My Sunday is made up! A Wisely video with Martin - how awesome does it get! Both these cars were awesome. This is how German cars should be - engineering lead.
I agree with the comparison. Both cars are the result of two leading automotive brands designing an efficient, practical city vehicle. Both were pioneers combining high-tech manufacturing and smart material choices achieving light weight yet safe body structures. Even though they´re not primarily designed for long distance driving, both are very well capable of that too (i3 fitted with a 50kW CCS port).
People buy with they're lizard brains not they're human brain so for as much as they will say they don't buy it for functionality they buy for how it looks like so it has to look capable not actually be capable just like SUVs and crossovers
Martin you exude great passion for automotives. Niche cars are where its at and you are prolonging the life of these vehicles by widening their audience. Where the original sales team failed to reach i suspect.
Great to see you again Martin , working hard on the Streets of London 😂 I always wanted an A2, but heard about the non opening Bonnet and Ride Quality,It was always relatively expensive for its size as well. I still smile when I see one, wondering what might have been. When my Daughter was born (1993) I had to become more practical with Cars. So it never happened😢I’m desperate for an i3 , but have to wait until the New Year.(Happy Xmas Everyone At Wisely!)Great and Informative Video as usual. They always Cheer me up! Good luck 🤞 with the Move and See you in the next one.
Funnily enough, I have both cars right now. Honestly I somewhat prefer ... the A2. It's still a technical tour de force, but unlike the i3 doesn't think it's superior. The i3 is very clever, but it really wants to know it with endless warnings and chiding. The little A2 just gets on with it in its modest, understated way, quietly delivering practicality, economy, reliability and simplicity in a way that engineer-mind folk really appreciate. Mine is a 1.4TDi 75bhp with a later Passat Bluemotion MYP 6-speed gearbox. Mid 70's mpg on a run, great fun and getting rare. One needs to go though and honestly I'm not sure which it'll be. Anyway, great video, thanks Martin and Wisely!
I had an early A2 TDI and now an i3. I like a small but well appointed cars and like them both. Im kinda the other way though. Our i3 doesn't give me any warnings or nagging. Had the A2 for 4 years but did get a bit fed up with the idiosyncrasies - the noisy 'mooing' EGR valve, the crazy windscreen wiper that made the whole car shake from side to side, rattly front suspension that defied fixing. I only ever got about 55mpg lifetime average and also had issues with water ingress to the boot. i3 has been pretty good (but not perfect). Had the usual front suspension boots and top mount issues but all fixed and still works like new 8 years down the line. Plus the plastic bodywork has actually fared better than any car ive owned and looks like new. For the turning circle and cheap running alone id choose the i3 again, less so perhaps for the motorway handling! i wish manufacturers would consider making more cars like this - small but well specced and a bit 'premium' and full of new tech.
I just wish the A2 was properly respected by dealerships and parts suppliers. Good cars shouldn't be forced into scrapping, especially when they're depended upon.
To be fair, mechanically they're a Polo and plenty are being broken so no shortage of A2 specific parts used. Also Audi Heritage give the A2 a lot of support as well.
Thank you sir! That was EXACTLY my thought process, I owned an A2 and the only car I ever wanted to switch to was: an electric driven A2. Than I got introduced to the BMW i3 and I was sold. The i3 is what an electric Audi A2 should have been. Thank you BMW :D
Oh wow! My A2 1.2 started failing on me and I looked into used EVs. The i3 caught my attention because when design follows function, design is so much better. And I fell for his odd look. I checked your videos and then stumbled over your videos and then I see this one and cannot believe it. I am not the only one thinking that it’s the only option for my second car…
BMW i3 shows it's true colors again. Absolutely fantastic unique car that was waaaaaaaay ahead of it's time, and this is why we own 2 of them (ha,ha,ha) Thanks for sharing this video Martin. We love the i3 videos you guys create
Brilliant video. Love the a2 and i3. The Hyundai Inster looks and feels like another spiritual A2, albeit without the clever construction tech shared by these 2
I just got an i3 and my old car was a 2016 mini cooper. When I got the mini I was surprised by the ride comfort for such a small car and I was even more surprised by the i3 riding so much softer over bumps.
Like Rusty911s2 in the comments, I also own both cars. I bought my A2 90 TDi Sport over 10 years ago. Back then it was mildly tuned for better performance lifting it from 90hp up to 120hp along with buckets of torque. Trust me it makes a dramatic difference. Mine has the full Audi body kit and leather interior. It's a thing of quality and versatility and I never get bored with it. I agree with Martin, the i3 feels the natural successor to the A2 despite one being Diesel and the other electric. My A2 is never going to be sold, in fact it's a family joke that they think I should be buried in it, which again makes sense because it won't rust. Good work Wisely....
I had A2's for over a dozen years. "The i3 of its time" was a comment I often aired & always went over listener's heads. Such a clever car, though. I had 3, all diesel. Were I to have another, I'd go for a petrol version (1.4 & not 1.6.....). A late Storm would be ace with plenty of goodies. Maybe, one day, Mind you, the kids loathed em..
Great comparison of the best engineered small cars of the 21st century. I’m a longtime A2 owner and would love to switch to an i3, but is there any getting around the shortfall between the A2’s 390 litre boot (below the parcel shelf) and the 260 litres of an i3? Granted, the frunk adds another 20 and the Wokeby boot extension another 35, plus any child seats can be seat tethered (instead of needing a front arm), but is that enough??
excellent video - we have two A2s and they are great town and city cars which can carry enormous amounts of stuff when the seats are removed like a minivan. Keep watching Wisely i3s and they keep turning my head but our newer A2 TDi90 does 60mpg and has no rust (suspension rusts but has been replaced) and they will both go on for another 20 years at least so that feels like environmental car ownership. Its a small enhancement but the little grab handle on the entry for front seat passengers is especially welcomed by passengers with mobility issues.
BMW i3’s 0-60 is 7, but it feels so much quicker. It was my favorite city car especially in traffic. Compared to my 04 boxster s 6 spd, it was so much more fun as a daily.
Ahh boys this was an excellent watch, it brought back lots of happy memories of owning one of my favourite motors the A2. Mine was a petrol version not a smelly diesel (although I have been to the dark side by owning several diesel cars over the last 50+ driving years) my wife and I loved it and were extremely sad when we traded it in only because Audi had said they were stopping production and I thought we’d better get rid before it started losing value (what an idiot i was) thinking about the car now what a great motor it would be if it was available as an EV
Here's an improved version of your text in English: Hah! I’ve always thought of the i3 as the modern sibling of the A2. Funny enough, my first car was supposed to be an A2, but I was too tall for it and had trouble reaching the gas and brake pedals, while my thighs kept hitting the steering wheel. After that, we ended up getting me an i3, and I absolutely love it.
A contemporary of the A2 was the original A class lwb which could be turned into a little van by taking the seats out. The seats were very heavy though! It didn't like a strong cross wind and was very expensive to service so we didn't keep it that long. We now have an i3 which is fantastic and I plan to keep it for a very long time
The A2 is very cool, you could get sub 3L/100km on the Diesel version, and it's not "stinky". It was just Type classified for Euro 3 at release but could have passed Euro 4. They just never bothered to get a new Type classification because low sales. Great comparison of smaller city cars nether less ;)
The true predecessor of the i3 was the BMW ActiveE from 2012. The ActiveE was the test bed for the technology later applied to the i3. The same electric motor was used in both cars. Of course, they look very different since the ActiveE was based on the 1 Series ICE cars.
Dear Martin, a question regarding driving comfort (of the BMW i3s). You guys have a lot of experience with the different i3 models and I would like to know what exactly is the main cause of the fact that the i3S is (substantially) stiffer than the regular i3. Is it the springs or shock absorbers or the 20 inch rims ..... ? Is it possible to make the i3s a bit softer/more comfortable (especially the bumpy ride over ridges of my 2022 i3S bothers me). Wanted to contact you otherwise but could not find any email address. I am very impressed with your the knowledge of the BMW i3 and must say that the presentation style is very appealing to me. Keep up the good work! Regards, Frank
Hi Martin, I now drive a 2019 i3S after a lifetime of bmw ownership, in fact the i3 is my 20th BMW. Cars that stood out for me included the A2, just love the focus on weight and the longevity the aluminium provides. Wasn’t the Z1 made from plastics too? Geoff
My A2 TDi90 does 70-75mpg on long fast journeys and costs £35 a year to tax. I’m intrigued by the i3 (hence why I’m subscribed), but I’m not tempted to change it yet for something electric. When I am, it’s replacement would need to have appreciably bigger range than even the latter versions of the i3 as I do 150-200 mile motorway / A road journeys fairly regularly. Perhaps there will be an aftermarket battery upgrade by then?
Is it wrong I just skipped all the A2 bits and just wanted to hear Martin talk about the i3 as usual. Sorry Martin, I know you put effort into these videos!
The sealed Bonnet would be a deal-breaker for me, I've had a years-long struggle with rats under the bonnet, need to leave it open at night (hood actually, USA). On the tangent of efficient evs, I hope Aptera makes it into production
@@wiselyautoof course the sandwich floor of the original A Class was designed to accommodate batteries but an EV variant never appeared. Not sure the reason - perhaps battery technology did not advanced as quickly as MB had expected but more likely it was the cost that frightened MB. Didn’t though the B Class sit on the A Class platform? That of course used Tesla technology from the time Mercedes Benz had a stake in the company.
Zopar rokov uz mam A2 a je to uzasne auto co sa tyka korozie o par rokov este kupim bmw i3 ktora nahradi ako daily driver moje bmw e39 530d ktore pomaly nici hrdza
My A2 brings a smile to my face every time I use it. Way ahead of their time.
My Sunday is made up! A Wisely video with Martin - how awesome does it get! Both these cars were awesome. This is how German cars should be - engineering lead.
Martin woooo hooo. Glad to see your still with the company :)
Owned the A2 before my I3 really ground braking car super efficiency very practical as well with its easily removable rear seats.
I agree with the comparison. Both cars are the result of two leading automotive brands designing an efficient, practical city vehicle. Both were pioneers combining high-tech manufacturing and smart material choices achieving light weight yet safe body structures. Even though they´re not primarily designed for long distance driving, both are very well capable of that too (i3 fitted with a 50kW CCS port).
And people hated that Wich means no one bought them
People buy with they're lizard brains not they're human brain so for as much as they will say they don't buy it for functionality they buy for how it looks like so it has to look capable not actually be capable just like SUVs and crossovers
Martin you exude great passion for automotives. Niche cars are where its at and you are prolonging the life of these vehicles by widening their audience. Where the original sales team failed to reach i suspect.
Great to see you again Martin , working hard on the Streets of London 😂 I always wanted an A2, but heard about the non opening Bonnet and Ride Quality,It was always relatively expensive for its size as well. I still smile when I see one, wondering what might have been. When my Daughter was born (1993) I had to become more practical with Cars. So it never happened😢I’m desperate for an i3 , but have to wait until the New Year.(Happy Xmas Everyone At Wisely!)Great and Informative Video as usual. They always Cheer me up! Good luck 🤞 with the Move and See you in the next one.
Funnily enough, I have both cars right now.
Honestly I somewhat prefer ... the A2.
It's still a technical tour de force, but unlike the i3 doesn't think it's superior. The i3 is very clever, but it really wants to know it with endless warnings and chiding.
The little A2 just gets on with it in its modest, understated way, quietly delivering practicality, economy, reliability and simplicity in a way that engineer-mind folk really appreciate.
Mine is a 1.4TDi 75bhp with a later Passat Bluemotion MYP 6-speed gearbox. Mid 70's mpg on a run, great fun and getting rare.
One needs to go though and honestly I'm not sure which it'll be.
Anyway, great video, thanks Martin and Wisely!
I had an early A2 TDI and now an i3. I like a small but well appointed cars and like them both. Im kinda the other way though. Our i3 doesn't give me any warnings or nagging. Had the A2 for 4 years but did get a bit fed up with the idiosyncrasies - the noisy 'mooing' EGR valve, the crazy windscreen wiper that made the whole car shake from side to side, rattly front suspension that defied fixing. I only ever got about 55mpg lifetime average and also had issues with water ingress to the boot. i3 has been pretty good (but not perfect). Had the usual front suspension boots and top mount issues but all fixed and still works like new 8 years down the line. Plus the plastic bodywork has actually fared better than any car ive owned and looks like new. For the turning circle and cheap running alone id choose the i3 again, less so perhaps for the motorway handling! i wish manufacturers would consider making more cars like this - small but well specced and a bit 'premium' and full of new tech.
My 1st car was an Audi A2 14 years ago, and now I daily drive my i3s, what a coincidence.
I just wish the A2 was properly respected by dealerships and parts suppliers. Good cars shouldn't be forced into scrapping, especially when they're depended upon.
To be fair, mechanically they're a Polo and plenty are being broken so no shortage of A2 specific parts used.
Also Audi Heritage give the A2 a lot of support as well.
The i3s still looks so modern and fresh 😍
I’ve had four A2s and found it a very compelling package… I would love to own an i3! Great content…
Thank you sir! That was EXACTLY my thought process, I owned an A2 and the only car I ever wanted to switch to was: an electric driven A2. Than I got introduced to the BMW i3 and I was sold. The i3 is what an electric Audi A2 should have been. Thank you BMW :D
Oh wow! My A2 1.2 started failing on me and I looked into used EVs. The i3 caught my attention because when design follows function, design is so much better. And I fell for his odd look. I checked your videos and then stumbled over your videos and then I see this one and cannot believe it. I am not the only one thinking that it’s the only option for my second car…
Totally agree with the comparison. I currently have both, so not biased at all. 😀
BMW i3 shows it's true colors again. Absolutely fantastic unique car that was waaaaaaaay ahead of it's time, and this is why we own 2 of them (ha,ha,ha) Thanks for sharing this video Martin. We love the i3 videos you guys create
Brilliant video. Love the a2 and i3. The Hyundai Inster looks and feels like another spiritual A2, albeit without the clever construction tech shared by these 2
I love them both and I own both cars 👍
I loved my A2, had i3 and i3s since, keeping with compact styling, I drive a Fiat 500E, finally people let me out of junctions 😂
Thanks Martin, another great video....really enjoy your insights.
I just got an i3 and my old car was a 2016 mini cooper. When I got the mini I was surprised by the ride comfort for such a small car and I was even more surprised by the i3 riding so much softer over bumps.
Like Rusty911s2 in the comments, I also own both cars. I bought my A2 90 TDi Sport over 10 years ago. Back then it was mildly tuned for better performance lifting it from 90hp up to 120hp along with buckets of torque. Trust me it makes a dramatic difference. Mine has the full Audi body kit and leather interior. It's a thing of quality and versatility and I never get bored with it. I agree with Martin, the i3 feels the natural successor to the A2 despite one being Diesel and the other electric. My A2 is never going to be sold, in fact it's a family joke that they think I should be buried in it, which again makes sense because it won't rust. Good work Wisely....
Currently with 48 comments, there are 7 or 8 people owned an A2 at some point
I had A2's for over a dozen years. "The i3 of its time" was a comment I often aired & always went over listener's heads. Such a clever car, though. I had 3, all diesel. Were I to have another, I'd go for a petrol version (1.4 & not 1.6.....). A late Storm would be ace with plenty of goodies. Maybe, one day, Mind you, the kids loathed em..
Thanks
Thank you for your support Eugene! ❤️
Nice!
Great comparison of the best engineered small cars of the 21st century. I’m a longtime A2 owner and would love to switch to an i3, but is there any getting around the shortfall between the A2’s 390 litre boot (below the parcel shelf) and the 260 litres of an i3? Granted, the frunk adds another 20 and the Wokeby boot extension another 35, plus any child seats can be seat tethered (instead of needing a front arm), but is that enough??
excellent video - we have two A2s and they are great town and city cars which can carry enormous amounts of stuff when the seats are removed like a minivan. Keep watching Wisely i3s and they keep turning my head but our newer A2 TDi90 does 60mpg and has no rust (suspension rusts but has been replaced) and they will both go on for another 20 years at least so that feels like environmental car ownership. Its a small enhancement but the little grab handle on the entry for front seat passengers is especially welcomed by passengers with mobility issues.
BMW i3’s 0-60 is 7, but it feels so much quicker. It was my favorite city car especially in traffic. Compared to my 04 boxster s 6 spd, it was so much more fun as a daily.
Ahh boys this was an excellent watch, it brought back lots of happy memories of owning one of my favourite motors the A2. Mine was a petrol version not a smelly diesel (although I have been to the dark side by owning several diesel cars over the last 50+ driving years) my wife and I loved it and were extremely sad when we traded it in only because Audi had said they were stopping production and I thought we’d better get rid before it started losing value (what an idiot i was) thinking about the car now what a great motor it would be if it was available as an EV
Here's an improved version of your text in English:
Hah! I’ve always thought of the i3 as the modern sibling of the A2.
Funny enough, my first car was supposed to be an A2, but I was too tall for it and had trouble reaching the gas and brake pedals, while my thighs kept hitting the steering wheel. After that, we ended up getting me an i3, and I absolutely love it.
We had an A2 before the i3
A contemporary of the A2 was the original A class lwb which could be turned into a little van by taking the seats out. The seats were very heavy though!
It didn't like a strong cross wind and was very expensive to service so we didn't keep it that long.
We now have an i3 which is fantastic and I plan to keep it for a very long time
The A2 is very cool, you could get sub 3L/100km on the Diesel version, and it's not "stinky". It was just Type classified for Euro 3 at release but could have passed Euro 4. They just never bothered to get a new Type classification because low sales. Great comparison of smaller city cars nether less ;)
We are EV specialists - even Euro 6s are stinky to us 😜
@@wiselyauto Agreed :) any local emission is too much. Love my i3 BEV.
The true predecessor of the i3 was the BMW ActiveE from 2012. The ActiveE was the test bed for the technology later applied to the i3. The same electric motor was used in both cars. Of course, they look very different since the ActiveE was based on the 1 Series ICE cars.
Dear Martin, a question regarding driving comfort (of the BMW i3s). You guys have a lot of experience with the different i3 models and I would like to know what exactly is the main cause of the fact that the i3S is (substantially) stiffer than the regular i3. Is it the springs or shock absorbers or the 20 inch rims ..... ? Is it possible to make the i3s a bit softer/more comfortable (especially the bumpy ride over ridges of my 2022 i3S bothers me). Wanted to contact you otherwise but could not find any email address. I am very impressed with your the knowledge of the BMW i3 and must say that the presentation style is very appealing to me. Keep up the good work! Regards, Frank
The Audi A2 folding seats is the exactly the same feature I have on my PT Cruiser and its can be totally removed for cargo!
Excellent content 👍
Thank you! 👍
Hi Martin, I now drive a 2019 i3S after a lifetime of bmw ownership, in fact the i3 is my 20th BMW. Cars that stood out for me included the A2, just love the focus on weight and the longevity the aluminium provides. Wasn’t the Z1 made from plastics too? Geoff
My A2 TDi90 does 70-75mpg on long fast journeys and costs £35 a year to tax. I’m intrigued by the i3 (hence why I’m subscribed), but I’m not tempted to change it yet for something electric.
When I am, it’s replacement would need to have appreciably bigger range than even the latter versions of the i3 as I do 150-200 mile motorway / A road journeys fairly regularly. Perhaps there will be an aftermarket battery upgrade by then?
You hit the nail: Audi A2 and BMW i3 are closest for me as well
Sweet cars. Loved ours, would still have it if hadn't been t-boned by minicab
Mercedes A class was another similar looking car? 😊
Is it wrong I just skipped all the A2 bits and just wanted to hear Martin talk about the i3 as usual. Sorry Martin, I know you put effort into these videos!
Yep, afraid it was wrong. A2 embodies the ethos of the i3, and just like the i3 was a pioneer of its time.
A2 TDi90 to i3s Rex was my journey
Martin, if I lived near you we would be best of mates!
A2 would make a great EV.
Audi used to have a A2 EV concept back in 2011, never made it to production
The sealed Bonnet would be a deal-breaker for me, I've had a years-long struggle with rats under the bonnet, need to leave it open at night (hood actually, USA).
On the tangent of efficient evs, I hope Aptera makes it into production
Wasn't there also a 90s BMW concept that the i3 is closely based off of?
4:48 It's so high tech the wheel doesn't need to spin!
😅
My 2004 1.4 tdi 75 does 62mpg all day ever day on my 50mile commute every day
Surely the iD3 has Golf DNA 🧬? Not really A2 or i3? Nice video, enjoyed the comparison and reassured to now own an i3…which is just brilliant!!! 🎉
For me the comparaison should be done with the old A série fromagère Mercedes
Good shout!
@@wiselyautoof course the sandwich floor of the original A Class was designed to accommodate batteries but an EV variant never appeared. Not sure the reason - perhaps battery technology did not advanced as quickly as MB had expected but more likely it was the cost that frightened MB. Didn’t though the B Class sit on the A Class platform? That of course used Tesla technology from the time Mercedes Benz had a stake in the company.
'Not a lot of torque especially the petrol...'
The diesel a2s can do hill starts without even pressing the gas pedal so that statement is poor
Zopar rokov uz mam A2 a je to uzasne auto co sa tyka korozie o par rokov este kupim bmw i3 ktora nahradi ako daily driver moje bmw e39 530d ktore pomaly nici hrdza