Dan Prosser from Evo magazine presents a very intriguing challenge here by pitting a Porsche 911 Carrera GTS against a BMW i8 on the track.
We’ll let the cat out of the bag early, the i8 couldn’t match the 911 for outright lap times. In fact, it’s not even close. But can the i8 match the 911 for laughs and entertainment? Beyond that, is the i8 a serious dynamic competitor for the 911?
You’ll have to watch the video to find out.
Now that the BMW i8 is on sale in Australia this video from the car’s first “dynamic” UK appearance at the Goodwood Festival of Speed takes on new meaning.
So what is this three-cylinder jobbie with electric sparkles really like? Watch this video to find out. It won’t give you a definitive answer, but it’s still worth watching, even if just to see the impressive line up of supercars the i8 followed up the hill.
A couple of weeks ago BMW Australia announced pricing for the very cool looking and very green i8 hybrid sportscar. It’s three hundred grand if you’re wondering. To promote the Australian sales launch the BMWi “supercar” is touring across the six dealerships in six states who have been nominated as official selling dealers.
Luckily for us here at AUSmotive Rolfe Classic BMW in Canberra made the cut. We received an email last week inviting us along to inspect the car later this week. However, a scheduling bonus meant the Canberra dealer could get the car last Friday and it has been on display since. Word filtered our way quickly, Canberra is a small town after all, and we went along last Saturday for a sticky beak.
The i8 was officially unveiled in Frankfurt late last year and the likes of Chris Harris have described it as “mighty, mighty achievement”.
It’s a plug-in hybrid which sends 170kW/320Nm to the rear wheels, thanks to a fearsome 1.5 litre three cylinder petrol turbo, while the front axle is powered by a 96kW/250Nm electric motor. The total combined output of the i8 is 266kW/570Nm, enough to get the car to 100km/h in 4.4 seconds.
Play nicely and you can almost drive to the moon and back, such is the frugal nature of its fuel consumption (2.1l/100km according to the spec sheet beside the car).
Of course, it’s the flowing lines and dramatic nature of the i8 which hold as much appeal to any petrolhead (or should that be volthead now) as the car’s technical specifications. There’s cleverly crafted nooks and crannies wherever you look and the aesthetic results are plain to see.
The drama only increases when the winged doors open and invite you into the cabin. There’s raw carbon fibre reinforced plastic hinting at the car’s lightweight underbelly before a typically teutonic interior greets you with a few more flashes of personality than you usually see inside a BMW these days.
Although, it’s a shame in a way that much of the car’s futuristic styling is lost with the black Sophisto Grey Brilliant Effect paintwork. That said, the i8 is a beautiful object to admire and we only hope it does good things for BMW on the sales front so that Munich’s bold foray into hybrid sportscars is both encouraged and sustainable.
The i8 is in Canberra until next Tuesday (8 July) and will also visit Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth (it may have visited some or all of those locations already, check with the dealer list below to confirm).
We reckon you should make the effort to check out the i8. For one thing it looks fantastic, but, as a means of providing a long-term solution for the sportcar genre, it’s probably a lot more important than we realise right now.
With LaFerrari reviews hitting the internet on the same day as this BMW i8 review Chris Harris himself described it as, “Like selling ice-cream in the Antarctic.”
However, this video is Harris in some of his best form. And there’s not one single power slide! He did try, he says.
What makes this review so good is his ability to describe the car in a way that almost makes you feel like you’re there with him. Nothing can replace the seat of the pants feel for yourself, of course, but Harris does a pretty good job.
The BMW i8 is powered by a 1.5 litre three-cylinder petrol engine and an electric motor. It weighs almost 1500kg, yet can still reach 100km/h in less than five seconds. And, according to Harris, it can easily dust a WRX on twisty roads. It looks like the future and sounds a bit like a 911, apparently.
It’s not perfect, yet, but what car is?
Like us you probably haven’t had a chance to duck over to Europe to check out the Geneva Motor Show. So here’s the first of a two part series bringing you a selection of the cars on show. Here we start with Alfa Romeo and go through to Lexus.
The BMW i8 is another car we’ve spent a long time with on the journey from original concept to the production model you see here today. Last month BMW shared with us much of the technical specification, now we just get to see the car without the crazy camouflage.
Having seen the Vision EfficientDynamics with our own eyes at the Australian International Motor Show in 2011 we were amazed at the level of finish and fine details. Predictably, perhaps, some of that finesse appears to have been lost.
The i8 is a plug-in hybrid sportscar that’s fast enough, but we don’t expect it to be scaring the likes of Porsche any time soon. The rear wheels are powered by a 170kW/320Nm 1.5 litre three cylinder petrol turbo and the front axle is powered by a 96kW/250Nm electric motor. The total combined output of the i8 is 266kW/570Nm.
Weighing in at 1490kg, BMW says the i8 can accelerate to 100km/h in 4.4 seconds and has a top speed limited to 250km/h. In full electric mode the i8 is limited to 120km/h and has a predicted range range of around 35km. Its overall range is over 500km, thanks largely to the three cylinder petrol engine sipping fuel at the rate of just 2.5l/100km on the combined cycle.
There’s more pics and a detailed press kit for you to download after the break.
The i8 hybrid sportscar will be one of the stars on the BMW stand at the Frankfurt Motor Show. And at 11,000m2 it’s going to be some stand!
BMW has set up a dedicated blog to bring us closer to the creation of their mega display, including a number of pictures of the build. Construction of the stand began back in July and has involved over 350 people.
Wolfram Greiner, manager for BMW Group trade fair presentations, tells us more:
After the round track in 2009 and 2011, we decided to take the presentation to a new level with our the concept of “infinite driving pleasure†as a figure 8 or lemniscate. With this track form we create a direct experience of the products on the 70-meter long straight at the visitor’s platform. In doing so, two stages emerge. A large stage for emotional images and the so-called BMW i lounge in which innovations and functions of the BMW i vehicles will be presented in a moderated format. In addition, our new BMW product geniuses are a novel new way to present the vehicles in a completely new way, the focus this time being on our BMW i Series.
[Source: IAA blog]
Harry Metcalfe from Evo gives us a very interesting look at the innovative BMW i8 hybrid sportscar with this early drive. Who knew a three cylinder turbo would sound so good inside the cabin!
[Thanks to Tiaan for the tip]
Hot on the heels of its i3 city car, BMW has given an official preview of its i8 plug-in hybrid sportscar ahead of its debut at next month’s Frankfurt Motor Show. The rear wheels are powered by a 170kW/320Nm 1.5 litre three cylinder turbo and the front axle is powered by a 96kW/250Nm electric motor. The total combined output of the i8 is 266kW/570Nm.
Weighing in at around 1490kg, BMW says the i8 can accelerate to 100km/h in around 4.5 seconds and has a top speed limited to 250km/h. In full electric mode the i8 is limited to 120km/h and has a predicted range range of around 35km. Its overall range will be closer to 500km, thanks largely to the three cylinder petrol engine sipping fuel at the rate of just 2.5l/100km on the combined cycle.
A reliance on carbon-fibre reinforced plastic and aluminium has helped keep weight down, which has been distributed at close to 50:50 over each axle. Slick aerodynamics result in a drag coefficient value of 0.26, which is pretty good.
The i8 can trace its roots back to the spectacular Vision EfficientDynamics, first shown in 2009. Now, almost ready for production, BMW describes the i8 driving experience by saying:
Variable front-rear power splitting in line with changing driving conditions makes for excitingly dynamic cornering. On entering the corner, the power split is biased towards the rear wheels to improve turning precision. For more vigorous acceleration out of the corner, the powertrain controller returns to the default split as soon as the steering angle becomes smaller again.
You can read more about the BMW i8 by downloading the abridged press release (295kb PDF) and we’ll bring you full details at Frankfurt Motor Show time.