Daily Auto News BMW Bringing Electric City Car to U.S.
Daily Auto News
BMW may have a reputation as a manufacturer of performance-oriented luxury automobiles, but even the German stalwart is changing in the face of high gas prices. According to Automobile Magazine, BMW CEO Norbert Reithofer “has confirmed that the company is working on a new subcompact city car,” like the tiny Smart Fortwo, “which will be offered with either a conventional engine or an electric propulsion system.”.
We’ve heard rumors of an electric BMW in the works since March, but this is the first official word from the company itself that the ultimate teeny-tiny, emissions-free driving machine is on its way.
The U.K.’s AutoCar reports, “There’s no news on whether the car will wear the BMW badge, but BMW has previously said it was considering launching a fourth, ‘green’ brand. Reviving the old Isetta marque is said to be one of the possibilities.” The car could be in U.S. showrooms in 2012.
BMW has had tremendous success with a similar nostalgia project — reviving a British classic with its MINI Cooper. The Isetta was an Italian-designed microcar built by BMW and several other European automakers in the 1950′s and ’60′s.
BMW has shifted its attention toward fuel-efficiency in recent months. AutoWeek notes, “The dramatic worldwide shift toward smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles has reduced production of BMW’s large-displacement engines to a trickle.” The company has cut shifts at factories producing eight-, ten- and twelve-cylinder engines, and is developing a new four-cylinder that it may bring stateside, depending on whether John McCain or Barack Obama wins the U.S. presidential election.
Automobile notes that BMW has “experimented with electric city cars in the past,” but comments, “the company seems to take this new project much more seriously. California’s new mandate, which calls for zero-emission vehicles with a 200-mile range by 2012, is perhaps the biggest driving factor for the new car.” That same mandate has led BMW to experiment with electric MINIs in California. A tiny electric Smart competitor with a nostalgic look could be the next logical step for the German giant.
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