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BMW has Sold 60,000 i3 Units, Total EV Sales Race Past 100k Mark

Shudeep Chandrasekhar06 mins
New BMW i3 in 2017 with longer range and new look

For a company that entered the electric vehicle race relatively late, BMW has done extremely well in this segment. EVs are not new to BMW per se. In fact, they started testing electric vehicles more than 40 years ago, first with the 1602e back in 1972, and then the LS Electric in 1975.

Unfortunately, none of those made it to mass production. But now, BMW is once again getting serious about its electric vehicle line and they’ve crossed their first major threshold of selling 100,000 EVs in about 3 years. That might not seem like much, but it’s a huge validation for the future of electric vehicles.

A Quick Look at Some BMW EVs of Yesteryear

The BMW 1602e with a 37 mile range and a 771-lbs battery pack!
The BMW 1602e with a 37 mile range and a 771-lbs battery pack!
The top secret BMW LS Electric with heated windshield and rear windows - a shocking 19 mile range - no wonder it was top secret!
The top secret BMW LS Electric with heated windshield and rear windows – a shocking 19 mile range – no wonder it was top secret!
The 325iX coupe with a 93 mile range
The 325iX coupe with a 93 mile range
8 of these touring body 325iXs were given to Deutsche Post, the rest to other government employees
8 of these touring body versions of the 325iX were given to Deutsche Post, the rest to other government employees

 

The EV1 was the first pathbreaker with a 150 mile range, but never went into production
The EV1 was the first pathbreaker with a 150 mile range, but never went into production
i3 - the current champion of BMW's EV efforts, sold 60,000 units in three years
i3 – the current champion of BMW’s EV efforts, sold 60,000 units in three years
i8 - the futuristic BMW EV that sold 10,000 units so far
i8 – the futuristic BMW EV that sold 10,000 units so far

According to the company’s latest sales report, the i3 EV sold over 60,000 units in the past 36 months. What’s significant is the fact that 80% of those i3 owners are actually new to BMW. First-time customers are important to every car company because it’s a highly competitive market. Even a few thousand customers switching from other brands to BMW is a big deal. And when that happens with nearly 50,000 customers, it spurs the company to push even harder in that direction.

Other models of plug-in hybrid EVs that sold well for BMW since 2013 are the i8 sports model (10,000 units sold), as well as the iPerformance brands like the 330e, the X5 xDrive40e and Series 2 Active Tourer 225xe, as reported by Evo.

Undoubtedly, the future of automobiles belongs to EV. Around the world, governments and carmakers are all preparing themselves for a major shift that will happen soon. It might take years before EVs completely replace ICE (internal combustion engine) vehicles, but even today most manufacturers are testing out several models of hybrid EVs as well as pure EVs.

Tesla is undeniably the market leader when it comes to electric vehicles, but the more significant fact is how Tesla has been able to push other manufacturers to speed up their own EV evolutionary processes.




With BMW’s latest success, other companies like Volkswagen, Ford, General Motors and others will be spurred on to move things quickly on the EV front. As such, the next ten years will crucial in deciding which of the many carmakers from around the world will emerge as the true champions of EV technology.

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