A funky little electric car with some great design features
By Tace Clifford
Share on
BabyDrive Verdict
The 2019 BMW i3 is a rather funky little four-seat electric car! I LOVE electric vehicles so I was very excited to put my family in this futuristic-looking BMW for a week and see how family-friendly it is for BabyDrive!
The i3 is really not like any other car you would regularly come across and considering it came out in 2013 it still feels very forward-thinking.
The most obvious difference is the doors of the i3. There is no central pillar and the rear doors have their hinges at the back to they open the opposite way to most cars. I thought this was going to make life with kids easier but, in reality, I have found the opposite.
In my garage and most car parks, there wasn't always room to open both doors at once. In the end, I found I had to sit my daughter on the front passenger seat while I moved the car out of a parking space, then stop the car and both get out, open both doors and put her in her child seat.
There was always a ridiculous juggle of doors, child and trying to not hit doors on the neighbouring car. We also all discovered how hard and sharp the bottom of the car door is, as during this shuffle you will at some stage definitely hit your shins with it! At a different stage in my life, this car would have been fantastic but with a small child, the doors were my nemesis! Or if I lived with a large open driveway I could throw the doors open with abandon!
In terms of design, the 2019 BMW i3 is beautiful! It feels like something I would have studied back at art college and I can imagine my daughter's children pawing over one in an art gallery in the future. Not only is it electric but the materials it is made from inside are sustainably sourced too. For example, its leather seats instead of being treated with chemicals are treated with olive leaves.
The interior body panels incorporate visible kenaf fibres which are grown in the monsoon season. A wool blend is used in the seats, which helps to cool the occupants when hot and warm when cold so you use the climate control less. Sustainably sourced eucalyptus wood is used in the i3's door and dashboard panels and looks fantastic! Made of carbon-fibre, the i3 is light which means it uses less battery power too and it's super nippy and fast. They’ve thought about your children's future with all the sustainable ingredients, but not perhaps how practical it is for getting them about in the meantime.
For such a small car the i3 I found to have poor visibility and even when using the very clear reversing camera I still found it hard to judge where the edges of the car were when reversing. It is as if the objects in the camera and those in the mirrors were different distances away.
There are just two back seats in the 2019 BMW i3. Both have ISOFix that are easy to access and connect to and there are top tether anchorages on the back of both rear seats.
Fitting child seats were nice and easy, and with a forward-facing child seat, we found a 182cm passenger could sit in front. But with a rear-facing child seat installed, only a 170cm front passenger could fit.
The galley walkthrough in the back was a great novelty! And in fact, you needed it as I found I had to put my daughter in on whichever side I got in to.
Also, there is no storage in the back except two cup holders in the centre of the seats.
In the front of the 2019 BMW i3, storage is well designed, with different cup holders in the front and an elasticated strap in the walkthrough, which I found useful to hold my shoes while driving!
The central console armrest has a cordless mobile charger…
…and the eucalyptus dash opens up to reveal a felt-lined glove box.
The battery of the 2019 BMW i3 only took about 250km of charge and it was slow to charge up too. This would be okay if your daily commute was a 20km round trip but on my 130km one-way trip to drop the i3 off I did get a bit nervous when I got stuck in traffic and had left home with 178km!!
Charging the 2019 BMW i3 wasn't a problem, we found our family just charged it each night at home and at the shopping centre too as part of our daily routine.
Like everything else, the gear lever is a little quirky in the i3; behind the steering wheel on the right is a stumpy lever you rotate, which is easy to get used to and keeps the central console clear.
The designer would have had a lot of fun with the i3, really being able to move things around and change the normal position of everything. It reminds me of a futuristic and electric bubble car!
The boot of the i3 would hold a double stroller without the parcel shelf.
Or eight shopping bags from empty, which is one less than the Nissan Leaf that fits nine.
The boot of the 2019 BMW i3 will surprisingly fit eight shopping bags from empty. This is one less than the Nissan Leaf which fits nine.
The Britax Flexx tandem stroller fits in the boot without the parcel shelf and one shopping bag. Whereas in the Nissan Leaf it fits with no shopping bags.
The Mountain Buggy Urban Jungle single stroller fits with no shopping bags and a wheel removed.
Whereas in the Nissan Leaf, pictured below, it fitted with a shopping bag, so the two boots are very different in their usability.
The Mountain Buggy Nano compact stroller fits with two shopping bags but the other prams and strollers wouldn't fit.
The boot space and its functionality are really important. I like to have a big boot space and little side wells or areas I can divide things into. So something I don’t want to move around while I’m driving such as Tulsi’s lunch bag or her wet swimming gear can be sectioned off in a little well where it’s not going to spill or get squashed by the rest of the things in the boot.
Hooks for securing shopping bags to are also favourites of mine, I like being able to secure the bag containing more fragile things like eggs so they don’t move around on the journey.
I measure the boot space in freezer shopping bags, prams and dogs. Not because I think all there is to a mum’s life is food shopping, prams and dogs. (Although it can feel like it sometimes!!) But because these are visually mesurable items we can all associate with. For me, the car company boot measurement of litres is not an amount I can easily visualise and 400L in one car may differ in usability to that in another due to the configuration or shape of the space.
There is a ‘frunk' under the bonnet of the BMW i3 which holds the charging cables.
How good is storage inside the 2019 BMW i3?
Storage inside the cabin of the 2019 BMW i3 is nicely thought out; there are two cup holders that hang off into the open footwell, they will hold a reusable and disposable coffee cup and a large refillable water bottle fit in them too. There's an elastic strap I found goo for holding my shoes or my handbag bag while I drove.
The central console storage box is rubber lined with 12V and USB sockets
and on top is a phone charging holder within the armrest.
In the dashboard is a felt-lined glove box which would hold my wallet but not iPad.
In the back, there are just two simple cup holders in the seat base, they would hold a reusable or disposable coffee cup and a large refillable water bottle fits in them too.
There is no sunglasses case in the ceiling but there are lit vanity mirrors in both front visors.
The front door bins will hold a large refillable water bottle and an iPad fits in there too.
BabyDrive Indepth - Noise
How noisy is the 2019 BMW i3?
The BMW i3 is not a particularly noisy car.
The media system in the 2019 BMW i3 is navigated with rotary dial in the central console or touch screen which I found easier. The system is clear and simple to use.
The 2019 BMW i3 has Apple CarPlay and was very easy to connect my phone, which is great.
I like the ability to scroll through the different functions in the BMW media system.
The sat-nav is easy to use and you can turn the spoken guidance on and off within the screen settings which I found helpful for not disturbing little passengers.
I find on most journeys when I use sat nav I only need directions for the last part of the journey. I know how to get to the area I am going and then it’s just the exact address I need help with. Because I need to input the address before I head off I found myself on most occasions when you can’t mute the sat nav voice having to listen to all the directions, which disturbs your concentration, any conversation in the car at the time or more importantly my sleeping baby! So being able to mute the sat nav voice until you reach the part where you actually need it is gold!
The reversing camera image is fantastically clear and you can mute the parking sensors with the buttons on the left on the screen…
…or with a button, down in the central console
The indicators are quiet in the BMW i3 and didn’t disturb my sleeping toddler.
Becoming a parent I soon realised there are some noises and sounds I feel are unnecessary and I could happily live without if it meant my baby stayed asleep!!
That often the distraction of my screaming, distressed baby is more dangerous when driving than not having a lane departure warning for example.
If it is the lane departure warning beeping that creates distress with my baby then which is safest?
It’s where I think we need to be able to strike a balance and choose when we can mute the warnings or swap them to a vibration in the steering wheel or flashing light perhaps?
A lot of these noises come with the increase in technology and especially linked to safety features and alerts. For me these all have their place.
Another thing I have realised is I spend my time in a lot more places where small children roam, parks, beaches, play gyms, swimming lessons, daycare centre etc. I have become more aware that when I’m reversing or manouvering in the car parks I have to tripple check for small children running around behind me or being in my blind spot when reversing. For this I LOVE reversing cameras, I just don’t like their beeping sounds!!
I have become so much more aware of safety and potential accidents or hazards since having a child and so I love the peace of mind that I get from the cameras and sensors combined with my own vision from windows and mirrors as I don’t trust cameras alone.
The driver's display screen tells you your ‘distance to empty' on the battery range.
The rear windows don't open and you can't open the rear doors without first opening the front ones but there is a lock on the driver's door that locks both the front doors. Both the front doors and windows are quiet and would not disturb small sleeping passengers when opening and closing them.
Being electric, the 2019 BMW i3 is pretty much silent to drive which makes a refreshing change and my daughter quickly fell for the electric car lullaby and fell asleep!!
BabyDrive Indepth - Car Seats
How many child seats fit in the 2019 BMW i3?
The 2019 BMW i3 is a four-seater, so it only has two seats in the back.
In the second row, there are ISOFix points in both seats, which are within plastic guides and nice and easy to connect to.
There are top tether anchorages on the back of both rear seatbacks which are easily accessible through the boot.
It was lovely and simple to install the two child seats in the back of the BMW i3 and I found with a forward-facing child seat a 182cm passenger could sit in front and with a rear-facing child seat, a 170cm passenger could sit in front.
The doors of the BMW i3 look really cool BUT they are a pain with kids, unfortunately! I found in car parks and in our garage, I would open my door then shuffle us both into the tiny gap so we could open the rear door and trying the whole time to not cop the sticking out, very hard bottom of the door to my shins, which we all did at some point during our week driving! What I discovered works best is to pop my daughter on my lap while I drive out of the garage or parking space, then have space to open both doors fully, without crushing my shins and then pop her in her child seat in the back. Much to the annoyance of myself on daycare mornings when we were running late and EVERYONE waiting for a space in the busy shopping centre car parks!!! Sorry!
Rear-facing would be a bit trickier to post bub into their seat because of the positioning of the doors and access but you would be fine if you were sitting in the back with bub.
Australia being a country of weather extremes; blazing sun and torrential rain, mean you may find it easier to put Bub into their seat from inside the car sometimes. If it’s hot you can get the air-con going, cool the car down and not stand out in the sun while you fasten them in or shelter from the rain and not get soaked yourself whilst you’re doing it. So it is important to test whether Bub can be easily installed from either direction!
There is plenty of room to feed bub in the back if you only have one child seat installed.
BabyDrive Indepth - Drive & Comfort
How comfortable is the 2019 BMW i3? And how good is the 2019 BMW i3 to drive?
In the front of the 2019 BMW i3, the seats are comfortable, but the headrests are not adjustable so I couldn't wear a ponytail!
I had spent hours styling my hair this morning to get this ponytail just right too… said no new mum ever!!!
They are brown leather which matches the leather on the doors and dash and would be easy to wipe clean.
For a mum travelling in the back with bub, the seats are comfortable too, it nice to have no central hump in the footwell and it feels light and airy back there.
For the first year of Tulsi’s life when we would go out as a family, if I wasn’t driving, I would travel in the back with Tulsi so it’s important to check the back seat comfort as you may be spending a lot of time in them! They were never something I gave any thought to before but I definitely notice a good or bad back seat now!
The steering wheel is fully adjustable in/out and up/down.
The cruise controls are on the left-hand side on the steering wheel and I found them easy to use.
There are four air-conditioning vents across the front dashboard; two central ones and one at either end. These are the only vents for the whole car so I did have to turn it up high to cool the whole interior.
You can control the climate easily with the buttons on the dash and the front heated seat controls are there too.
The rear interior lights are located centrally in the ceiling, but not too far back to reach them from the driver's seat while driving!
I have found Tulsi does not like travelling in the dark in the car so if it gets dark whilst travelling then I reach back and turn the interior light on for her. So it’s really important for me that I can reach the rear ceiling light.
Also if I am traveling home and it is getting near to bed time and I DEFINITELY DON’T want her to fall asleep in the car as even a five-minute nap in the car means bed time is all over!!!! I lean back and pop the light on so it’s not dark and try to keep her awake!! Along with screaming/singing at the top of my voice!!!
It is also useful when there are lights situated above the doors where the handles are usually positioned. These are good for when putting baby into their child seats when visibility is poor, so you do not have to reach across them to a light situated in the ceiling centrally etc.
There are no handles above the rear doors to hang a child's toy on, unfortunately.
Visibility in the 2019 BMW i3 I found a bit difficult, especially when reversing. Objects in the mirrors and the camera image looked different distances away and I found didn't correlate to reality. Also, it was difficult to see out of the back and know where the extremities of the car were which was very surprising for a small car which I assumed would be so easy.
One thing I have noticed since being a mum is I hate it when I reach a destination or get home from being out and Tulsi has either done really well in the car or she is screaming her head off and I have done really well to keep it together for the entire journey (usually the latter!!) and it takes 10 minutes to park the car! It can be really stressful. Usually I dread parking new cars as they take longer in our tight apartment block carpark, the BMW i3 was a lot trickier to park than I had expected for a small car.
Aesthetically the 2019 BMW i3 is a stunning little car which I expect to find in a gallery in the future. The whole car speaks of beautiful quality and excellent design.
It got an overall score of 33.57 out of 37. Getting 13.57 out of 16 for frontal offset test, 16 out of 16 for side impact and pedestrian protection was rated acceptable.
The 2019BMW i3 comes with six airbags as standard, dual frontal, front side and side (head) curtain airbags for front and rear side passengers.
As standard, the 2019 MW i3 also comes with antilock braking system (ABS), electronic brakeforce distribution (EBD), electronic stability control (ESC), emergency brake assist (EBA), daytime running lights (DRL), reversing collision avoidance and tyre pressure monitoring system (TPMS).
Optional on base variant but might be standard on higher variants are adaptive cruise control (ACC), autonomous emergency braking (AEB) and lane support system (LSS).
Some of these safety features are also features that drive me crazy as a mum! Like the lane departure and forward collision alert or the parking sensor beeping sound. I want all the safety technology AND to be able to mute the sound when Tulsi’s asleep!
Share on
About Tace Clifford
Tace Clifford founded BabyDrive in 2017 after discovering a huge information gap in mainstream car reviews that left new parents and expanding families in the dark when it came to one of the biggest purchasing decisions of their lives.
Be the first to comment