Electric and Hybrid Car Thread

[bcrdukes]

Define “reliable.”

[cafe22]

Originally Posted by Traum

I'm sad that Polestar is no longer bringing their PS2 in for sale. It was one of the EVs I've been eyeing.

How is the Bimmer i4 when it comes to reliability? I am very apprehensive of the amount of "maintenance" ICE Bimmers require, so they have never been all that high in my contenders list.

I'd recommend not getting the PS2. I've had one for 5 months now as part of the 1 year lease promo and I can't wait to return it asap.

For 60k+ new, the ride quality is horrible, the parking safety sensors are way too sensitive and visibility is low.

[AstulzerRZD]

Pre-2026 Polestar 2 use a shitty Intel atom based infotainment that's end of life - won't get new Android support.

I4 is very reliable, unlike Audi and MB EVs that use ZF motors that blow up.

[AstulzerRZD]

Originally Posted by bcrdukes

Define “reliable.”

i4 is Consumer Reports #1 most reliable EV.

Battery: Only EV with individual cell replacement (prismatic style). Ford comes close with replaceable modules.

Motors: reliable in house motors unlike Audi/MB ZF motors, and inverters (looking at u Ford Mach-E). No BMW gas engine issues - cooling, oil filter housing, oil pan, etc.

Electronics: same as the rest of BMW lineup. bluetooth and wireless carplay glitches. otherwise ok.

[Badhobz]

i dont get why they had to make it look like an M3 with the pig nose instead of making it like the normal and insanely good looking 3 series. m3 big nose was for "cooling" what the hell was the excuse here on the i4!?

[noclue]

I wonder if it's because BMW started the EV journey early with the i3/i8 they gained experience and now their modern EV's dont suck compared to mercedes/VW

[AstulzerRZD]

Originally Posted by Badhobz

i dont get why they had to make it look like an M3 with the pig nose instead of making it like the normal and insanely good looking 3 series. m3 big nose was for "cooling" what the hell was the excuse here on the i4!?

how will people notice and know you have the new bmw otherwise

[AstulzerRZD]

Originally Posted by noclue

I wonder if it's because BMW started the EV journey early with the i3/i8 they gained experience and now their modern EV's dont suck compared to mercedes/VW

BMW seems like doing a lot of shit early and in house.
iDrive, EV motors and batteries, PHEV batteries that fail, N55 Bottom ends, N54 HPFP, etc.

First gen stuff all blows but they're on their 4th gen by the time their competitors launch their 1st one.
B58 pretty solid while Audi 2.9/3.0T is chewing piston skirts and blocks in 2025!

[Badhobz]

BMW's the only german automaker that i would consider in this day and age. everyone else is completely out to lunch with their pricing / build quality / technology

100k for a m3 is still reasonable
60k for a 3 series is still reasonable
120k for a x5 is insane... that should still be 80-90ish but its not.

[AstulzerRZD]

I hate the EQ series look but MB's got something good going with EQS, G580E and CLA.

[RabidRat]

Originally Posted by Badhobz

BMW's the only german automaker that i would consider in this day and age. everyone else is completely out to lunch with their pricing / build quality / technology

On paper, yeah. But that pig nose. I just can't.

[EvoFire]

Originally Posted by Traum

I'm sad that Polestar is no longer bringing their PS2 in for sale. It was one of the EVs I've been eyeing.

How is the Bimmer i4 when it comes to reliability? I am very apprehensive of the amount of "maintenance" ICE Bimmers require, so they have never been all that high in my contenders list.

Depends on how you look at it. You are still drawing a lottery ticket when it comes to minor issues. The Mini was a POS, the M3 has been flawless, the X3 had a weeping diff and some minor cosmetic things, and the X5 has been a bag of shit outside of the engine.

BMW engines are imo, reliable nowadays as long as you aren't retarded about it. Ditto their EV stuff. Like what RZD said they are the one that allows you to replace bits of the battery instead of the whole pack.

The rest of the car is built in modules. Every major part has it's own brain, which yes makes things more expensive, but also makes it easier to troubleshoot and fix things. You can't win both ways.

The software has seen better days and has gotten progressively buggier as they add more functionality to it. IMO the best rendition of the iDrive was iDrive 7. The current iD9 is terrible.

IMO BMW EVs are low key the best ones on the market with the least amount of compromises. I have the hots for the Gravity and Rivian, but the iX is the standard for me for a usable, functional, livable EV.

[radeonboy]

Originally Posted by EvoFire

The Mini was a POS, the M3 has been flawless, the X3 had a weeping diff and some minor cosmetic things, and the X5 has been a bag of shit outside of the engine.

What sort of problems are you having with the X5? I thought a B58 + BMW's lead on EV tech would put them in a pretty comfortable spot for PHEVs as well.

[Traum]

I know cars have been getting bigger / fatter / heavier, but reading up on the BMW i4, it looks like it is gonna be a pretty tight fit in my garage, both in terms of length and width. Even with our older SUV, my kid is regularly banging the door against the garage wall if he is not careful.

For the heck of it, I looked up the TM3's dimensions, and it is also longer and wider than our SUV as well...

I also wonder how well the concrete slab in our garage is gonna hold up against a 5000 lbs EV lol~

[EvoFire]

Originally Posted by radeonboy

What sort of problems are you having with the X5? I thought a B58 + BMW's lead on EV tech would put them in a pretty comfortable spot for PHEVs as well.

- Worn front ball joints, common on X5 according to service advisor, especially on the PHEV since it's 700lbs more than the 40i, front lower control arms replaced under warranty
- Frayed drivers seat belt and sticky front buckle, replaced under warranty
- Failed drivers door pocket ambient LED twice, replaced under warranty
- Seized tie rods, again common issue. Front tierods replaced under warranty
- Passenger window regulator fault, replaced under warranty
- Steering column squeaked 10 degrees off center, steering column replaced under warranty
- Trunk struts made crinkling rattling noises in operation, replaced under warranty
- Exhaust garnish peeling, replaced under warranty with updated part (original was black, replaced with raw aluminum)
- Sunroof module died, replaced under warranty
- Passenger side mirror running gear cracked, replaced under warranty
- 12v AGM died, paid out of pocket
- Center diff started it's long death sentence, replaced under warranty (common issue, afflicts most ZF8 AWD cars, including Cayennes, but excludes M cars.)

I think I got everything. Except for the diff, most of it was just bad luck and not related to the drivetrain. The 12V died shortly after the sunroof module was replaced, the SA doesn't really have anything to back it up but suspects the fluctuating voltage from the dying battery killed the sunroof.

I really wanted to chase down the 12V issue, or at least the cause of it. But the car doesn't keep a log of faults and when it happens, they only keep the latest fault so I couldn't track when it started becoming an issue.

Has it been a hassle? Yes, but it was all under warranty. Would I buy it again? Given my very specific set of requirements, most likely, there's nothing quite like the X5 PHEV on the market.

I'm out of warranty now, expired last month. I was debating whether to buy extended, but have since decided not to. The price of the warranty wasn't worth it because the aftermarket warranty includes coverage of the battery and electric motor and as a result is quite expensive, but BMW offers 8y/160k over hybrid components. 9k for extended will fix a lot of issues over the next 3-4 years so I decided to hedge against it.

[EvoFire]

Originally Posted by Traum

I know cars have been getting bigger / fatter / heavier, but reading up on the BMW i4, it looks like it is gonna be a pretty tight fit in my garage, both in terms of length and width. Even with our older SUV, my kid is regularly banging the door against the garage wall if he is not careful.

For the heck of it, I looked up the TM3's dimensions, and it is also longer and wider than our SUV as well...

I also wonder how well the concrete slab in our garage is gonna hold up against a 5000 lbs EV lol~

Your concrete slab is fine. Going from 3500lbs to 5000lbs isn't a huge deal imo for concrete when it's only on the ground, if it's up in the air then yeah I'd be more concerned. We'd see more failures if that's the case.

I only know you have M2, what SUV are you driving (err... your wife is driving?)

[Badhobz]

jesus christ, this is why people stay away from german cars.

OHHH IT DRIVES SO GOOODDDDD : when its not in the shop

you should have gotten your wife a lexus RX instead

[EvoFire]

Originally Posted by Badhobz

jesus christ, this is why people stay away from german cars.

OHHH IT DRIVES SO GOOODDDDD : when its not in the shop

you should have gotten your wife a lexus RX instead

Everything sucks. What am I gonna drive? A shitty Lexus or shitty Toyota? Or a shitty Honda? Or a shitty MB? Please don't say Tesla.

[Badhobz]

Shitty Lexus (the older v6 ones) would have been the right choice for the wife. No hassle on your part. Can drive it into the ground.

Then when you get rid of your m3 you can buy a beetle and have the headaches there instead.