BMW i3 60 Ah
A carbon-fiber passenger cell, aluminum chassis and rear electric motor made BMW's city EV a clean-sheet experiment.
BMW i3 at the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show · youkeys · CC BY 2.0
Research pending
A matching completed auction sale has not been verified for this exact year, body, trim, engine, transmission and market.
Joyride shows this gap instead of substituting an asking price, unsold bid or mismatched special vehicle.
More than a set of wheels.
BMW introduced the production i3 in July 2013 and launched it in Germany and other European markets that November. Its LifeDrive structure placed a carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic passenger cell above an aluminum module carrying the battery, suspension and motor. This page covers the original 60 Ah battery-electric model, not the optional gasoline range-extender or later 94 Ah and 120 Ah batteries.
Look a little closer.
Its rear doors are hinged at the back and can open only after the front doors—an unusual arrangement that leaves the side opening without a fixed center pillar.
Photos show an example of the model or generation. The pictured vehicle’s year, equipment, or modifications can differ from the specification described here.
Two modules with different jobs
BMW called the carbon-fiber passenger compartment the Life module and the aluminum lower structure the Drive module. Separating them helped offset battery mass and produced a DIN curb weight of 1,195 kg.
Source: BMW Group · The BMW i3 press kit ↗Gross and usable energy
The original pack stored 22.0 kWh in total, but 18.8 kWh was available to the driver. Keeping a buffer at the top and bottom helped protect the battery rather than pretending every cell could be fully emptied.
Source: BMW Group · i3 technical specifications ↗Where these facts come from
- BMW Group · The BMW i3 press kit
- BMW Group · i3 technical specifications
- BMW Group UK · i3 press pack
- BMW Group UK · born to be electric
Selected facts checked for this edition. Some source pages link to broader model families. Last reviewed September 30, 2026.