Although conflicting reports have at times suggested that the BMW i3 will die while others suggested that it would live, the latest report comes from no higher an authority than Oliver Zipse, BMW's newly installed CEO.

"The i3 will continue to be produced, no question about it," Zipse told Germany's Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung over the weekend. The i3 will "make another leap in battery and operating concepts."

The CEO argued that demand for the EV was growing every year and, indeed, the numbers bear that out. With sales doubling between 2014 and 2018, Zipse claimed that demand is set to take another impressive leap in 2019.

"We are growing with the i3 every year - in Europe this year by around 20 percent," Zipse told FAZ. "The investments have been written off, we earn money with every i3. Why in God's name should we give up this car, which is now at the height of its time? We are sure that the i3 still has great potential."*

As it has done since new, the i3's battery will grow again, leading to greater range. Although it started with as few as 80 miles of range, the latest i3 can go 155 miles to a charge these days.

Whether or not a better battery could extend the i3's range far enough to compete with the latest generation of EV remains to be seen, but BMW's CEO, at least, seems to be convinced it can.

https://insideevs.com/news/377435/bmw-i3-production-will-continue/