BMW i8 spy shots
BMW i8 spy shots Latest spy shots reveal production-ready version of petrol-electric BMW i8 supercar
The BMW i8 is edging nearer to production, as these spy shots prove. In the past, the petrol-electric supercar has been revealed with styling features that aren’t feasible for production, but this camouflaged prototype gives the best hint yet at what to expect when the car goes on sale in 2013.
The glass doors of the concept car look to have been dropped, the sharp nose has been smoothed slightly and the headlights have been moved further forwards in the bonnet. Other touches like the wing mirrors and rear bumper have been tweaked too.
While the original Vision EfficientDynamics concept was powered by a 1.5-litre three-cylinder diesel engine and electric motors, the most recent i8 concept swapped the diesel for a four-cylinder petrol engine with 220bhp, and it’s likely to stay that way for production.
The petrol engine is mounted at the rear and drives the rear wheels, while the 129bhp electric motor is mounted underneath the bonnet and drives the front wheels. Working together the motors provide a total of 349bhp, allowing the i8 to accelerate from 0-62mph in 4.6 seconds.
A lightweight carbon fibre-reinforced plastic construction means the petrol-electric supercar should weigh around 1.5 tonnes. That low kerbweight also helps the i8 to achieve fuel economy of around 100mpg and CO2 emissions of 70g/km.Â
A full charge of the batteries will take close to two hours, and BMW has claimed in the past that the overall range will be around 400 miles.Â
When the i8 goes on sale in 2013 it will cost around £150,000. It will be the flagship model in the BMW ‘i’ range, which will also include the small i3 all-electric city car.
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