[bavarianride]

I am considering a trade from a 330i to a i4 eDrive35, so I test drove a e35 base yesterday.

My 330i is base with iDrive 7 and analog gauges, so the e35's iDrive 8 is a nice upgrade.

The driving dynamics of e35 also was similar to 330i except at the corners where the 4600lb vs. 3600lb difference was made known.

The rear seat is same as 4-series GC, i.e., cramped with small doors.

The e35 has better acceleration off the line from electric motor, although 0-60 appears to be slower than 330i on paper(I didn't notice any difference in driver seat).

I may still hold off waiting for the elusive solid state battery, but it feels that this i4 e35 base is a much better car than a Model 3 base.

The other consideration is the range of 270-ish miles of e35 vs. 500-600 miles on a full tank of 330i and charging convenience vs. gas pumps, but those are EV vs. ICE talking points.

What are your thoughts of i4 e35 vs. 330i, would u trade your 330i for a i4 e35?

[VICG20M]

You get 600 miles to a tank?

[cruzer666]

Having owned an i4 for 7 months and knowing what I know now, it is a significant upgrade over my previous 3 series.

The smooth and linear power delivery in the i4 is addicting as well as the instant torque.

I personally love iDrive8 and the ability to choose between 3 different layouts in the instrument cluster, also the embedded navigation is on point too, I’ll attach my current setup.

I would make sure you’re able to charge using a 240VAC circuit at home before making the commitment, but these are general EV considerations like you mentioned.

[techwhiz1]

Originally Posted by bavarianride

I am considering a trade from a 330i to a i4 eDrive35, so I test drove a e35 base yesterday.

My 330i is base with iDrive 7 and analog gauges, so the e35's iDrive 8 is a nice upgrade.

The driving dynamics of e35 also was similar to 330i except at the corners where the 4600lb vs. 3600lb difference was made known.

The rear seat is same as 4-series GC, i.e., cramped with small doors.

The e35 has better acceleration off the line from electric motor, although 0-60 appears to be slower than 330i on paper(I didn't notice any difference in driver seat).

I may still hold off waiting for the elusive solid state battery, but it feels that this i4 e35 base is a much better car than a Model 3 base.

The other consideration is the range of 270-ish miles of e35 vs. 500-600 miles on a full tank of 330i and charging convenience vs. gas pumps, but those are EV vs. ICE talking points.

What are your thoughts of i4 e35 vs. 330i, would u trade your 330i for a i4 e35?

If you are waiting for a solid state battery, then you will be waiting for a bit.

With them being in current development and no breakthroughs, there isn't anything on the horizon in the next 3 years that's going to make it in a car.

[bavarianride]

Originally Posted by VICG20M

You get 600 miles to a tank?

Yes on a regular route 160 miles round trip of flat(70+mph) plus 300-ft elevation gain + drop(50+mph?) usually burns 4-ish gallons.

[bavarianride]

My workplace does have a forest of free chargers, but those get crowded on busy days.

I do think i4 is well built with battery protection cage and great performance. I am just hoping that the real battery tech will arrive soon such that the curb weight(showing up at corners) of EVs can be reduced further.

Originally Posted by cruzer666

Having owned an i4 for 7 months and knowing what I know now, it is a significant upgrade over my previous 3 series.

The smooth and linear power delivery in the i4 is addicting as well as the instant torque.

I personally love iDrive8 and the ability to choose between 3 different layouts in the instrument cluster, also the embedded navigation is on point too, I’ll attach my current setup.

I would make sure you’re able to charge using a 240VAC circuit at home before making the commitment, but these are general EV considerations like you mentioned.

[bavarianride]

Originally Posted by techwhiz1

If you are waiting for a solid state battery, then you will be waiting for a bit.

With them being in current development and no breakthroughs, there isn't anything on the horizon in the next 3 years that's going to make it in a car.

Toyota allegedly will have a solid state hybrid(not BEV) by 2025, so we will see what happens.

A hybrid/PHEV with 100+ miles of battery-only range and good enough 0-60(e.g. 7 seconds?) and 3600-3800lb can be a good option too.

[techwhiz1]

Originally Posted by bavarianride

Toyota allegedly will have a solid state hybrid(not BEV) by 2025, so we will see what happens.

A hybrid/PHEV with 100+ miles of battery-only range and good enough 0-60(e.g. 7 seconds?) and 3600-3800lb can be a good option too.

If they say it's 2 years, it's 4.

There are currently no formulations that don't still require extensive anode development. The anode development is key. Currently everything to date has anode degradation that is at unacceptable levels.

2025 assumes in two years we will find a solution, develop a way to mass produce the cells and have a factory up and running in the volume necessary to build cars.

Assuming that we can use existing facilities there is still a ramp.

I'm an engineer and am always pessimistic when they start throwing hypothetical numbers around. We'll see solid state in 2027.

[note46]

solid state in 2 years lol. More like 10 for mass production.

[bavarianride]

Originally Posted by techwhiz1

We'll see solid state in 2027.

2027 will be good too, by that time BMW's Neue Klasse will be out for a couple of years, and ready to take on the solid state.

[techwhiz1]

Originally Posted by bavarianride

2027 will be good too, by that time BMW's Neue Klasse will be out for a couple of years, and ready to take on the solid state.

Yes.

2026/2027 are the years.

Nothing revolutionary before then.

[cruzer666]

Originally Posted by techwhiz1

Yes.

2026/2027 are the years.

Nothing revolutionary before then.

By then the value of my i4 will be down to 40-50% of MSRP, it won’t go down much more than that, if I even keep it that long.

The only aspect that can make me keep it this long is the carpool stickers which expire September 2025.

[bavarianride]

Originally Posted by cruzer666

By then the value of my i4 will be down to 40-50% of MSRP, it won’t go down much more than that, if I even keep it that long.

The only aspect that can make me keep it this long is the carpool stickers which expire September 2025.

I think any i4 will hold resale value better than Model 3, and likely may beat G20 too.

Given the next gen battery tech is not that far off, I am leaning to keep my G20 for 6-7 years and 60-70k miles, and then switch to the solid state.

[cruzer666]

Originally Posted by bavarianride

I think any i4 will hold resale value better than Model 3, and likely may beat G20 too.

Given the next gen battery tech is not that far off, I am leaning to keep my G20 for 6-7 years and 60-70k miles, and then switch to the solid state.

You’d be depriving yourself of an amazing driving experience. Life’s too short

I had an 2020 M340i and the M50 puts that car to shame. Heck, I drove the brand new M3 a couple of weeks ago at a dealer M event and it felt ancient in comparison on the street.

[bavarianride]

Originally Posted by cruzer666

You’d be depriving yourself of an amazing driving experience. Life’s too short

I had an 2020 M340i and the M50 puts that car to shame. Heck, I drove the brand new M3 a couple of weeks ago at a dealer M event and it felt ancient in comparison on the street.

That is a good point, it is hard to say where life can lead us, e.g. everything can crumple down in a few weeks when the US defaults.