BMW said their electric compact model I3 can drive up to 220 kilometers on one battery charge and this distance can be increased to 347 kilometers using an additional range of range.
The BMW i3, BMW’s first electric model, is set to debut in production form at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September before going on sale by the end of the year in Europe, the United States and China.
BMW has not yet announced the cost or target of sales for the i3, but the automotive industry has already received “several hundred preliminary orders” for the model, BMW CEO Norbert Reytopher said at the annual press conference of the company on Tuesday in Munich. The characteristics are also secret, but most likely the radar detector BMW i3 is not needed – the car is not for riders.
“The i3 has a range on the only electrical charge of 130 – 160 kilometers (80 – 99 miles), but with two ecological modes, the i3 range can grow up to 220 kilometers (136 miles),” said Maximilian Kellner, head of the BMW I production department.
The first ecological method called Ecopro reduces the torque supplied by an electric motor and energy, which is used for systems such as air conditioning or stove. In the EcoPro way, the i3 adds 20 kilometers of travel on a single charge. The second method, known as Ecopro + Range, closes all the systems that use electricity with the exception of security systems such as the anti -lock system and ESC. This adds another 40 kilometers of the range, said Kellner.
i3 will also be available with an additional motorcycle engine with two cylinders and a generator to expand its range for another 130 kilometers on a single fuel tank.
The engine is placed in the trunk and associated with the generator, which charges the battery instead of transmitting mechanical energy directly to the wheels.