2014 BMW I3 REX Engine Problems

“Test driving this Bmw i3, I noticed the rex range extender engine was dangerously slow. The 34 hp scooter engine is a hazard in traffic. I also noticed the brake lights would not come on when slowing to a stop. Consumer reports outlined it, and I can't say it better. .... Why are there not minimum fmvss performance standards to cover the hazards while in rex-mode (battery dead, running on scooter motor in heavy, fast, traffic)? This is a new area: weird behavior from evs in rex mode. …”

“The rex (range extender) on my i3 does not turn on, at random, when the battery level of the vehicle gets to a point that is low enough for it to turn on. When this happens, the vehicle experiences a sudden and violent loss of speed with no warning. This has, on more than one occasion, nearly caused an accident while in traffic. The Bmw dealership has confirmed this is an issue in my vehicle and has successfully been able to reproduce it on more than one occasion. It has been 'fixed' on more than one occasion as well. The vehicle still experiences this issue intermittently with no warning. …”

“I test drove a Bmw i3. I got into trouble because they forgot to charge it up completely when I drove it. Almost died. Consumer reports describes it all better than I can: a new lawsuit alleges that Bmw i3 electric cars can suddenly slow down when their battery power is low, potentially putting passengers in dangerous situations. Filed tuesday in u.s. District court in los angeles, the class-action suit alleges that the i3's 'range extender feature ... Doesn't produce enough power to prevent a dramatic decrease in the vehicle's performance. …”

“I bought Bmw I-3 in 9/14. It ran fine until last weekend in nov. On sat. 11/29/14 we were driving on I-5 north at about gorman exit car went on gas extender and all of sudden speed dropped from 60-65 miles to 30 miles and below and will not go faster than that on freeway despite me flooring the gas pedal. We took next exit of frazier park driving in right most lane with hazard lights on and all the way upto pine mountain club same thing happened. We charged the car overnight to full capacity and drove back to porter ranch next day. …”

“Driving on interstate 5 in encinitas, the i3 showed an electrical error. Within a few minutes, I get a slew of errors, battery can't charge, discharge at high rate, drive train malfunction....until it said idrive system shutting down... I was barely able to get the car to the side of the freeway before all systems shut down completely. 5 minutes later, the car started, and I was able to take it the dealer. The car has been at the dealer being diagnosed since (approximately 2 weeks). They have replaced the 12v battery and the eme.”