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Re:Tesla created secret team to suppress thousands of drivin... by wil421 on Thursday July 27, 2023 @09:42AM (#36893357)
We don’t have the iX3 in the US (yet?). I was looking at the x5 plug in hybrid with ~40 miles electric range and the normal b58 straight 6 motor. My wife has the X7, we have 3 kids and hobbies so I’m not sure if even an i5 would work. The new X5 headlights are not my favorite.

Do you like the BMW electric system?

Re:Tesla created secret team to suppress thousands of drivin... by herodotus on Thursday July 27, 2023 @10:18AM (#36893945)
I have the 330e Hybrid Plug in. The electric range on a full charge varies from about 28km to 44km (17-27 miles). When I do my usual around town driving, I never need to go off all-electric, so this range works perfectly for me. The range shown on the dash is slightly conservative. For example, I can get from suburban Vancouver to SFU (on top of Burnaby mountain), a distance of 24km with a couple of kilometres still showing, but I can get back home using only about 50% of the reported range. The up-hill portion of the drive versus the down-hill return journey makes a big difference.

When I recharge at home (using Level 2), the reported "full" values range from 28km to 44km. I cannot figure out why there is such a big range.

Re:Tesla created secret team to suppress thousands of drivin... by matthewdgreen on Thursday July 27, 2023 @11:21AM (#36894936)
The X5 hybrid is a wonderful car to drive, but as an EV it's embarrassing. You get less than 1/10th the range of a Tesla Model Y (< 30 miles), using a battery that's 1/3 the capacity. Some of this comes from the X5's higher curb weight, but it's only about ~1200lbs heavier (4,416 vs. 5,646 pounds) which doesn't seem to justify a 3x efficiency hit.

To make the efficiency more annoying, the BMW only includes a 16A charger (which is less than the old i3.) As a result you can only add ~3 range-miles per hour while charging, which makes public chargers basically useless (again compare to the LR Teslas which have 48A chargers and can do 40+ range-miles in an hour.) In gas-only hybrid mode, the mileage is ~19 MPG, which is actually kind of offensive for a hybrid car.

Re:Tesla created secret team to suppress thousands of drivin... by wil421 on Thursday July 27, 2023 @06:19PM (#36900911)
I need to be able to tow about 5,000 from time to time. The B58 will do that and the EV side will get me to work and back without much if any gas.

An EV is not an option for my lifestyle at this time. Once my 3 are out of car seats and/or strollers a sedan EV might work.

There’s always a Hummer EV or even cyber truck but that’s not quite my cup of tea.

Re:Tesla created secret team to suppress thousands of drivin... by matthewdgreen on Thursday July 27, 2023 @06:50PM (#36901169)
I don’t have towing needs or any real desire for a pickup truck, but the F150 Lightning is what I would buy if I could even slightly justify it. My beef with the X5 is that it’s the opposite of an engineering triumph: its efficiency and EV charging rate are so unnecessarily terrible that I no longer take BMW seriously as a firm that operates in the EV/hybrid space. (And more critically: I am worried that if/when they do become serious about EVs they will toss the whole X5 eDrive drivetrain design in the trash, making it expensive to repair once it leaves warranty.) But if you’re able to make it work for your specific needs, it’s still fun to drive and very comfortable.
Re:Tesla created secret team to suppress thousands of drivin... by dmode on Thursday July 27, 2023 @02:06PM (#36897776)
I have the BMW i4, and I would echo the same comment. BMW is extremely conservative with range estimates and would almost certainly meet or beat their range estimates.