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Only In China Will The New Electric BMW i3 Debut As An All-Electric 3 Series
For the Chinese market, the BMW 3 Series saloon has been given an electric motor, which will be marketed as the i3.
The new vehicle, which is based on the long-wheelbase Chinese market version of the standard BMW four-door, will hit the market in May, just before the nine-year-old BMW i3 electric hatchback gets phased out.
It will be available in rear-wheel-drive i3 eDrive35L form, with a range of up to 327 miles according to the Chinese Light Duty Test Cycle (CLTC).
The new i3 eDrive35L has a single electric motor and is based on the BMW iX3 SUV, which was constructed in China and delivered in 2021. It produces the same 287bhp and 295lb ft as the rear-drive iX3 and is housed in a new electrified axle assembly.
A 66.1kWh (net) lithium ion battery pack using cells supplied by the Chinese manufacturer CATL provides energy for the motor. It’s housed in a modified version of BMW’s CLAR platform chassis and can be charged at 11kW by an AC charger or 95kW by a higher-powered DC system. The charging period from 10% to 80% is estimated to be 35 minutes.
The iX3, on the other hand, has a larger 74kWh (net) battery that can be charged at 150kW.
The BMW i3 eDrive35L is claimed to have a 0-62mph time of 6.2 seconds. Although no official high speed has been published, BMW officials believe it will be limited to the same 112 mph as the iX3, which is standard for Chinese-market cars.
The i3 eDrive35L is based on the Chinese-market 3 Series L, which has a 115mm longer wheelbase than the normal model sold in other markets, making it 4872mm long overall.
The new i3 is equipped with BMW’s eighth-generation iDrive infotainment system and a “broad variety of cutting-edge digital functions and services making their 3 Series premiere,” according to BMW.
The battery and power electronics are packaged differently than in regular petrol and diesel 3 Series models, reducing boot capacity by 80 litres to a claimed 400 litres. This is 25 litres higher than the BMW 330e plug-in hybrid’s capacity.
After the iX3, the new i3 is the second electric BMW vehicle to be produced in China.
The new four-door vehicle, like its SUV sibling, is built at a joint venture between BMW and Chinese automaker Brilliance called BMW Brilliance Automotive, which is based in Shenyang.
