Who says long EV road trips mean hours at charging stations? BMW drove the new i3 for over 3 days, covering nearly 3,700 miles, and it took less than 3 hours of charging.

BMW put the i3 to the ultimate test of efficiency, charging speed, and long-distance EV capability on a nearly 3,700-mile Pan-European journey.

The Paneurpeana, as it’s called, is considered the benchmark for range and charging speed. The route begins at the North Cape in Norway, the northernmost point of continental Europe you can reach by car, and ends in Tarifa, Spain, the southernmost point of mainland Europe.

BMW drove the new i3 50 xDrive for a total of 3,658 miles (5,886.7 km) across eight countries and spent just 2 hours, 45 minutes, and 54 seconds charging at an average of 275 kW.

The performance beat the previous record by more than seven hours, according to Mike Reichelt, head of BMW’s Neue Klasse

BMW said the charging points were not predetermined and that it had to account for external factors such as weather and traffic jams.

The new i3 was impressively efficient during the trip, consuming an average of just 12.5 kWh per 100 km, beating its official WLTP combined energy consumption of 18-13.4 kWh/100 km.

BMW said the trip took 3 days, 2 hours, and 41 minutes, with an average speed of 79.7 km/h, and that the i3 was charged exclusively at public charging points across national charging networks.

The vehicle was driven at all times by a single driver and was not modified in any way, in terms of hardware or software, from the standard i3 available for purchase.

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