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BMW i3 Wireless Charging Made Possible by Plugless Power

Owning an EV can be, at times, a nuisance. A huge downside to choosing electricity over suck-squeeze-bang-blow is charging. More often than we’d like, electric cars take their sweet time to charge up via a cord. This, of course, needs to stop at some point.
Plugless wireless charging for BMW i3 11 photos
Photo: Plugless Power
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As high-end phones start to ship with Qi-standard wireless charging, so need electric vehicles. But as fate would have it, manufacturers are not yet ready to cut the cord. This is where the aftermarket steps in. Plugless Power, a company that’s no stranger to Tesla Model S owners, is now on the brink of bringing its wireless charging system to market for the BMW i3 city car.

Expected to cost $3,499 by the time it hits the shelves in 2017, Plugless Power’s premium autonomous charging system for the German model is compatible with the i3 EV and the range-extended i3 alike. With 7.2 kW of charging power over the air, the company believes that’s enough for 20 to 25 miles charged per hour. In other words, it takes no more than six hours to fully charge the 2017 BMW i3’s 33 kWh and 94 Ah lithium-ion battery.

Designed to perform across a wide range of temperatures (-22° to 122°F / –30° to 50°C), the Plugless Power system requires a 50-amp, 2-pole dedicated circuit and a NEMA 14-50 outlet. As far as the i3 is concerned, the adapter that enables inductive power transfer needs to be installed behind the front axle. Fret not, though, because the adaptor is not going to void the BMW i3’s warranty. What’s more, the receiving coil doesn’t affect ground clearance.

If Plugless Power convinced you to try your hands at wireless charging, you’ll need to pony up a $250 fully refundable deposit. When the time comes, the adapter will be affixed to the car’s underbody by a certified installer. As for the waiting game, Plugless Power expects to start shipping in the U.S. in June 2017, with priority given to reservation holders in the order received.

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About the author: Mircea Panait
Mircea Panait profile photo

After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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