Used BMW i3 review and buying guide (2013 to 2022): which one to buy and what to check

Which used BMW i3 should you buy?

Go for a pure electric i3 unless you really need the range extender. Most of the complaints about the i3 centre on the extender cars, from the tiny petrol tank to trouble charging at motorway services and one owner's run of repairs to the petrol unit. The pure electric car leaves all of that out, which makes it the simpler one to live with.

There's no generation split to pick between across the 2013 to 2022 run, and there aren't enough reports on any year to call one better than another, so don't take silence about later cars as proof they're improved. What separates one i3 from another is how its charging behaves on the day and, on extender cars, how many repairs the petrol unit's had. Get an insurance quote first, too: one buyer was quoted three times what his previous car cost.

Which BMW i3 is the safer choice, pure electric or range extender?

The pure electric i3 is the safer pick, because the petrol range extender is where the repair complaints gather. One extender owner had repair after repair to the petrol unit, none lasting longer than 6 months, and he paid more than £900 for a new controller that still didn't cure it. If the car you're viewing has an extender, ask how often it's been in for work on it.

If you do want the extender, treat it as a way of getting home rather than a way of covering long trips. Its small tank gives only 60 to 80 miles on petrol, and the chargers at motorway services aren't the right sort for the extender car, so a long motorway run takes more planning than you'd expect. That's a bigger issue if most of your driving is on motorways.

What should you check when viewing a used BMW i3?

Charging is the thing to test hardest. Plug it in and watch that it starts and keeps going, because one 2015 car needed a new charge control unit, still kept getting thrown off chargers, and later needed a new charge socket. That owner's dealer blamed leaked air-con refrigerant for the charging trouble, so check the air-con blows cold as well.

Ask for invoices for any work on the charging hardware, the 12V battery or the range extender. The same 2015 car also needed a replacement 12V battery and had a problem with its restraints, so make sure no airbag or seatbelt warning stays lit on the dash. On an extender car, a pile of bills for the petrol unit is a reason to look at another one.

If you use an older iPhone, pair it before you buy: one 2018 car's iDrive wouldn't work with an iPhone 6 that a 2017 car accepted without trouble. On the drive, lift off the accelerator a few times to feel how hard the regenerative braking bites. It's strong enough to start a skid on ice, so it's worth getting used to before your first winter with one.

Paste the advert into the free check and it runs these against the listing, the MOT history and the DVLA record before you travel.

What does a used BMW i3 cost to run?