Ronen Kleiman has been fighting a Toronto dealer over his i3’s range for 7 years—here’s how his legal victory is a net loss
- A Toronto man who alleged BMW advertised the 2014 i3 as having a 200-km range just won his suit against the dealer he leased from
- The judge awarded Ronen Kleiman $5,000 in damages, but said he must pay BMW’s $11,000 in legal fees
- Kleiman says the result – the lawsuit costing him $25,000 altogether – points to a broken system
That’s what economists call a “net loss.”
Documents suggest Kleiman was under the impression, through information gleaned from BMW Canada marketing materials, that his car was good for up to 200 kilometres of all-electric driving range in Eco Pro or Eco Pro+ mode. The defendant alleged he could barely get three-quarters that figure, citing a 160-click journey in which the car provided only 158 km of total range. This despite apparently favourable weather and a lack of extra cargo in the car.
Interestingly, Kleiman argued that, shortly after launching his suit, BMW quietly updated its website to say the 2014 i3 was actually only good for 130 kilometres of range in Comfort mode, or 160 km in Eco Pro mode — sums which are actually bang-on with what Kleiman reported. The company denies ever saying the car was good for 200 clicks.