BMW Mini E

The BMW Mini E is one of a few fully electric, real world cars on the market. BMW has decided to enter a real world testing program to match. The Mine E was part of a 450 car BMW test program. The results have been positive, people love the cars.

BMW has another concept vehicle ready for testing in in 2012. Chinese customers will be testing a fleet based on the BMW Concept ActiveE.

Any production car would likely be produced in 2013. The name mentioned for the production car is the BMW Megacity i3.

The electric Mini has performance specifications typical of a BMW. It comes with a 150 kW motor - 201Hp. The 35 kWh battery pack claims 100 miles (160 km) with
a top speed of 95 mph (150 kph). That is a healthy sized pack for a 3,200 lb
(1,454 kg) automobile.

By now the car has had some real world testing to rely on. The reviews are mixed, with typical EV problems surfacing.

The first problem is reduced range in the cold, reported by a few lessees at least, to about 1/2 the stated value. This seems to have caught several by surprise. The news was trumpeted on the Chevy Volt site. It since appears that one of these reviewers was affiliated with the Volt program.

Interestingly, the Mitsubishi i Miev experienced a similar drop in range in cold weather. Maybe the battery packs could use better heaters and insulation.

Then on the other hand, one driver ran his Mini 130 miles (210 km) per day to and from work for 8 months to total 21,000 miles (33,762 km). He reported a minimum range of 65 miles at 15 degrees F outside. However, he also mentions no problem recharging the car and getting to and from work. He expects to hit 38,000 miles (61,093km) up to the end of the lease.

Other drivers have reported reduced range at higher speeds. Then some others report increased range using the regenerative braking...up to 141 miles (225 km) per charge. All in all, it seems that hitting around 100 miles more or less with conservative driving is not a problem with the car, except in sub-freezing temperatures.

Drivers in a recent test group were asked how many would renew their leases? They all raised their hands. How many have actually signed up? So far, about 1/2 of the original 450 leases are going to be renewed for 2010. The leases run until the actual production cars hit the showrooms.

That's pretty impressive when you consider that the 35 kWh battery pack is holding the energy equivalent of ONE gallon of gasoline!

The next step in the BMW test program is a shakedown of the Active E. BMW says that the Active E is testing the electric drive system to be deployed in the future Megacity Vehicle, or MCV. 1,000
Active E test cars will be trailled in the USA, Europe and China. 160 alone will be driven around the London Olympics. Results will be blended into the i3 in 2013.

In a nod to the Chevy Volt BMW has announced a new concept car. The BMW i3 will offer an optional gas powered, range-extending engine. The gas engine will provide power when the battery pack runs low.

A UK test of the BMW Mini E had some interesting results. The test included participants making some 33,345 trips for a total of 258,105 miles. 138 drivers took their cars an average 29.7 miles per user per day. The average single trip distance was 9.5 miles. Drivers rated the Mini E as able to handle 80% of their commute needs. Pretty good for a test, and with improvements in battery technology, it appears that most UK driver trips could be made in the Mini E.