Ten years of the i3

An entire decade after BMW showed off the i3 as an oven-ready concept at the Frankfurt motor show, it remains one of the most intriguing small electric cars you can buy. Honda, Peugeot, Renault, Nissan, Kia, Mini and others will point out that their own electric city cars are more modern, offer better range and boast more contemporary EV hardware, but could any of them honestly claim to build a more interesting zero emissions small car than the i3?

We are supposedly at the dawn of a new technological era, still in that giddy phase when progress is made not in small steps but great leaps. If that really is the case, ten years after the i3 was unveiled and just over eight after it went into production, it should now feel like a relic – no more up-to-date or fit for purpose than a first-generation iPhone.