BMW has had a lot of success with its i3 electric model, but they are discontinuing the series. It’s not that it didn’t sell. There were no problems with the latest models, and people seemed to like them very much. So much, in fact, that they are completely changing their business model. Now, the German car engineer won’t have specific electric models, they will make their mainstay cars electric and slowly transition into an all-electric company. After all, it is the way of the future. Better to get ahead of the competition.
The i3
BMW’s i3 series is in its sixth year or production. Currently the company is on its fifth iteration of this model. They have sold over 150,000 of them so far and demand has increased. For the first half of the year sales were 21 percent higher than the year before. Since last August, sales were 30 percent higher.
There were also no problems with performance. The car continuously performed well and showed that it was able to keep up with traditional petrol engines. It is fast, but safe. The i3 even has lower insurance rates because of its safety rating. While electric cars typically test well for safety, they are not always the cheapest to insure because they are usually more expensive than your average vehicle.
Going Electric
Despite the popularity of the electric i3 model, BMW has decided to stop making the car. While some think this is a bad decision, the goal is to promote new electric models of their older cars. For example, they will be premiering a new Mini Electric. BMW plans to have no less than 13 battery exclusive models by 2023.
Creating structures that enable our production facilities to build models with combustion engines, plug-in hybrids, and full electric models. Instead of focusing on making new models from scratch, they will modernize their popular cars. Still it appears they are hesitant to go fully electric. The transition will be slow, and the company hopes that they will keep their popularity and sales up.
Competition
The automobile industry has been slow to embrace electric vehicles, but at some point there is no choice. The future of cars is electric. With environmental concerns and the ability to save with electric automobiles, the industry will be forced to concede and make more electric vehicles.
For now, the competition is limited. But not for long. Tesla is the one and only all-electric car company, and since they have come onto the scene they have been near-dominant. Competition is growing, however. Acccording to the experts at the website MoneyPug, a site that is used to find cheap car insurance, with luxury companies like Jaguar and Porsche making their own electric models, BMW will be entering a more cutthroat market. It’s not just these companies that will be competition for the German automaker. Economical automobile producers like Volvo are also making electric models.
More and more car companies will, and the competition will only grow. Some say it is smart for BMW to dive deeper into this market while others say it is too late. But if they can stay popular with their loyal fans and attract new customers with electric models they will be able to stay relevant and popular.
Before it’s too Late
The BMW i3 model is popular, but it didn’t catch on in certain places. Australia is one of them. Only around 150 were sold in its first year of sales. It could catch on further, but it seems to be the goal of BMW to get out of their commitment to the i3 before it is too late. They still have time to make their old models electric and keep the popularity of the i3. With demand for these vehicles going up, it will be curious to see if they make a brand new electric model.
Scrapping a model that sells is a tough decision, and you can be sure that BMW has done their homework on what will happen when they put their resources into electrifying old models. Still, people like new. To keep people interested, they may want to premier new electric models in addition to modernizing their old ones.
