I agree with you, that is not a tiny clown car. For the first time seeing it on photos I thought the same, but when you put it next to other cars, it looks surprisingly big (however, I have never tried it if its interior is also so roomy as it looks like):
Out of interest, are you the in the US? As I don't think the i3 is that small in the context of car sizes in other markets.
NB I also think it looks rather cute - but I've vowed never to buy another BMW.