Not cheap, but charming, fun and with seriously practical performance and range.

It’s funny how perceptions change. When I was young in a sepia-toned world the drivers who were on the receiving end of most abuse were those behind the wheels of BMWs. Arrogant, aggressive and antagonistic with an addiction to tailgating was the accepted caricature of this firm’s car owners.

Times have changed though. BMW, for all its massive sales success in Ireland in the past 15 years, now has a slightly less combative image, one of classiness and desirability with a little less of the disdain from those unable to afford one.

With the i3, there is the chance for BMW to slip seamlessly into full-on caring and sharing mode. The little electric car has been around since 2014, but had failed to make much of a dent in Irish buyers’ collective consciousness, mostly down to a combination of being small, with a big price tag and, well, electric.

For all the talk of Ireland being a perfect test case for the introduction of electric motoring, few brave souls have taken on the mantle of early adopter. A combination of cost, lack of infrastructure and that ever-present spectre of range anxiety has held people back.

Fortunes

Well, BMW has answered that in part by boosting the range of the i3 to a much more acceptable level. While the lithium-ion battery pack hasn’t been made physically larger, it has increased in capacity, to a very healthy 33kWh (up from 22kWh) and the i3’s part-carbon-fibre structure, light but strong and costing BMW several fortunes to develop, was always there to make the most of any extra range.

In fact, one-charge range climbed to 300km on the European NEDC (New European Driving Cycle), but cognisant that the official test has been thoroughly undermined in the public eye, BMW says 200km is a more realistic day-to-day figure.

So it proves. A writer must write of what they know, so I can only speak of how the i3 performed on my own regular driving cycle, but it is significantly improved.

I was testing the ‘REX’ version, the range-extender, which uses a tiny two-cylinder moped engine and a seven-litre tank of petrol to keep the batteries alive should you run out of charge with mileage still to go to get home. It adds, generally, around 100-120km of extra range, easing many the furrowed brow.

Read more: Irish Times

BMW continues to make headway with its flagship ‘i’ range, with the BMW i3 94Ah having recently won the Best Electric Car in the £20,000 – £40,000 category at the What Car? Car of the Year 2017 awards. The annual awards are the UK motoring industry’s highest accolades, demonstrating just how far the BMW i concept has come since its establishment in 2013.

The BMW i3 94Ah was praised for its 50% improvement on range between charges – now a maximum of 195 miles – as well as for its interior quality, sustainable production values and usability.

The ethos of the BMW ‘i’ range is sustainability to its very core. From renewable energy used in the making of its interior carbon fibre, to the recycled materials used throughout its construction, the BMW i3 spearheads the carbon-free car market.

On a practical level, the BMW i3 now comes with direct current (DC) rapid charging as standard, allowing it to be fully charged in less than 3 hours [edit – this is obviously wrong, BMW mean 40 minutes – the writer must have got confused! Trevor]. With a 0-62mph time of 7.3 seconds and a top speed of 93mph, the BMW i3 continues to make its mark on the electric car market.

Visit the What Car? Best Electric Car award feature here.

Source: BMW.co.uk

A MOVE to electric vehicles is set to save ambulance bosses millions of pounds.

North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust (NWAS) will be one of the first ambulance services in the country to introduce electric cars as part of its fleet and is expected to save £2.5 million in fuel costs over the four year lease period.

RRVs are cars that have been converted into emergency response vehicles.

They are designed to be able to attend emergencies quicker than regular ambulances because they are smaller and can get through traffic more easily.

Although they don’t generally carry patients to hospital, they are staffed by a paramedic who is able to administer life-saving treatment at the scene of an emergency.

Neil Maher, assistant director service delivery support said:

“The trust relies heavily on rapid response vehicles to be able to attend patients as quickly as possible.

“The introduction of these electrically powered cars will not only provide huge cost savings for the trust, it will also have a huge impact on our carbon footprint, reducing the carbon contribution from our RRVs from 1379.28 tonnes to 100.8 tonnes, a reduction of 73 per cent.”

The trust believes maintenance and lease costs will also be reduced with the introduction of the new RRV model, with an overall expected annual saving of over £4,300 per vehicle.

Read more: Lancashire Telegraph

Selfridges boosts it’s green credentials with free all-electric BMW i3 chauffeur service

BMW has loaned a fleet of all-electric BMW i3s to Selfridges in Manchester for the next three months as part of the department store’s Material World initiative to encourage consumers to think more sustainably when shopping. Customers can choose to be chauffeured with their shopping free of charge by a BMWi Genius or get behind the wheel themselves.

The store is also celebrating the permanent installation of charging points within their car park as London looks to improve the charging infrastructure in high footfall locations plagued by poor air quality across the city.

As air pollution continues to rise at an alarming rate around the world and cities like Paris, Milan and Rome impose driving bans during the worst periods, Manchester is now also being urged by officials to implement similar rules with the possibility of introducing a congestion charge.

Big brands are now taking steps for change including the likes of leaders in sustainable innovation, BMWi and Selfridges. In recent months BMW’s all-electric i range has been used in a range of initiatives across the city to encourage sustainable driving solutions with the likes of DriveNow – the brand’s car sharing service, London’s police force and now as part of a complementary chauffeur service to Selfridges in London and Manchester.

Read more: Female First