Featured BMW i3 electric (and gas)

Discussion in 'Prius, Hybrid, EV and Alt-Fuel News' started by bwilson4web, Mar 19, 2026 at 6:11 AM.

  1. bwilson4web

    bwilson4web BMW i3 and Model 3

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    If they have a "Full Self Driving" feature, I would be interested provided the rest of the specs are equal to my 2019 Model 3.

    Bob Wilson
     
    #1 bwilson4web, Mar 19, 2026 at 6:11 AM
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  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    I’ve lost interest in gas, but it hasn’t lost interest in me.
    BMW, not gonna happen.
    (I can’t believe I’m saying that as a Chevy owner :cool:)
     
    #2 bisco, Mar 19, 2026 at 1:54 PM
  3. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

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    Relying on Germans to self drive your vehicle sounds like a disaster... I often mention that most likely expensive luxury car on the road blowing lots of toxic smoke is a BMW and no one has yet to disagree with me.
     
    #3 PriusCamper, Mar 19, 2026 at 3:36 PM
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  4. Prodigyplace

    Prodigyplace 2025 Camry XLE FWD

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    I am sure @bwilson4web will disagree AND prove it with his i3rEX ownerships of 2 different cars. He likely has the data to back it up too.
     
    #4 Prodigyplace, Mar 19, 2026 at 4:08 PM
  5. bwilson4web

    bwilson4web BMW i3 and Model 3

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    Not sure if there is anything to disagree with. As for self driving, my first 2014 BMW i3 REx had a derated “MagicEye” that handled dynamic cruise control. At the time, I understood the EU variant had the full stack with lane keeping.

    Full Self Driving is not exclusive to Tesla and there is the OpenSource, COMMA.AI that looks much improved. If several automakers decide to become contributors to OpenSource, it could become “game, set, point.”

    I don’t like reusing the i3/ix3 label because it is confusing to us early adopters. Regardless, it sounds like BMW decided to put their “A team” engineers on the project. Still, I have more confidence in BMW engineering than other EU manufacturers.

    Bob Wilson
     
    #5 bwilson4web, Mar 19, 2026 at 6:58 PM
  6. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

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    The open source version is probably going to take the longest to mature, but when it comes to being certain your privacy is protected, it's the only viable option. We still live in dark times when it comes to peoples awareness of how many have access to what they're doing and where they're going.

    Amongst my security minded friends, if you want to work with them you're going to be running a Graphene Operating System on the newest most secure Pixel phone and you're going to be using Signal app and Protonmail for all communications and you'll prefer searching Kagi rather than the internet when catching up on current events because Kagi is the "Small Web" that's only for humans, not for robots. All these systems are open source oriented, which is the only way you can be certain your life's activities and conversations aren't being sold to the highest bidder.
     
    #6 PriusCamper, Mar 19, 2026 at 7:37 PM
  7. bwilson4web

    bwilson4web BMW i3 and Model 3

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    Quite timely as I have noticed the gutting by marketing parasites:
    • PriusChat - nearly unusable on my iPhone from the Goggle ad blitz. But my ad-blocking MacBook remains usable. For example, the ability to edit posts is seriously degraded on the iPhone versus the MacBook.
    • Gmail - so badly flooded, I don’t even look. If I could find an email App with a credible “White List” function, maybe. Today, I only use it for forced “authentication” as it is now just a SPAM and Trojan bait station.
    • Phone service - landlines went down that cesspool almost 20 years ago. The white list of contacts filtering is the only thing keeping iPhone telephony usable. But even T-Mobile is starting down that slippery cesspool slope.
    What was once an asset has become a cacophony of marketing noise. Yet the instigators don’t realize they are killing the goose that once laid golden eggs. All the while they suffer from the same noise that buggers everyone. Just that OpenSource has the feedback mechanism to ‘s*ck less.’

    So LibreOffice was originally the counter to monopoly Microsoft Office and remains usable. Meanwhile, I understand things aren’t peachy king in that h*ll hold. So posts this Mac user.

    Thanks for making my day about the sad state of the Internet. An internet that Russia and Iran controls by “turning it off.”

    Bob Wilson
     
    #7 bwilson4web, Mar 20, 2026 at 2:36 AM
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  8. Prodigyplace

    Prodigyplace 2025 Camry XLE FWD

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    I took issue with the claim it blew tons of toxic smoke. It would take a LOT to do that with a motorcycle engine. LOL
     
    #8 Prodigyplace, Mar 20, 2026 at 11:10 AM
  9. bwilson4web

    bwilson4web BMW i3 and Model 3

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    The original i3-REx? It was a 25 kWh (34 hp) generator with catalytic converter.

    I’m content to wait for it to be sold in the USA. YouTube video accuracy … treat with skepticism.

    Bob Wilson
     
    #9 bwilson4web, Mar 20, 2026 at 11:59 AM
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