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BMW has been running electric vehicle trials for a number of years, firstly with the Mini-e and then with the BMW 1-series-based Active-e.
"What we have done differently is got all the experience of electric vehicles with our field trials," said Cantle. "We have 258,000 miles in the Mini-e in the UK alone and millions of miles across the globe - and that's before the Active-e - to get an understanding of what customers want."
That experience has led to the extra packages around the new BMW i-branded vehicles. As well as an app that will be able to check charge status, range, charge time and, if the car's plugged in, set the climate control, there will also be intelligent routing as part of the standard BMW Business Navigation fitted to every vehicle. Packages that will allow a certain amount of time per year in other BMW models, such as a 5-series Touring or X5 for holidays, will also be bolt-on extras, with Cantle likening it to mobile phone contract add-ons.
The firm has appointed 47 dealers as designated i3 agents, although any dealer will be able to service the vehicle, and SMR cost will be equivalent to a BMW 118d model, claimed Cantle, with the regular BMW Service Inclusive packages available. The firm's three-year/unlimited mileage warranty will be applied to the i3, and the battery gets a separate eight-year, 100,000-mile warranty.
BMW is also offering charge points installed by Schneider Electric for £315 after the Government subsidy for up to 75% of the cost has been taken off, and has also recently taken a stake in electric charging point and network specialist Chargemaster. The latter firm has a programme in place where £20 per year will get pay-as-you-go access to nearly every public charging point in the UK on one smart card, rather than needing to join several different schemes in different areas.
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