Quote:
Originally Posted by kDub2019
Based on my experience of owning one, unless you have free electricity this car will cost more to operate than a gas version. The battery, when used with the gas motor, with the setting to conserve the battery as much as possible, will only last about 30 minutes. So, for 30 minutes, you are getting great gas mileage, after that you’re getting less gas mileage than a 530i. Also, at this point, you have a dead battery that needs to be charged. If you don't have free electricity it's going to cost a lot to charge. The charge station near my gym in San Diego cost about $8 to charge the battery and due to the 30-minute battery time this means $8 daily. As for home charging, based on the KW required to charge the battery, and having to charge it daily, your electric bill will spike higher than the cost of gasoline even if your charging the car after 9 pm. I confirmed the cost of charging the car monthly by working with a representative of SDG&E my electricity provider.
For all of these reasons after 72 hours I returned the car. After going to two dealerships and two service departments and demonstrating any 530e battery off the lot would only last 30 minutes the sales team finally admitted all of this is true which is why they allowed me to return the car.
I am a car guy and the 530e is the most disappointing car purchase of my life and the first time I was ever hood winked.
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It looks like you are not the right candidate for a 530e. Sounds like you have a longish commute. As I noted above, weather a 530e makes sense depends upon your driving situation. Because the battery capacity is so small, I never charge outside of my house and charge in my house other than during the 3-8 PM high cost time.
The car does default to using the electric motor a lot, especially if you are doing urban driving. But once you "deplete" the battery you have not really depleted it. There is still capacity left for boost so you are essentially driving a regular hybrid.
Ultimately, it is good that we have so many choices in cars. For some, pure electrics work great; for others...hybrids; for most regular ICE cars, some configured for fuel economy and some for performance, etc.
Enjoy yours.