From 2013, BMW will be selling the i3, a compact electric car with superior equipment and a light carbon body for the first time - the first car from BMW that was conceived and designed purely as an electric car. Now the last i3 rolls off the assembly line. Some pioneers from other brands have long since stopped running.
Bodies made of aluminium, stainless steel or carbon, fuel consumption of just one liter or a dream car with gullwing doors: there have also been car pioneers in the recent past - with varying degrees of success. One has now said goodbye.
From a standing start to 50 km/h in around three seconds. Not with a sports car, but with a small electric car. When BMW launched the i3 in 2013, petrolheads shook their heads at traffic lights. Too short, too high, too thin tires and then with electric drive. But damn fast.
"The BMW i3 was a real pioneer in electromobility and a bold step by BMW," says Paolo Tumminelli. "It was the first car from BMW that was conceived and designed purely as an electric car, with all the advantages and disadvantages," says the design professor at Cologne Technical University. BMW set technical standards with the i3.
The developers made full use of the space advantages of the electric motor when dividing up the space. He sits in the rear under the trunk, the batteries are in the car floor - a lot of interior space with compact external dimensions. A range extender in some models eliminates the disadvantage of a short electric range. This small petrol engine on board can then charge the battery while driving.
The body, which is only four meters long, is made of carbon fibre, aluminum and plastic and is lighter than one made of steel. "That alone shows the quality of the well thought-out and innovative concept," says Prof. Tumminelli. With 15.3 kWh per 100 kilometers according to WLTP, the four-seater, which weighs only 1.3 tons, still consumes relatively little today.
In addition, the one-box design polarizes with its high recognition value, which differs greatly from other vehicles. "The shape was not unusual, but merely an interpretation of a Renault Twingo or Audi A2 adapted to the spirit of the times," says Tumminelli.
In the one-box design, the front, roof and rear of an automobile are seamlessly connected by a line when viewed from the side, giving the impression of a "monolithic form", explains the expert. The opposite is the three-box or notchback, where all three elements are clearly separated from each other.
"At BMW, the i3 represents the entry into electromobility and is a major milestone in the company's long history," says Caroline Exner, Product Manager for the BMW i3. One of the biggest challenges was to rethink the vehicle, development and production. "During the planning from 2008 onwards, the employees of the i3 project questioned a lot of things that had previously been taken for granted," says Caroline Exner. "They had to defend their ideas in the group at a time when we were making good money with conventional cars."
In 2011, BMW introduced the concept of an electric city car as the i3 Concept. The production car was presented in 2013, and series production started in Leipzig in September. BMW founded the BMW i sub-brand for this purpose. The last model rolled off the assembly line at the end of June 2022. BMW sold around 250,000 units in total - in 74 countries.
For Prof. Stefan Bratzel, the i3 was a key player in electromobility when it was presented, almost as important as Tesla. "The i3 was an interesting attempt by a German manufacturer to develop its own electric platform and vehicle," says the director of the Center of Automotive Management (CAM) in Bergisch Gladbach. "The approach is similar to Tesla and represents the beginning of e-mobility by a German manufacturer."
But high development costs and expensive carbon production did not make the i3 economically successful, sales expectations were higher than actual sales. He therefore sees errors in the concept with the expensive carbon body and the choice of segment. A small electric car for around 35,000 euros was not mass-compatible. "BMW could have made more money with a larger vehicle class," says Prof. Bratzel.
Other pioneers had a similarly difficult time. For example, the De Lorean DMC-12 from 1981. According to Tumminelli, it was designed by Giorgio Giugiaro as the first ethical, sustainable automobile built for eternity. This included a body developed by Lotus with a load-bearing structure made of fiber-reinforced plastic and a stainless steel skin. Due to insufficient financing, the car with gullwing doors flopped. It achieved cult status as a time machine in the film trilogy "Back to the Future".
According to Tuminelli, the A2 from Audi also made an impression in 2000 with its aluminum body in five-door one-box form, but was phased out after just five years. "The non-scalable aluminum space frame was simply too expensive," says the professor. In other words, the coherent construction could not be used for other models.
With the XL1, between 2013 and 2016, VW launched an expensive, albeit minimalist vehicle that only consumed around one liter of diesel per 100 kilometers. A car for collectors: Only 200 cars were made, all of which had previously been sold.
With the Polo 3L Bluemotion, VW also offered a small car between 2009 and 2014 that consumed 3.3 liters per 100 kilometers. However, low demand due to the high acquisition costs made the economy Polo uneconomical for VW.
As is so often the case in automotive history: the BMW i3 was ahead of its time and came onto the market too early. According to Tumminelli, innovative and progressive models such as the Fiat 500, Renault Twingo, Renault Avantime, Porsche 928, Smart Fortwo or Audi A2 all had starting difficulties or problems with acceptance. "It's a pity that BMW isn't developing a second generation of the i3 and is phasing it out after nine years," says the design expert.
"BMW lost the courage to continue pursuing its electric strategy," says Bratzel. The then chief developer Ulrich Kranz now works for Apple. "If the technology had been consistently developed, BMW would be Tesla's biggest competitor today," says Bratzel. After initial sales difficulties, sales have picked up in recent years, also thanks to the e-car premium.
The fact that the i3 is now being phased out is also due to its platform. "There are only a few synergies with other models, which is expensive in production and development," says Prof. Bratzel. New models from BMW rely on a modular system with a lot of synergy potential.
BMW does not offer a direct successor. Market analyzes have shown that there is more sales potential for the electric Mini and the iX1 - a compact SUV measuring 4.50 meters in length and weighing almost two tons.
"It's exactly the opposite of the basic idea of the i3 and its developers. But the SUVs are being developed for the world market, not just for European cities," says Prof. Bratzel. However, he still sees a market for vehicles that offer a large and high-quality interior with small external dimensions. In the future, premium vehicles should not be defined by their size.
