BMW has opened order books for the new i3 earlier than planned, and the team behind electrifying.com's Kilowatt Half Hour podcast say the reason is straightforward: demand for the car has been higher than expected. On this episode the hosts walk through the figures for the launch edition, badged 50 xDrive, which they put at under 58,000 pounds with a quoted range of more than 560 miles and a 0 to 62 mph time of 4.7 seconds. A cheaper, lower-spec i3 is expected later in the year from around 53,000 pounds. The hosts read the early order opening as BMW getting ahead of a stronger-than-anticipated order bank. Alongside the BMW news, the episode covers a screen-heavy Zeekr GT the hosts say is quick enough to embarrass a 1990s hypercar, and a roundup of the EVs they would pick now the weather has finally turned warm across the UK.
The i3 name will be familiar, but this is not the carbon-bodied city car BMW sold last decade. It sits on the firm's new Neue Klasse architecture, and the figures the hosts quote put it squarely among the long-range electric saloons buyers are now cross-shopping, including the Mercedes electric C-Class the team flag as arriving next in the same fight. A claimed 560-mile range, if it survives independent testing, would put the i3 near the top of the segment on paper, though real-world range almost always lands below the official figure once motorways and cold weather get involved. For buyers, the more interesting line in the episode is the promise of a sub-53,000-pound version later in the year. That is the price that will decide whether the i3 reaches past early adopters and into the mainstream, and it is the same affordability question now hanging over almost every premium EV launch. The hosts also note, only half-joking, that they cannot work out where Audi's electric range has gone in the meantime.
The episode is part news, part driving notes. One host describes time in the Hyundai Ioniq 6 N and rates the way it rides and steers above its outright pace, calling the chassis the highlight rather than the straight-line speed. Another previews a dual-motor Zeekr 7 GT they say reaches 62 mph in 3.3 seconds and carries a 35.5-inch display, with full driving impressions held back under embargo. The summer feature points listeners toward open-top electric options, including a Renault 4 with a folding roof the hosts price at about 1,500 pounds as an extra, and a wider chat about how few convertible EVs exist beyond the MG Cyberster. The hosts add that the i3's looks have landed well in early in-person previews, and that a long-term BMW iX3 is due in for testing, which should give a clearer read on the Neue Klasse range claims over real journeys rather than launch slides. As is usual for a weekly podcast, specifics like the i3 numbers come from the hosts reading launch information rather than their own measured testing, so the figures are best treated as manufacturer claims until independent reviewers get the cars on the road.
Bottom line: the headline here is not the i3's spec sheet, it is BMW pulling the launch forward because the order bank filled faster than planned. That demand signal matters more than any single range figure. If you want the i3 at its most sensible, wait for the cheaper version the hosts expect later this year. And if you simply want the fastest thing mentioned in the episode, the Zeekr GT and its 3.3-second claim is the number that will keep getting repeated long after the BMW pricing settles down.
Commentary on a third-party video. Figures and claims are as presented in the source and have not been independently verified. Spotted an error? Tell us and we will correct it.