BMW i3 2013 User Manual

BMW i3

Sheer Driving Pleasure

THE BMW i3 RESCUE GUIDELINE.

EDITORIAL.

The year 2012 marked a global turning point in electric vehicles, as growth rates started to increase rapidly. In the years to come,
the recovery of vehicles involved in an accident and fitted with a high-voltage battery is expected to become more and more of an
issue for rescue crews such as yourself. You should therefore be prepared to have to recover such vehicles in the near future.

The German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA) has drawn up a list of key recommendations for on-site emergency
team operations. This list addresses general questions relating to the potential dangers of vehicles with high-voltage systems.
However, as with conventional vehicles, different models have different requirements. This also applies to the BMW i3, which
completely redefines electro-mobility. As the safety of rescue crews was at the forefront when designing the BMW i3, it comes with
its own recommendations.

In close cooperation with several experts therefore, two documents have been created that are crucial to how you behave at the
scene of an accident: the rescue manual and the rescue card.

Both documents are available to download free of charge from the BMW website:

https://oss.bmw.de/index.jsp

The VDA answers frequently asked questions. These can be downloaded at the following address:

http://www.vda.de/en/publikationen/publikationen_downloads/index.html

These documents are also supplemented by the rescue guideline. The aim of this guideline is to clearly present the BMW i3 and
its key safety features. Please use the manual to gain a general overview. More detailed and binding instructions for specific accidents –
which we hope are rare – can be found in the rescue card and manual.

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The following chapter provides an introduction to the BMW i3, followed by an overview of the relevant safety features for rescue crews
such as yourself. The order of presentation follows the order of events in an accident:

THE BMW i3 AT A GLANCE.

1

SAFETY FEATURES OF THE BMW i3 AT A GLANCE.

2

RESCUE.

3

ELECTRICAL HAZARD.
THE PRACTICABILITY OF THE RESCUE ITSELF.

EXTINGUISH.

4
5

RECOVER.

BREAKDOWN ASSISTANCE AND MINOR ACCIDENTS.

6
7

STORE, INSPECT, SECURE.

A list of resources can be found from page 40 onwards.

1

THE BMW i3 AT A GLANCE.

THE BMW i3 IS THE FIRST REVOLUTION
WHICH STANDS IN THE SERVICE OF SAFETY.

The BMW i3 completely redefines not only the automobile, but also the entire automobile industry.

No other vehicle takes such a holistic approach to sustainability throughout the value chain: in the BMW factory in Leipzig, carbon
is mass-produced using 100% renewable energies. Sustainable materials preserve resources while simultaneously fulfilling the
highest premium standards. The emission-free drive system eDrive ensures incomparable acceleration from a standstill. And last
but not least, thanks to the LifeDrive concept, the entire vehicle architecture is purpose-built to meet electro-mobility requirements.
One such requirement is safety. A factor that was prioritised right from the development stage.

The result:
A vehicle that also redefines safety.

4 5

THE BMW i3 AT A GLANCE.

1

THE LIFEDRIVE CONCEPT.
TWO MODULES, ONE GOAL: SUSTAINABLE SAFETY.

Unlike conventional electric vehicles, an electric motor is not simply integrated in the traditional vehicle architecture.
With its LifeDrive concept, the BMW i3 architecture is designed to meet the needs of electro-mobility.

For example, the passenger cell and thus the Life module are made almost entirely from carbon. The result is a vehicle that weighs
just 1,195 kg, offsetting the additional weight of the high-voltage battery. This is mounted in the underbody of the Drive module,
where it ensures a low centre of gravity and outstanding performance characteristics. Furthermore, besides being positioned exactly
where statistically the least impact is expected in the event of an accident, it is also well protected in the event of a side crash.

TOGETHER, THE LIFE AND DRIVE MODULES REVOLUTIONISE THE SAFETY OF
AUTOMOBILES:

While the carbon cell creates an extremely robust survival space for passengers, the aluminium Drive module at the front and rear
of the vehicle effectively absorbs the energy despite the relatively short crumple zone.

THE BMW i3 AT A GLANCE.

1

The result: The BMW i3 achieved the highest rating of five stars in the Euro NCAP crash tests governing occupant protection and
child protection that coincided with its market launch. As expected, the electric car matches the performance of the best conventionally
powered vehicles in its segment in the area of passive safety. The testers noted an exceptionally low risk of injury in both front and side
impacts, as well as in the Pole Side Impact test. Particularly striking here was the low degree of deformation in the CFRP passenger
cell, which also enhances the effectiveness of the restraint systems.

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THE BMW i3 AT A GLANCE.

1

THE BMW i3 AT A GLANCE.

1

THE HIGH-VOLTAGE BATTERY.
DESIGNED BY BMW. HIGHLY PRAISED BY THE PRESS.

The high-voltage battery is what we like to call the BMW i3’s tank. It provides the necessary power to the electric motor. Unlike other
manufacturers, BMW designs these batteries itself. This ensures maximum safety and outstanding performance. Here, too, we find the
perfect symbiosis of dynamics and sustainability: the regenerative energy used to produce aluminium and the green electricity used
for charging fully offset the emissions generated during battery production. The driving characteristics of the BMW i3 have been highly
praised by journalists from all over the world who tested the vehicle in Maisach. We therefore highly recommend experiencing the
BMW i3 for yourself on a test drive.

Uwe Dreher, global marketing director for BMW, writes:

The fascinating and unique driving feeling and typical BMW driving pleasure that the electric BMW i3 has to offer is best experienced
by actually driving the car.

The high-voltage battery is so safe in the underbody of the vehicle that it will remain intact in most accidents. This increases the safety
of both occupants and rescue crews.

Vehicle charging socket at the vehicle.

1 4

2

3

Convenient charging electronics.

8 9

Electrical machine.

Electrical refrigerant compressor.Electrical machine electronics.

5

6

High-voltage battery unit. Electric heating.

7

7

1

2

3

4

5

6

SUMMARY.

PURPOSE-BUILT
FOR ELECTRO-MOBILITY.

!

AND FOR MAXIMUM
SAFETY.

The BMW i3 is the world’s first
purpose-built premium electric
vehicle. This means that every
detail was designed to meet
electro-mobility requirements.
And from the very start, safety
was a top priority.

Not just the safety of occupants,
but also of rescue crews such as
yourself. This brochure provides a
detailed introduction to the BMW i3
safety concept and is dedicated
to you.

SAFETY FEATURES OF THE BMW i3 AT A

2

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GLANCE.

THE BMW i3 OFFERS A HIGH LEVEL OF SAFETY.
FOR RESCUE CREWS, TOO.

The BMW i3 was rolled out in October 2013. And naturally, even an electric vehicle as safe as this can be involved in an accident.
So how does this affect you? Will there be any risks involved during rescue, recovery and extinguishing operations? Can an electrical,
thermal and toxic hazard ever be completely ruled out? The following will provide answers to the most important questions. Even before
its market launch, the BMW i3 demonstrated a high level of safety for occupants and rescue crews in extensive tests.

You can therefore rest assured that:

The BMW i3 offers maximum safety for rescue crews, too.

SAFETY FEATURES OF THE BMW i3 AT A GLANCE.

2

SAFETY FEATURES OF THE BMW i3 AT A GLANCE.

2

ELECTRICAL HAZARD:
HAVE NO FEAR.

You may be wondering whether you are at risk of an electric shock when touching the BMW i3 after an accident. Because
safety was a top priority from the outset when designing the vehicle, you can rest assured that the BMW i3 is safe to touch.

The BMW i3 is fundamentally an ‘intrinsically safe’ high-voltage vehicle. In this case, ‘intrinsically safe’ means that the system
switches itself off in the event of a crash with airbag deployment. Simultaneously, the cables outside of the high-voltage battery
automatically discharge in just a few seconds. Therefore, by the time you arrive at the scene of the accident, there will no longer
be any electrical potential in the orange cables. Additional measures have also been taken. The entire high-voltage system is
self-contained.

THIS MEANS:
It is completely isolated and has no conductive connection to the body. Furthermore, all high-voltage components in the vehicle
are positioned in such a way that they will only be damaged in the event of an extremely serious accident. Take, for example, the
high-voltage battery: this is housed in a sealed compartment in the underbody of the vehicle, which is outside the crash zone for
most accidents. All these measures virtually exclude almost any risk for rescue crews such as yourself.
The German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA) clearly concluded that:

‘The risk of personal injury caused by an electric shock can very likely be excluded.’

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1

THERMAL HAZARD DUE TO HIGH-VOLTAGE BATTERY:
AT LEAST AS SAFE AS CONVENTIONAL VEHICLES.

The most pressing concern in the event of a fire is whether the high-voltage battery will explode. Extensive measures have
also been taken here. The high-voltage battery and its individual cells are fitted with mechanical safety devices, for example
gas discharge vent in the individual lithium-ion cells as well as a gas discharge vent in the high-voltage battery. These open
when the temperature or pressure increases. This ensures the targeted release of gas and pressure, for instance in the event
of a fire.

The battery has also proven safe in the event of a fire.

The vehicle inspection association DEKRA reached the following conclusion:

‘We have carried out extensive tests – including the fire behaviour, temperature
and smoke development, and what would be required to extinguish the fire, plus
the pollution caused by run-off of the water used for fighting the fire. We have
concluded that electric and hybrid vehicles fitted with lithium-ion drive batteries
are at least as safe as vehicles with conventional drive systems in the event of a fire.’2

Basically, it can be said that much less smoke and flames develop from energy stores
than from burning petrol. The German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA)
also ascertained that:

‘An explosion of high-voltage energy stores can almost certainly be ruled out.’

3

Gas discharge outlet