Spotted this I5 at a local dealer https://usedcars.bmw.co.uk/vehicle/202503049752399?quoteref=2df88fca-97ff-4565-90a6-7f4b91d24d15 Almost 50% depreciation in 9 months OUCH And they have several other I5s at similar price ranges
Big depreciation yes but still too expensive for the private used car luxury market. I won't entertain a used luxury electric car until they can do a genuine 500 miles on a charge. Not there yet and hydrogen may have a say in it before they do. Electric luxury cars are a real problem for manufacturers because they are just not selling. Small electric cars a la Renault 5 make massive sense. Cheap to buy and great city or 2nd car.
I am very much of the same viewpoint We currently have a G30 520d which is 8 years old but will do 700 miles on one tank and a petrol X1 which is 7 years old. Looking to change both and seriously considering a small electric car in place of the X1, as 99% of journeys are less than 40 miles from home. I did consider a new 5 series to replace the G30 but it is now far too big and cumbersome especially as its a 2.0 petrol and still over £60k list price
Totally agree. I'm thinking of changing my F10 530i as it's in its 14th year now. I'm keen on going back in time to a TR6 but not having much luck convincing 'er indoors that it's a good idea...
There are some incredibly cheap 2nd hand electric cars for sale at the moment. BUT I'm probably going to keep my 330d mild hybrid forever. Seriously though, there is nothing to replace it with, that will handle the long-distance journeys we do. We had a fully electric loan car last month - not impressed at all. Range 250 miles if you're lucky - so that would mean stopping to recharge at least twice a day. And whoever said electric cars were quiet can only be talking about the perceived noise that a pedestrian Is aware of. Tyre noise and wind noise in an iX3 far exceeds that of our 330d at anything over 50mph.
I will bite as I have an i5 on order - M60 touring to be precise. Not some tax dodge as funded out of my own net pay but it is leased as I would never risk the unknown on a car at this price point / new tech. It won't do 500 miles on a tank. Neither will my bladder. It will do 250 upwards on a charge - and add another 100 miles quickly as needed. Most of the charging will be done at home at the equivalent of 3p a mile. I have had 3 years in an EV and thanks, you can keep your 500 mile on a tank diesel. Like going back to the dark ages when I drive my daughters 19 plate X5 3.0d M Sport. Can't comment on the iX3 but my iPace is very refined and quiet and the i5 is said to be even better. I do like the ICE in my JCW Mini convertible manual. There is no reason both can't meet a need for people, and its good we all have the choice for a car that works for us. Really looking forward to the new one arriving - going to be a long 3 months...
Leasing seems the sensible option on big new electric cars. Pleased that electric works for you as it does for many others. It's a heck of car the i5 M60. Unfortunately it doesn't work for us. This weekend was a case in point. Cheshire to Cardiff for the Rugby International, then onto a friends house north of Swansea and back on Sunday through the borders and no motorway. Parked on a street in Cardiff 10 mins walk from the stadium and parked on the street by friends house. No chance of charging at either long stop. 400+ miles done without the worry of charging and still have 400 miles in the tank. I do have a car charger at home as is a self build and was one of the conditions of planning. Charging would also be cheap. The above journey is why something like 500 mile range would be necessary for us.
I did about 300 miles this weekend - as I do about every 2 or 3 weeks. Full charge before I go, and then either charge whilst doing shopping for my mum, or nip out on Sat eve for 40 mins to put enough in, leaving car to charge whilst walking dog / talking to friends. The i5 will do a bit more on a charge and charge a bit quicker so comfortable it will work easily. I certainly don't miss the £75 fill to do the same trip in the RS4.... But different strokes for different folks, and my days of mega long drives non stop are well gone!
@isleaiw - it's good to hear that an EV meets your needs. As a BMW shareholder, I hope that there are many more for whom the characteristics of an EV are suitable. I fully acknowledge that my needs and journeys are likely far from the norm. Since leaving my home in NE Scotland, in the last five days I have covered over 2500 miles - on Sunday it was over 850 miles from Germany to Bosna i Hercegovina. I refuelled only three times - in Folkestone, Rodgau, and in Zagreb, and still have enough diesel left for over 400 miles. My average speed was 65mph and fuel consumption was 61.4mpg. With an EV lord only knows how often and for how long I would need to stop and recharge. Plus there is the extreme rarity of charging points here in BiH. 'Horses for courses' was never more apt.
As a second car for local use and EV can make a lot of sense especially if you an install a home charger, there are some good prices on used examples and running costs are extremely low....
I guess mine is a second car (as I also have a Mini) but I use it mainly for long journeys, it's a bit big first the station or supermarket car park. Public charging really isn't the challenge that the media make out - unless you are always chasing the clock, and frankly I try and avoid that wherever possible. Public charging is expensive but as its such a small portion of total charging, I don't worry about that either and enjoy 2p to 3p per mile for home charging. If you can't charge at home, or do time constrained jaunts across Europe, they aren't for you. If you do 200 miles every day as a sales rep they probably aren't for you (as adding 200 miles overnight in the cheap window might be a challenge). But for most of us they are perfectly practical.
Mrs W is totally enamoured with her EV, for her needs (less than 4K miles per year) it is absolutely perfect. The two year experiment through leasing will probably be extended to another EV in 2026, some research needed to choose the right one. I’m not ready for an EV yet, both in practical terms and in emotional terms. It would mean having to change the M2 and the Alfa into one car given the leasing costs for something with a decent range, work mileage is considerable and would need some careful planning as to routes etc. Regular drives to Oxford, Cambridge, Kettering, Barnsley, Bognor Regis etc would require a managed route to include charging capacity. I’m not ready for this, it would add additional stress to an already stressful role. Jumping in the Alfa to do the heavy lifting is perfect for my needs at the moment, 700 miles per tank and very minimal costs due to the age/expense of the car. Then the M2 gives me the “fizz” should I want that as an alternative. 2026 will be an interesting year though, I will be wanting to pull the two cars into one, gearing up/down for retirement as part of the decision making. Who knows what that research/decision will bring!
Think I am a few years in front of you on the retirement front - its likely to be in the next 5 years for me. So I've done the "want to tick that box" cars - RS4. M5; Done the stick every penny you can into the pension fund years. Havent cleared the mortgage bur then I live in a 5 bed house just for me and know I will be downsizing (or buying something with the other half...) one day so I just keep chipping away at the debt knowing I have enough equity for what I need anyway.... Car options will also need resolving at some point. I found the M5 and RS4 overkill for everyday use - and as weekend cars they had to do long distance and fun drives which they werent ideal for. The idea now is the iPace is a great long distance cruiser and pretty nippy and good fun when needed, and the Miniis a genuinely fun car for weekends and country drives. The i5 will probably be a last hurrah for expensive cars and at some stage I will get a more sensible retirement car that I can buy outright and own for long periods.I'll probably keep the Mini anyway, as it just fits my use needs so well and its a manual - and they are getting harder to find... Not sure you would need charging for drives to get to most of those places you mentioned in most EVs these days - even in the depth of winter - if you started with a full charge, but as I said earlier if I was travelling against the clock I might be less inclined toward one.
Oh the conundrum of car ownership As many know, I turned my back on ownership and favour leasing, not entirely down to cost, but more the depreciation and regret when trade in time comes as depreciation is a real killer and moreso now with electric cars, scary….. Whilst I’m at the midway point through the lease, I have the benefit of hand back, albeit looking at similar models and “ Dealer” pricing, I’m hugely quids in with the term cost and todays forecourt price ( At present, two years in, the 4 year term is going to cost me, less than 2 years depreciation, so can only imagine, what the dealer cost shall be at 4 years) In context, 2023, Audi A5, Comfort & Sound package, Towbar, Flat Bottom Steering wheel, upgraded wheels, List price new £49400, Current “Dealer” forecourt price £27000+ My cost, Zero upfront payment & 24 x £400 = £9600 I believe I stole the deal, albeit £9600 would have bought a reasonable car, though +£22k of depreciation would have really hurt! Running costs - lease company pay the vehicle excise duty, Cars on Service plan at £26/month =£624 oh that’s also scary, not long ticked over 12000 mile, with fuel cost added, runs circa £1/mile + 1 set of wiper blades I’ve looked at many Electric car leasing deals and follow the 6/12 month pricing, gets more frightening. I’m looking closely at Porsche Taycan prices - ouch! Though believe that’s reliability related, where a good one’s good, a bad one’s, very 5hit! Work have taken out salary sacrifice, All in packages, includes, lease cost, Vehicle Excise Duty, Maintenance, Servicing, Tyres & Insurance which look favourable, The small print, if I’m reading correctly, includes substantial annual BiK payments, whilst I’m looking further into it, I’m seeing substantial cost increases in year 3&4, almost as if they are trying to negate long term ownership At present, I have 3 Active quotes, whilst not ready to pounce for another 18 months, I’m following the factory order times and shall likely do so for the next 18months and order for delivery ( just in time), Factory lead times are long ? I see leasing (borrowing) as a cash effective way of trouble free motoring that certainly negates “ Depreciation” in the sense that cars are new, your the first owner, use abuse and repair under warranty, just be cautious of hand back fees if abused too much!
Retirement is a wonderful thing indeed. Perhaps we'll get an EV when we stop travelling internationally. I'm 13 years retired and my current 330d is my 'sensible retirement car'. I don't consider driving to 'The Balkans' two or three times a year as long journeys. We've actually cut back on the annual mileage in recent years. Back in the day, when I lectured in universities in the Middle East we used to drive home for the Summer holidays, following the 'Trans Arabian Tap Line' (oil pipe-line across the Northern deserts of Iraq and Lebanon to Turkey - keeping the employer-supplied airline tickets for extra quick home trips at Xmas or Easter. In a later phase, back in the 80s, I was doing monthly 9 day journeys to Albania (border crossings in those days were a nightmare) In the 90s, and early 00s I was driving to war zones in Bosna, and Kosovo, plus refugee camps in Croatia and Albania. Still volatile areas, but at least I can get Green Card cover for them nowadays, unlike back then when no insurance company would cover me.
A really interesting thread. It is making me think a little deeper as to my personal reluctance to engage in the brave new world of EVs. I’ve probably created some barriers as to why I couldn’t own/run such a vehicle, after some reflection it is more about me not wanting to. This may change over time, particularly as the market place and capacity of EVs grows, but at the moment I’m just not excited about them. As to retirement, I’m 54 this year, and am planning on taking a semi-retirement at 58. This gives me a buffer in terms of financing the next car. An M2 and an old Alfa won’t be the plan at that point. Probably…
That is indeed a lovely car, if only I could justify something that big/fancy Good value too with that heavy depreciation, and it's got HK too ! Thinking however, it would be an ideal replacement for the vehicle I use for work (X5 40 eDrive) that is now almost seven years old and looking rather old fashioned for its role, whereas this looks like a spaceship. It's almost the same colour too, so no-one would notice They'd be even happier saving £40k off list too being a public sector organisation.
