BMW's ActiveE rolled out for lease

The BMW ActiveE is now being offered for lease by BMW in selected areas across the US. The company is extending a two-year deal of a $2250 down payment plus $499 a month in the metro areas of Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Sacramento, New York, Boston and Connecticut starting in the fall (around Q3) this year.

Based on the 1 Series Coupe, the ActiveE debuts several new technologies to squeeze every last bit of range out of its Li-ion battery pack. And unlike the MINI E -- BMW's first EV -- it comes with its back seat intact and the same head, leg and shoulder room as the standard 1 Series coupé.

The brake energy recuperation system is set to minimise driver use of the brake pedal, effectively turning the accelerator into a two-way 'drive pedal'. It allows drivers in city traffic to conduct an estimated 75 per cent of all deceleration without touching the brake pedal. The result is energy recuperation sufficient to boost range by up to 20 per cent, the company claims.

Helping boost range further is an intermediate position built into the accelerator pedal's arc that allows the drivetrain to go into a coast -- BMW calls it 'glide' -- mode to make full use of its own momentum by minimising the braking effect normal to lifting the pedal. In this setting, the vehicle refrains from going into recuperative mode on deceleration, instead 'de-clutching' the motor to let the car roll without using energy.

On taking one's foot off the pedal, it only activates energy regeneration on the rear wheels. Countering the potential stability problems raised when a vehicle is moving without the active application of power is a system the company calls 'Stability Management for Regeneration'. It helps balance out energy recuperation with the vehicle's stability needs.

An 'Eco Pro' mode helps boost range by automatically setting HVAC functions to reduce energy consumption and desensitising the accelerator so the pedal demands less power from the same travel.

The ActiveE's 125kW rear axle-mounted electric motor produces a peak torque of 250Nm, put to ground through the rear wheels.

The motor draws its power from three lithium-ion battery modules taking the place of the engine block, transmission and fuel tank. Each is protected by a steel plate housing serving two purposes: it provides protection from impact and it also houses a liquid cooling system leveraging the vehicle's HVAC functions to help maintain the optimum operating temperature, which in turn helps boost range. To cut energy waste in bringing it to its ideal operating temperature of 21 degrees, it also allows remotely operated and timed 'preconditioning' of the battery using grid power during charging.

The entire power pack -- motor, battery, power electronics and transmission (including the diff), weighs a little over 90kg. It's designed to keep the centre of gravity low with total vehicle weight distributed 50:50, helping maximise traction and power transfer under EV conditions in which peak torque arrives instantaneously on take-off.

It takes the ActiveE from 0-100km/h in around 9.0 seconds and on to an electronically limited top speed of 145 km/h.

Charge times from flat to full are the normal overnight from a domestic socket, dropping to about five hours using a high-voltage, 32 ampere rapid-charge unit.

The US rollout will mark the beginning of a wider 1000-vehicle test program set to extend to Europe and China.

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