Which Is the Better EV? 2014 BMW i3 vs. 2014 Mercedes-Benz B-Class Electric Drive

In Los Angeles County, and particularly on the ocean side of the I-405 freeway, eco-awareness is the highest virtue. The Tesla Model S is the halo car, and most cabs are Priuses. ChargePoint.com’s online locator lists a staggering 49 electric-car chargers in Century City, the 176-acre high-end westside district built on what was once the back lot of 20th Century Fox. That’s 15 more chargers than the whole 49.5-million-acre state of Nebraska can claim.

There isn’t any place in North America more eager or ready for the all-electric BMW i3 and Mercedes-Benz B-class Electric Drive than trendy, liberal, and prosperous West L.A. But, as electric cars with less than 100 miles of range, the i3 and the B are constrained by a tight support system. The public chargers in populated areas are often in facilities where the parking is expensive. C/D paid only $1.16 per car in electricity to charge the BMW and Mercedes at a port in Century City, but the building dinged us another $35 each for parking.

 

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cidflekken - 9/10/2014 6:36:04 PM

0 Boost

The Benz could have lost to the Bimmer by 1000 points and I still wouldn't let that hideous looking i3 into my garage.

MDarringer - 9/10/2014 8:59:04 PM

-1 Boost

Amen! I agree. The i3 is the new Pontiac Asstek.

pepito66 - 9/10/2014 10:20:58 PM

+2 Boost

The I3 is better for me , has aluminum construction and carbon fiber and more advance technology and design , I don't feel bad about the design , I just want that the put a bigger display in the driver side or I prefer that.

chewy - 9/11/2014 1:06:03 AM

+2 Boost

The i3 is designed to purposely to stick out and it does so for better or in my opinion worse.

rumnyc - 9/11/2014 5:48:37 AM

0 Boost

the i3 is atleast interesting looking. infact i won't mind one as a 2nd car. the b-class is almost as ugly and boring as a prius. i wouldn't rather take cabs/uber than driver either a b class or a prius.

JDMUSMuscle - 9/11/2014 6:53:16 AM

0 Boost

Let me tell you, Nissan Leaf is the best choice.

Dexter1 - 9/11/2014 7:55:51 AM

+1 Boost

It's not a question of which is better. When it comes to the i3, the question is: Who approved this fu*king visual mess? Who actually said, "WOW -- I love it -- let's go with this one."? Even bigger question: Does this idiot still have a job, and is he or she still driving to work in their Pontiac Aztek?

Yonder7 - 9/11/2014 5:29:23 PM

+1 Boost

The MB is around 1100 pounds heavier , still it has several numbers better than the BMW, so now I think about the security of my family...nope..I chose MB in this case, I do not buy a car with such a weak structure were the most of the weight comes from the battery...

vdiv - 9/12/2014 1:44:30 PM

+1 Boost

Arguably the CFRP frame of the i3 is really strong. We shall see when the NHTSA and the IIHS crash the i3 for "kicks and giggles". EuroNCAP already did and it is a very safe car:

http://www.euroncap.com/results/bmw/i3/533.aspx