machine, having experienced it at BMW's UDE EV Experience.

I think as a DD it would be fine. It's just the long trips. You could always rent a gas car for long trips. Or keep another gas car in the stable.


This is why people still choose those piece of crap glitchy rattletrap Teslas, the supercharger network. But even that gets way overloaded on holiday trips.

[ResIpsaLoquitur]

Originally Posted by perezr10

I think as a DD it would be fine. It's just the long trips. You could always rent a gas car for long trips. Or keep another gas car in the stable.


This is why people still choose those piece of crap glitchy rattletrap Teslas, the supercharger network. But even that gets way overloaded on holiday trips.

Fine is a relative term; I'd go so far as agree that it may be less annoying, but even going through this once would be a compte turn off for me personally.

You made a great point that I thought of, but forgot to mention — the BMW is a significant upgrade from the Tesla at the very least. It's still inherently a BMW after all, even if not my desired drivetrain.

It's infinitely more crazy to me that people would go with an objectively supremely sub par (especially for its price!) product, for the sake of the use of said inferior product to be less annoying than its competitors.

Anecdotally, I've seen the Superchargers on drives up and down 95 during the holidays. You are right in that you will sometimes see lines a few dozen cars long. I'll admit my gas station gets backed up a car or two every now and then at a pump on perhaps the day before Thanksgiving, but other than that…

Agree that you'd likely need a multi car setup to really make an EV work, even OP mentions additional ICE vehicles that he has. This just proves my initial point that they are not broadly a direct replacement for ICE vehicles — yet. When the day comes that EVs are so good that a two car, average American household can have two EVs, and no other cars, then we will have gotten to that point.

[techwhiz1]

Originally Posted by M3macster

Or charge at home every night and use the gas car for long trips.

Which is what I'll do.

We will have an i4 M50 (mine), Fisker Ocean One (her's) and Chevy Bolt (daughter's).

We will keep the X5 for really long trips.

[smatanovic]

Originally Posted by ResIpsaLoquitur

Agree that you'd likely need a multi car setup to really make an EV work, even OP mentions additional ICE vehicles that he has. This just proves my initial point that they are not broadly a direct replacement for ice vehicles — yet. When the day comes that EVs are so good that a two car, average American household can I have two EVs, and no other cars, then we will have gotten to that point.

We're a one-car family and take delivery of our i4 tomorrow, replacing an E91 325xi wagon that got totaled. Being in the NE United States, there are plenty of chargers close by between EA and evGo, as well as a few municipal ones. We don't have the ability to charge at home, as we live in Philadelphia in a house with no garage. I don't really get the emphasis on home-based charging; I didn't refuel my ICE at home, either.

Re longer trips, if I can get 300 miles per charge consistently, the i4 will make the perfect road trip vehicle, IMHO. Between me, the kids, and my wife, someone will want to take a bio break or get something to eat, which will give us the opportunity to charge. We drove about 450 miles yesterday in a rented Buick Enclave aka "the houseboat" and stopped for lunch around 250 miles into our trip, ironically at a Sheetz that featured 5 EA chargers. If we had been in the i4, I suspect it would have made ZERO difference to our route planning or timing/logistics vs our experience in the ICE.

[Flamesofgold]

Originally Posted by smatanovic

We're a one-car family and take delivery of our i4 tomorrow, replacing an E91 325xi wagon that got totaled. Being in the NE United States, there are plenty of chargers close by between EA and evGo, as well as a few municipal ones. We don't have the ability to charge at home, as we live in Philadelphia in a house with no garage. I don't really get the emphasis on home-based charging; I didn't refuel my ICE at home, either.

Re longer trips, if I can get 300 miles per charge consistently, the i4 will make the perfect road trip vehicle, IMHO. Between me, the kids, and my wife, someone will want to take a bio break or get something to eat, which will give us the opportunity to charge. We drove about 450 miles yesterday in a rented Buick Enclave aka "the houseboat" and stopped for lunch around 250 miles into our trip, ironically at a Sheetz that featured 5 EA chargers. If we had been in the i4, I suspect it would have made ZERO difference to our route planning or timing/logistics vs our experience in the ICE.

I don't know about that. The whole appeal of EV today is the ability to offset some gas prices by charging at home. (Also being greener if it actually nets greener)

You likely have 7-12 gas stations within a 5 mile radius from you. Each with about 4-8 pumps, and a fill up time of about 5-8 min. Quick easy painless besides 5-6 bucks a gallon.

EV charging experience is getting better but it's a mediocre at best. Your local chargers MAY have 4-6 EV chargers at best and some may be broken being used for 30-45 min by other cars or charge at piss poor charging rates. Which would lead u to spend at least triple the time to get 80%charge. You NEED to charge at least 80% since you don't charge at home.

You can risk charging 45-50 % which charging time is less than 20 min, but that buys you 2-3 days of time before you have to look for charging again.

Add insult to injury, these charge stations charge almost as much as gas which negates the delta of lower running cost compared to ICE.

My advice is to got get an EV unless you have a home charger or you have one within walking distance to you.

Personally I wouldn't get an EV without a home charger. But if you can live with the adjustments then go for it.

[supershaft]

Originally Posted by cbertels

I would rather eat a whole bus tire than have this sort of experience just charging up the car. This sort of inconvenience alone keeps me disinterested in EVs.

making his family get out of the car in the heat.. hilarious.

making the front page of bimmerpost with this electric clown car.. chef's kiss

and to be fair it's not OP's fault the EV charging network is complete ass. just imagine pulling into a gas station where only 1 pump works and it's like that everywhere.

[mlanes01]

Hopefully this awkward EV puberty phase doesnt last long. We really need to push hard on government and charging companies to stop making charging niche and just put a charger or two at every gas station. It's annoying to have all these various brands and memberships etc.... Surprised that big oil isn't already doing this. We have to admit that gas is dying and on the way out .. we are early in EV and the tech may change but it's looking right now when people say things like "I can't believe people wait 30 mins to charge on a road trip, the grid will never handle that energy etc..." That you look like the guy riding horseback saying "I can't believe anyone would want to go outside and crank start an auto, where will they ever find gas stations out on the prairies". The advances in the cars the last ten years have been insane... Now it's battery tech and charging tech that will need to catch up. Unless someone comes up with a car that can perform similar to an I4 m50 and get 100mpg you should start paying attention to ev's.

[Hutchinson04]

Originally Posted by cehrl7

What a pain in the ass. This is why I will never own an electric vehicle. Call me old fashioned, but I stop at a gas station. I fill up. I leave. It only take a few minutes. I laugh at all the Tesla's waiting on their pos to charge.

Absofreakinlutely why I did not pull the trigger on a Taycan and bought an M4.

[smatanovic]

Originally Posted by Flamesofgold

I don't know about that. The whole appeal of EV today is the ability to offset some gas prices by charging at home...

Add insult to injury, these charge stations charge almost as much as gas which negates the delta of lower running cost compared to ICE.

My advice is to got get an EV unless you have a home charger or you have one within walking distance to you.

Personally I wouldn't get an EV without a home charger. But if you can live with the adjustments then go for it.

I will, since I pick the car up tomorrow. Re the cost delta, I won't pay anything for the first 2 years, as the i4 comes with two years of EA charging.

As for gas stations nearby, you would be surprised how few gas stations are in cities anymore, as the price of real estate has gone nuts. The closest one to me is actually across the bridge in New Jersey.

[smatanovic]

Originally Posted by supershaft

making his family get out of the car in the heat.. hilarious.

Your family doesn't take bio breaks?

[ResIpsaLoquitur]

Originally Posted by smatanovic

We're a one-car family and take delivery of our i4 tomorrow, replacing an E91 325xi wagon that got totaled. Being in the NE United States, there are plenty of chargers close by between EA and evGo, as well as a few municipal ones. We don't have the ability to charge at home, as we live in Philadelphia in a house with no garage. I don't really get the emphasis on home-based charging; I didn't refuel my ICE at home, either.

Re longer trips, if I can get 300 miles per charge consistently, the i4 will make the perfect road trip vehicle, IMHO. Between me, the kids, and my wife, someone will want to take a bio break or get something to eat, which will give us the opportunity to charge. We drove about 450 miles yesterday in a rented Buick Enclave aka "the houseboat" and stopped for lunch around 250 miles into our trip, ironically at a Sheetz that featured 5 EA chargers. If we had been in the i4, I suspect it would have made ZERO difference to our route planning or timing/logistics vs our experience in the ICE.

First of all, sorry about your car. I hope you and your family are okay!

I can't imagine not being able to charge at home. Yes, you indeed don't fill up you ICE car at home, but you don't have to worry about how you're going to fill it up. The emphasis on home based charging is to prevent/mitigate the exact issue OP had.

On the road trip, I just want to stop and eat, and not worry about vehicle charging.

Again, this is not me bashing on EVs — I'm just highlighting the logistical differences between them and the traditional gasoline refueling process that has been made so easy in this country.

Nonetheless, the car works for you, and that is all that matters. So happy that you have found something that worlds for you!