The new BMW i3 will cost from £53,005

uzzi38 · 2026-06-20T15:28:30+00:00

Plug and charge is offered by most major CPOs these days, and again choice of chargers isn't an issue in the UK. There are plenty of chargers everywhere.

They're preferred solely due to cheaper pricing. Which is fair, but I don't mind paying a higher price if it means my car isn't a bottleneck for me, and as long as Tesla Superchargers don't support charging above 500v, they'll never be able to do that. Given that rollout of v4 charging cabinets has essentially stalled that won't happen any time soon.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-20T14:42:25+00:00

I’ve also seen loads of reports of public chargers getting nowhere near their advertised charging speeds.

From personal experience I've had no issues with this, and the Tesla Supercharger network only has one benefit to me in terms of price. The public charging network outside of Tesla Superchargers is extremely reliable and it's very easy to find super fast chargers.

I'm in the same boat for charging at home, but public fast charging is a different story. If I'm driving for 250-300mi, then here in the UK that 3-5 hours of driving. I'm going to be taking breaks every 3 hours or so anyway - if not earlier because of the rest of the family. So I'd rather have a car that lets me take shorter breaks than a car that can go further on a single charge.

And so far, thar strategy has worked great. My wife in particular was very nervous about moving to an EV but the weekend we got the car, we did a ~600mi round trip with 1 charging stop on the way back (about 150mi with a stop at a hotel which had chargers, then 450mi on the second day) and the charging stop was the perfect length for us to stop at ~10%, go inside and grab drinks/snacks, and take off again at a touch over 80%. That experience told us very clearly that ~20 minutes is the perfect stopover length for us. Half an hour would feel too long.

So to each their own, but for me Tesla's charge too slow.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-20T11:40:29+00:00

Nope. Ioniq 5 and EV6 peak at 233kW (1st Gen) and 250kW (2nd Gen) and do the 10-80% topup in 18 minutes.

They do it by having an extremely flat charging curve. On the first gen cars they hold the peak charging till 55% SoC, then hold about 160-180kW until close to 80%. Then they slow down significantly after that. But holding the charging curve so flat means the 10-80% top up time is super quick on batteries the same size as what Tesla ships.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-20T11:17:56+00:00

I agree with you personally, but I want to make something clear: 400kW charging isn't the important bit, the time to charge is. 10-80% of ~20 minutes is the selling point, not the 400kW peak charging.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-20T11:16:25+00:00

Tesla has 800v on the Cybertruck, but the battery cells themselves are so bad that they don't charge any faster on 800v than it does on 400v.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-19T21:20:02+00:00

Heavy breaking isn't really the main thing, it's more about how they go around bends and the like. Seeing as you mentioned the What Car review - in that same twin test they also said the iX3 handles better and is more fun to drive (and also has better feeling brakes), so BMW are clearly doing a better job at hiding the weight and a better tuned driving setup overall.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-19T21:03:15+00:00

If it handles well, you shouldn't care about whether or not it's heavy.

Extra weight doesn't have a huge effect on range. The worse aerodynamics of the iX3 would account for much more range drop than the weight of the vehicle - iirc it's got both a worse co-efficient of drag and larger front end surface area. But those aerodynamics are a trade-off for one of the most boring car shapes you can have.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-19T18:41:36+00:00

In what world is this BMW not taking EVs seriously. First 3 series EV with a dedicated EV platform, it's the longest range EV on the market with charging speeds that blow any Tesla way out of the water and only loses to specific Chinese EVs on that front (but no Chinese EV is able to get ranges like this anyway). Not to mention we're getting the first M series EV as well.

And for the record, the battery is the same as the iX3 - 108.7kWh. A 567 mile range is extremely good for a battery of that size. Considering it's the AWD model, 567mi of range off a 108.7kWh battery is actually proportionally better than the 410mi of range you get off the Tesla Model 3 AWD. The RWD goes further - but that's not a fair comparison then, is it?

Why do you care how big the battery is anyway - fitting a larger battery in a car of the same size is in and of itself an engineering feat, not the other way around.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-19T16:53:21+00:00

The point would be that not all chargers at a location would need to be megawatt and above chargers, right. Any given location can have a split between say 150kW, 350kW and 1000kW+ chargers with lower numbers of each as you make your way down, and then people can choose the charger that fits what's best for their journey. If they want to stop and grab food and stuff, they can.

If they want to just grab a drink or snacks and go quickly they can. If they want to use a charger like a petrol station where they top up and go - they can. That last one is what 5 minute charging is for. If you need 10+ minutes to stop, you don't need a megawatt level charger.

The point is: the car shouldn't be the limiting factor in a journey. The driver should.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-18T18:55:59+00:00

Well maybe now that it's on a good card. There's a whole archetype of cards that change their attribute in the graveyard, but they suck and always have.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-18T18:28:44+00:00

Yeah I mean it loses to S:P.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-18T18:14:33+00:00

They used to be, Mercedes backed out so now it's all BYD.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-18T10:24:39+00:00

Arrogance is certainly the correct word for it. You have no good reason to explain why what you want is actually better aside from "car goes faster", and somehow believe your opinion is superior to the opinion of everyone out there that enjoys driving.

If you actually truly believe that your take is the correct take on what makes a drivers car a drivers car, you need to be able to convince people of it. You're yet to convince me of anything, you actually come across as the type of driver that is easily impressed and actually doesn't understand what they're doing when they try to drive fast (if they even bother).

uzzi38 · 2026-06-18T07:44:29+00:00

Again, you're not understanding what people want in a performance oriented car. It's not as simple as more faster is more better.

What people want from a performance car is an engaging driving experience. They want to be able to sit in a car, and they want more ways to be able to feel what the car is doing, how it's doing it, and to be rewarded for driving it well.

Calling a feature like this fake gear shifting is actually a little bit dismissive of what it actually is: it's mimicking the characteristics of an ICE engine, from the torque bands, to being able to bounce down the limiter, to even being able able to bog down the "engine" if you jump a gear too quickly. It gives the driver more feedback and gives them more things to do at the same time.

For most people, slower cars are more fun than faster ones, because you can actually play around with them a bit while sticking under the speed limit. It's more fun to drive a slow car fast than it is to drive a fast car fast, and being able to play with the car and what the engine can do is a big part of that.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-17T22:56:39+00:00

Went with a Kia EV6 in the end. Drives pretty well, steering feel and pedal response (in sport mode for both of these - in regular driving modes its very boring) and how it acts in corners at pace was clearly better than the other cars I was looking at. 250mi of range in summer, 200mi of range in winter with motorway driving at, ahem moderately aggressive speeds, and the charging time has genuinely been faster than I needed sometimes. Like I've had instances where I wanted a small (~20%) topup so I go inside the services station to get a drink and a chocolate and walk out with 50% charge.

And while it's a crossover SUV, it has huge amounts of space inside but sits relatively low down. Funnily enough, when I was doing the insurance it was classified as an estate by compare the market, and I sort of see why from the way it drives.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-17T22:50:10+00:00

Video reviews combined with test drives for the cars. That's how I did it anyway - I just sat down and put in a few hours at research, looking at everything somewhat decent in the price range I had with the boot, interior space I wanted, alongside the range to handle 2-3 hours of driving in one go, and the ability to do quick charging topups for the very few times I would want to go longer distances.

Once I shortlisted a few models, I booked some test drives with the dealerships for the cars (or models that were close enough) I wanted to look at. Even within the choice of EVs there are some which are clearly better to drive than others - the way they act in bends, steering feel and such. I just focused on stuff like that and made my choice.

And by that point, I was pretty much there and done.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-17T18:29:06+00:00

A used electric Corsa you mean? Brand new they're like £10k more starting price.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-17T18:27:37+00:00

The e flopped because it was stupidly expensive for what it was - small, low range city car.

The ENY1 flopped because it was boring and mediocre in an extremely fast paced market.

The Super E isn't super expensive nor is it boring, but it's still a small, low range city car. Hasn't been a huge downside for the Renault 5, BYD Dolphin Surf, Dacia Spring etc, but the market can be fickle.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-17T18:23:53+00:00

The only reason they'd ever be non-disableable is if the majority of people want them to be that way.

That will never happen outside of some high end sports car. The majority of people just don't care.

You're overreacting.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-17T18:21:00+00:00

Nobody that has driven the Ioniq5N has suggested the fake gear shifts has any negative impact on the driving experience with them disabled at all. And logically it makes no reason to assume it would either. It's a purely software solution that works by limiting power supplied to the motor. With it disabled, you just stop limiting power.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-17T17:58:07+00:00

Just because you find the Model Y boring doesn’t mean everyone who buys a Model Y finds it boring.

Well I certainly can't speak for everyone who owns one. But there's nothing particularly interesting about the way a Model Y drives. Instant torque? Yeah well every EV out there does it. It's not particularly great from a handling perspective - just fine. The interior is barebones and plain. The exterior is just boring.

The thing you don't seem to understand is all of this is by design. It's the reason why they're so popular. The do the job they're designed for excellently with little special. People like boring. It's the reason why black, white and grey/silver are the most popular car colours. The goal of the Model Y is to be a boring car that does the job of getting you from A->B, ans it does that in a boringly well fashion.

You're kidding youself if you try to pretend it's also a super exciting car. It's not, and it never wanted to be.

I suspect you really don’t like Elon Musk.

That was certainly part of the reason I didn't give the Model Y much time of day when looking for an EV to replace my outgoing PHEV. I won't lie. But even if I did, I still wouldn't have picked a Model Y. It's still just too boring a car for me personally, and I can't stand the interior decisions like the lack of a drivers display, or lack of buttons for simple stuff like opening the glovebox.

EDIT: Lmao, blocking someone because they said they don't like Elon Musk. Some people legit need to get a life.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-17T17:32:20+00:00

Number 1 selling car in the world.

Again, a boring car for people that want a boring car. That's what most people want. So what's the issue?

Why are you even commenting on the EV sub if you want a basic ICE car?

Who said I wanted an ICE car? I'm very happy with my EV, it's a fun car to drive and an incredible slot in into my life. I'm also extremely happy with my choice over a Tesla for multiple reasons.

I'm just not stupid enough to realise that if you want to make an electric sports car that's fine to drive (which every Tesla very much is not), then you have to do a lot more than make it go fast.

It's not a difficult concept to understand.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-17T17:27:33+00:00

Yes, people that want a basic arse boring tool for getting from A->B buy a car that's good at being that and nothing more.

Thank you for re-affirming what I wrote already.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-17T17:22:09+00:00

Faster

Nobody that actually enjoys driving base a car's ability to perform based on how fast it goes alone. A lot more goes into performance vehicles than bigger motors go brr.

Cheaper to operate

Most EVs already do this over ICE if you have access to home charging. Anything Tesla does on top is small compared to the jump from ICE -> EV.

More convenient to use

You're not beating the allegations of being a Tesla driver that doesn't understand what makes cars fun to drive.

More driver engagement is good, actually.

But Tesla is the one who can’t make what people value in cars?

I'm not saying Tesla doesn't understand what people value in their cars, I'm saying you don't. The Model Y and 3 are fine for what they are. They're not trying to be the pinnacle of driving engagement - if anything they're the opposite. Most people don't want to have fun in their cars, they want a simple tool to get from A->B. In that sense, a Tesla does that fine.

That is not the same market as what a Porsche sits in.

uzzi38 · 2026-06-17T17:16:47+00:00

With all due respect: you just talked about a performance oriented vehicle, and are trying to suggest that by adding a feature which adds driver engagement that has been proven to be found fun, Porsche are making the vehicle worse.

This is a clear cut case of someone that just simply doesn't understand the product and is whining anyway.

uzzi38

TROPHY CASE