BMW i3 achieves 1213 kilometers in China’s range test
Image: BMW (illustrative)
BMW achieved a range of 1213 kilometers or 753 miles with its new all-electric i3 during a long-distance drive in China. According to media reports, an extended version of this mid-size sedan designed for the Chinese market completed the distance without needing to recharge.
The vehicle used was a rear-wheel-drive variant of the i3 with an extended wheelbase. At the end of the drive with the i3 50L, the battery still had a 1 percent charge level. The test took place on a combination of highways, country roads, and urban routes.
According to the reports, the electric car has a usable battery capacity of 108.7 kWh, the same as that used in the top model for Europe. Based on the published figures, the calculated energy consumption is around 8.8 kWh per 100 kilometers. These stated consumption values are significantly lower than the official WLTP consumption figures for the European model versions.
The conditions of the long-distance drive are only partially documented. BMW did not release an average driving speed nor a precise breakdown of the distance traveled across different road types. Nor can the speed distribution and other factors relevant to energy consumption be fully assessed from the report. Therefore, the 1213 kilometers covered cannot be considered a representative everyday range.
The technical basis for the i3, which launched this year, is the “New Class” electric vehicle generation featuring the sixth generation of BMW’s eDrive technology. The i3 50 xDrive available in this region is equipped with two electric motors, all-wheel drive, and a system power output of 345 kW or 469 horsepower. BMW claims that this version, with a 108.7-kWh battery, can achieve a range of up to 912 kilometers according to the European WLTP standard.
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Thomas Langenbucher is an expert in electric mobility with professional experience in the automotive and financial industries. Since 2011, he has been covering electric vehicles, sustainable technologies, and mobility solutions for ecomento.de. Learn more.
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