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An interesting soul is leaving, and we have not yet learned to cherish it.
Electrified veteran front wave, ugly and beautiful collision, Bavarian rebellious hairy boy, the anti-class experiment with state banquets to make instant noodles - BMW i3, at the latest in July this year will officially bid farewell to the world. Now visit the BMW China official website, you will find that the BMW i series column, I don't know when there is no i3 and i8 figure.
Unintentionally beautifying the gas network is not red, the i3 that does not call the seat has been rumored to be discontinued more than once in many years, and several rounds of life extension have lasted from 2013 to 2022. But this time it is true, because in a few months, the new pure electric version of the "i3" derived from the 3 series will come. In addition to the name, the new and old i3 are not related by blood, to avoid confusion, there is always a car to go first.
The new i3 will meet you soon
Speaking of BMW i3 today, when it comes to BMW i3, I believe that many people do not care, and even need to accurately name and describe it to find that they once forgot it. Most people's deepest memories of it, in addition to the rather strange appearance at its birth, are probably only selected by a car time-sharing platform (which has long been bankrupt) a few years ago.
From a private point of view, the i3 (and i8) is the first BMW that Ben Hu touched as a practitioner rather than a car owner, and it is not denied that there is a little emotion. But there is no single point for private waste, i3, whether for BMW, or for the development of the entire electric vehicle, its value and significance is seriously out of proportion to the attention.
Let's recall around 2014, what kind of electric element was it?
Model S has just begun to break away from The Beverly Hills's eco-friendly jewelry status (btw, replacing the Toyota Prius), and at the beginning of its entry into China, it was a popular fresh goods that could be placed at the front door of the Shopping Mall. The Nissan Leaf rose to the peak of its car career, although the NEDC standard is only 200km endurance today seems like a joke.
Hybridization was already the cutting-edge imagination of new energy at that time, so that mainstream car companies would first come to a concept car to procure if they wanted to make hybrids. Obama was interested in the Chevrolet Volt (later became the Buick Velite 5) simply because it was a rare plug-in/extender hybrid at the time. The unplugged Prius is still dominated by environmental trends, and Hollywood celebrities drive it in and out, being filmed, published in newspapers, and praised.
But the new Tesla and Fisker are trying to snatch tickets from the West Coast elite from the Toyota accident. We now know that one of them will eventually step out of celebrity circles to own the world, and the other will move to the East after changing names.
BMW, like Tesla, was the first to realize that pure electric vehicles/BEVs that rely solely on lithium batteries for energy storage can be practical for the foreseeable future. This is a truth that children understand today, but ten years ago, it was like waiting for the ChiNext to rebound in February 2022: everyone knew it would come, but no one could say when it would come, let alone whether it came or whether it was fierce or wilted.
Tesla, which has no back road, is naturally all-in, and BMW, which has a home and a room, bets on both sides: BMW i series mainly promotes pure electric i3, but at the same time there is an extended range version of the i3 base.
There is no hybrid charge, no only the range is the mainstay, there is no oil to electricity, until today we are still talking about the pure electricity platform, BMW in 2013 bet on the right most of the bet. But because it is only half, i3 chose its most characteristic all-carbon fiber composite body and lightweight route, which became the key to the fate of i3.
Boldness is mixed with caution, and over-the-top becomes a limitation. Today, people say that BMW electric "gets up early and catches up late", which ignores BMW's advanced vision and confidence in pure electricity at that time, and does not truthfully reflect where the deviation occurs. Don't forget that i3 was born early and the electrification was thorough, forgetting that it is essentially an experiment, an exploration, a stone touch.
Carbon is the ideal, aluminum is the reality
I often say that the BMW i3 of 2013 is very much like the Audi A2 of 1999: the same use of ultra-conventional body materials in the entry-level trolley, the same "high hopes" and the same applause, the same final museum is their best destination. And similarly, its forward thinking was eventually shown to lack the efficiency-cost ratio, and ultimately failed to become mainstream.
The A2 is the second application of Audi's all-aluminum architecture ASF after the flagship A8, and the i3 (and i8) is the first time that carbon fiber reinforced composite/CFRP has appeared on BMW's high-volume models.
BMW i3 and i8 adopt the "LIFE + DRIVE" modular body, the translation of the adult is that the entire body is composed of two modules, the top is the full carbon fiber composite LIFE module as the cabin, and the bottom is the aluminum DRIVE module that supports the drive, suspension and other mechanical structures. The rigid connection between the two is still a bearing structure (if you remember "As soon as the skateboard chassis is shot, there is no car-building anxiety?"). , something that might be associated with).
The aluminum DRIVE module below, in addition to the anti-collision collapse structure at the front and rear of the carbon fiber cockpit, all the hard points of the suspension system are also installed in this module, which has a load-bearing and protective frame for the battery system (the LIFE module also has a battery protection structure). Strictly speaking, it is still slightly different from the carbon fiber monocoque shell of the supercar, but it is also enough to say a real "full carbon fiber body".
Especially relative to the price positioning, the i3 is just a car with a similar size to Polo, and the carbon fiber body can be said to be made of instant noodles with state banquet ingredients.
Note that the complete suspension system is included, as well as the battery load structure
The upper LIFE module is made of CFRP carbon fiber reinforced composite material, colloquially speaking carbon fiber, which makes the 4-meter-long i3 body weigh only 138kg (including the aluminum body structure in the DRIVE module below). The weight of a similar size steel body is at least 220kg, and the slightly smaller Audi A2 all-aluminum frame also has 153kg, but the safety standards of the two are not the same due to the difference in the times.
The benefits of the carbon fiber body are obvious, the i3's curb weight is only 1.2-1.3 tons (late large battery weight gain), which is almost the lightest you can find in a modern electric car (not counting the MINIEV). The later i3 with a 42kWh battery was only 1345kg, while the nissan second-generation Leaf 40kWh version of the same era had 1580kg.
However, the corresponding cost is more obvious, the price of i3 when it was first listed was relatively high, even if it was close to the end of the production, it still far exceeded the affordable price of this level. The maintenance problem of carbon fiber as a frame (referring to the bearing structure) has not been recognized by the market, although BMW wants everyone to believe that its design of reserved cutting lines can be solved. The last straw is the deepening of the concept of sustainability, carbon fiber as a non-naturally degradable composite material, its recycling difficulty and low efficiency ratio.
The final answer is actually on the i3, the i3's DRIVE module contains an aluminum front and rear suspension tower top, and the rear tower top and wheel arch part are a cast aluminum part.
Cast aluminum is no stranger to the automotive industry, and it often appears in key corners of high-end models, silently shining. It's just that the size of the parts that has been cast aluminum has been greatly limited for various reasons, and the Tesla Model Y has shown us the future of large-size one-piece die-cast bodies (see "Your Model Y, is being pressed out").
Although aluminum requires a lot of energy in the electrolytic production process, aluminum is the most convenient metal material for recycling. Later, on BMW's iX models, 50% of the cast aluminum parts were made of secondary utilization aluminum.
Carbon Core, carbon is used on the cutting edge
However, BMW's exploration of carbon fiber composites on the i3/i8 still has a sequel. The use of carbon fiber to make an entire body structure may not be economical and not necessarily environmentally friendly, but the strengthening effect of some carbon fiber materials on key parts of the body is reasonable and more affordable. Although there is no sequel to the LIFE+DRIVE module, BMW has accumulated a wealth of experience in multi-material body connection.
In 2015, BMW launched Carbon Core carbon fiber reinforcement technology on the 7 Series. Carbon fiber materials are used in key structures such as A-pillars, B-pillars, and roof beams, and are combined with other body materials such as steel and aluminum to greatly improve body performance without adding more weight. This Carbon Core was later expanded to the 5 series, etc., and became the exclusive signature dish of BMW's high-end, and the i3 paving was indispensable.
In the end, BMW's body-in-white technology was carried forward in its aggregator iX. The future of automotive body materials is not a single all-carbon fiber, but to the composite direction of aluminum - especially cast aluminum - mainly carbon fiber, other composites, high-strength steel and so on. It is entirely predictable that the New Class pure electric platform that BMW is developing, carbon fiber and composites will play a key role.
Today, a small amount of carbon fiber is used in key parts of the body, which is already common for high-end models, but it is mostly used in the less important plate parts of the rear body. For example, the carbon fiber rear partition of the Audi A8 and the carbon fiber rear body baseplate of the NIO ES6 are different from BMW's Carbon Core, regardless of the scope of use, proportion or importance of the components.
Flying doors, open hearts
Before the i3, whether it was Nissan Leaf or Tesla Model S, it did not jump out of the "look" of the original fuel car as a whole. The Leaf was no different from the average hatchback, and what the Model S needed to pursue at the time was also more low-key and more "normal". BMW really let itself go on the i3 and i8, first of all, with the almost completely copied concept car in shape – which was not common in that era.
The i3 was the first to test the natural spatial flexibility of electric vehicles: the four wheels are extremely close to the four corners, and the wheelbase to length ratio has reached 64%. If you still have the impression, today's Smart #1也才刚刚达到这个数, and the Mercedes-Benz EQS, which is highly praised in terms of "styling to break the proportion of fuel vehicles", is even 2% less than the i3. (See "Electric Smart, is it really a very Krypton blood relative?") 》）
BMW also used B-pillar-less folio doors and frameless door designs for the i3 for the first time. This single-sided "one and a half" door design was also adopted on the MINI Clubman at the time. With today's side impact regulations becoming more stringent, and the market for cars like the i3 becoming increasingly difficult, the "beautiful-looking" design of the door opening is basically only possible to stay in the concept car stage (such as the Smart #1概念车).
As a city car in the strict sense, the i3 has no lack of sincerity in using rear-wheel drive. Thus, beyond the regular front McPherson suspension, there is a rear five-link suspension that is more adapted to the rear drive. Today, Volkswagen and Audi position the low-end MEB platform, Mercedes-Benz's entry platform MMA not long ago, and even the configuration for Smart in the GEE Group's SEA architecture, these pure electric platforms with considerable positioning are all the same. (See "What's the matter with no suspension in the electric age?") 》）
The interior of the BMW i series looks nothing different today, but look at the sustainable concept of environmentally friendly interiors that are spread around electric vehicles and newly built cars today, and then look back at i3: solid wood panels from sustainable forest farms, natural leather using olive leaf tanning preparations (later passed down to iX), the door central control trim is recycled plastic from hard bangbang, and there are seats made of impeller fabric on the overseas version.
These are commonplace today, and the i3s were once dismissed as shabby.
Olive leaf tanned leather logo that appears on the iX
With these materials, the interior design is becoming simplistic and homely. Looking at today's Volkswagen ID series, you will understand that only when the interior is no longer luxurious, can we fundamentally change the extravagant social psychology. There is also i3 pocket 5.7-inch independent LCD meter, which was once spat on the ground, and today's Volkswagen ID., Geely geometry, BYD, Extreme Krypton, etc., which car does not carry the characteristics of the i3 originating from the point.
Putting together all of this that BMW did on the i3 nearly a decade ago, we can get a template for a future electric car:
Rear-mounted rear-drive/rear-drive with more emphasis on driving performance is the main four-wheel drive, high-specification rear suspension structure;
The body material is at least partially made of carbon fiber, aluminum and other materials, paying attention to lightweight and high stiffness;
Large proportion of axle length ratio, breaking through the limitation of space size and flexibility of fuel vehicles;
Simple and bright, homely interior design, fully using environmentally sustainable materials for interiors;
These are reflected in almost every one of the new electric vehicles that have emerged in recent years. i3 may not have been the pioneer of individual terms in the strict sense of the word, but also the pioneer of the first to give such a "standard formula". If you enlarge this template and add a small (da) amount of luxury formula, you will find that the BMW iX is the spiritual "successor" of the i3 - but this successor has quadrupled in value. (Reason, please jump to "2025 Finals, is the BBA Ready?") BMW section)
BMW also made the mistake of killing the i3 in the i3, and did not foresee that the lithium battery would have the possibility of supporting 500-600km endurance in just a few years and the reality and economy. So the i3 chose the ultimate lightweight route, trying to rely on lighter weight to obtain performance advantages such as battery life. This expected deviation is also reflected in the i3 has an extended range version, and the i8 chooses to hybridize.
However, when lithium batteries quickly appear high energy density, large-size electric vehicles can rely on size advantages to carry battery packs with more than i3 twice the capacity. i3 relies on the full carbon fiber body to save the tens of hundreds of kilograms of weight to improve the endurance, compared with the direct replacement of high-density batteries, or even more thoroughly increase the body to increase the battery can improve the mileage, it seems that the water is not appropriate.
The CFRP material that i3 occupies most of the body has become a huge sunk cost, which is a great drag on reducing the cost of materials, and it lacks after-sales persuasion for consumers at this price point, and finally such electric vehicle ideas cannot continue. Taking Tesla as a typical example, instead of pursuing extreme lightness, but with high-energy density batteries, low-energy motors, and smarter BMS, it finally laughed to the end.
The after-sales problem of carbon fiber body material is not the direct cause of the failure of the i3 market, and the "special" one-piece die-cast body that is popular among major car companies today is actually not good enough to go, nor does it prevent this from becoming a trend. In the past few days, you should all see the story of model Y hitting the rear body, and the maintenance cost is as high as 200,000.
However, the idea of electric vehicles with an all-carbon fiber body as the core is the fundamental reason why the i3 is not easy to call for seats: it is not economical enough, and the actual utility is also unattractive. When the core performance such as the battery is improving, there is no need to bear too much by lightweight. Rely too much on stealing light to improve the endurance, and the road will only be narrowed by yourself.
The i3 is nailed to have no future, but it has revealed the future for the BMW i series. BMW took a big step forward nine years ago, but at a time when no one knew how big it was, it wasn't a disaster to accidentally add a few centimeters. Before the arrival of the New Class pure electric platform, the iX3 and iX were already able to occupy a market position in favor of BMW.
Today, when everyone has figured out the most suitable, economical and highest-scoring routine of electric vehicles, such as bmw i3, which is skeletal, unique, full of new ideas and new understandings, blind guessing and guessing a lot of little guys, just like the fish that slipped through the net outside of exam education, I am afraid that there will never be again.