Driving the BMW i3 up to Ridge Vineyards

 When I started working at Ridge Vineyards in Cupertino in 2015, I was still driving my 2012 Mitsubishi i-MiEV electric car, with its 16-KWh battery and 63 horsepower.  Driving four miles up the mountain was a slow, careful run up the hill.  I’d have to drive with the window down and whistle so the bicyclists would hear me approaching and move over.  If I tried to go faster, the drive would eat through my remaining charge quickly.  After a few months of these weekly trips, I noticed the car’s range starting to drop, and soon I had lost 15% of my battery capacity from the stress of driving up the mountain.  So, I stopped taking the i-MiEV to the winery and drove my gas car instead.

My drive up the mountain to Ridge Vineyards

Needless to say, when I replaced the i-MiEV by the 2017 BMW i3, I remained reluctant to drive the new car up the same mountain to Ridge.  I would only take the car up that mountain about 6 times a year (rather than weekly).  I would continue driving uphill carefully, hoping to learn how the battery would drain along the climb.  My speed went up because the i3 has 170 horsepower (2.7 times that of the i-MiEV) and weighs only 25% more.  The climb was much less stressful and took less time.  The rest of the time I would continue driving my older VW GTI up the hill, which was a hoot!  (Newer LFP EV batteries are less susceptible to this kind of degradation.)

One Sunday morning, the VW GTI would not start (the battery had died) and I was forced to take the 2017 BMW i3 up the mountain to Ridge.  I was planning to plod along as usual, but I soon spotted a coworker in my rearview mirror driving his Mustang turbo.  It didn’t take him long to be riding on my tail, so I adjusted my driving behavior.  Since the battery was certainly large enough to climb the mountain three times without any worry, I decided to have fun the remainder of the trip.  My car’s skinny front tires had me slowing noticeably for each sharp turn, but the blast of torque that launched the car out of the turns was as thrilling as the GTI was during the turns.  I was able to leave the Mustang behind as I left each turn and had a big smile upon arriving at the winery.  That one drive was probably the most fun I’ve had driving the i3.

Driving Home from the BMW Dealer in Los Angeles

My search for a low-milage 2019 BMW i3 (with all the goodies I wanted) ended in Calabasas, CA.  I flew south to pick up the car and planned my return drive home.  I would need to recharge twice along the 345-mile journey home, so I located two charging stations mid-route.  The first was in Solvang, about 115 miles away.  The second was in King City, 145 miles away (with no chargers between Paso Robles and King City).  That leaves just 85 miles to home.

My ride from the airport to the dealership was delayed by about 90 minutes, so as I was leaving, the Friday L.A. exodus had already begun and I was slogging through slower traffic along the drive to Santa Barbara.  Because of my slower speeds, the range estimator suggested I could drive about 190 miles on the charge.  I could have easily driven beyond Solvang to the next charger, but I hadn’t done the research for that, so I decided to stick to my original charging plan in Solvang.

The first leg of my journey.

After a bite to eat and a nearly full charge (96%), I was on my way again and set my sights on Paso Robles.  By this time traffic was much lighter and moving at the speed limit.  By the time I reached Paso Robles, I had 26 more miles of range than I needed to get to King City, so I felt confident I could make it all the way.  The drive was fairly level, but I neglected two considerations in my planning that impacted my journey.  First, once north of Paso Robles, the speed limit jumps to 70 MPH, which uses measurably more electricity than the slower speeds along the coast (55 to 65 MPH).  Second, I forgot about the winds through the valley on the way to King City.  At night, the winds blow strongly from north to south, meaning I was driving into a strong headwind.

The second (challenging) leg of my journey.

By the time I was 30 miles from King City, my margin of extra range had dropped from 26 miles to just 16 miles, so I limited my speed to 60 MPH (at night in a 70 MPH zone).  At 20 miles away, my margin had dropped to 10 miles, and wasn’t stabilizing.  I had to react more severely and put the car into “ECO-PRO+” mode, which limits speed to 56 MPH, dials back acceleration power, and turns off the HVAC and seat warmers.  My margin continued to drop.  When I was just 10 miles away, my margin had dropped to 7 miles and I reduced my speed to 50 MPH.  I was grateful that I was driving late in the evening and not facing much traffic, so driving slower wasn’t as risky.  By the time I pulled up to the DC-fast charger in King City, I had just 6 miles of range remaining, which was much closer to the edge than I ever care to get.  I charged up to 85% before driving the final stretch home, leaving me with an ample margin for the last stretch.

The final leg of my journey.

Since this trip I have learned to expect no more than 170 miles of range (with my conservative driving), and to dial back the expected range when driving along 70 MPH stretches.  In hindsight, I should have stopped in Paso Robles to charge up, and then again in Soledad, making for a much less stressful drive.  The extra time spent charging would have been only slightly longer than the extra time spent driving slowly on the freeway, and would have been both safer and more relaxing.

Replacing My 2017 BMW i3 with a 2019 BMW i3

I have enjoyed driving my 2017 BMW i3.  It has enough power to amuse me.  It is comfortably quiet, which makes long drives a little less taxing.  It’s spacious on the inside and compact on the outside.  (The places in San Francisco where I can park but others cannot…)  The seats are comfortable.  The rear seats fold flat and accommodate large items.  But, after driving the car for nearly five years, I have a list of wishes for improvement. 

My 2017 BMW i3 when new.

First on the wish list is a bigger battery so I can drive to more places without charging.  The 2019 BMW i3 introduced a battery that is 30% bigger.  I also miss leather seats and have trouble using the backup camera with the smaller display screen in my base car.  So, in 2022, I started looking at used car prices and milage on the 2019 BMW i3.  I noticed that a number of lease returns were showing up, many with very low milage.  (They were leased just prior to the pandemic lockdown and sat idle for much of the first three years.) 

I narrowed my choices down to three cars.  One was the i3s (for sport) model that included a more powerful motor and a sunroof, and wider tires.  It had 17,000 miles.  But I was concerned about how the sport enhancements would drain more power from the battery.  I also sat in another model with the sunroof on a hot summer day and found the extra heat radiated by the glass was uncomfortable and the opening was split into two small portals.  So, I passed on this car.  Next was an i3 (no sport) in LA where someone had removed the decorative strip above the doors.  It had just 12,000 miles.  I paid for the car after having it inspected, and the dealer sold it to someone else at the same time.  (They did refund my money.)  Then my plan-B car also sold, so I was without any good choices.  I would have to wait and keep searching.

Picking up my 2019 BMW i3

Finally, a 2019 i3 arrived at the Calabasas BMW dealer and was given a place-holder in their used car inventory.  I reached out before it was released for sale and learned it had everything I was looking for: rims, color, leather seats, tech package (for the bigger display), and only 14,000 miles.  They held the car for me, allowed me to have the car inspected professionally, and even arranged for an Uber driver to bring me from the airport to the dealership.  After a quick test-drive to confirm the car was as promised, I signed the sales contract, handed over the cashier’s check, and headed on my way home.  I was decidedly happy with the upgrades.  Even backing up is a better experience with the larger screen, as is navigating with the larger map.  Now all I had to do was drive it 345 miles to home.  (Yes, I would need to recharge twice.)