BMW i8 @ IAA Frankfurt 2013 autoshow

On September 21 I visited the IAA Frankfurt 2013 motorshow with my brothers. BMW had an amazing stand at the autoshow, including a nice track / circuit to show their electric vehicles: the BMW i3 and i8.

This video shows the BMW i8 on the BMW stand at the IAA Frankfurt Autosalon 2013. The BMW i8 will be for sale at the beginning of next year and is a sportscar with electric engine and a normal petrol motor in the i-label model range that BMW has introduced. The BMW i8 has a 1.5 litre 3-cylinder TwinPower turbo engine which has 231 hp and 320nm torque. This engine is the powertrain for the rear axle. The front axle is driven by an electric motor which has 131 hp and 250nm torque. The BMW i8 has a total power of 362 hp and a torque of 570nm, the sprint from 0 - 100 km/h (0-60 mph) takes 4,5 seconds. The top speed of the BMW i8 is limited to 250 km/h (which is also an European limit). The BMW i8 consumes 2,5 litre fuel per 100km and has a Co2-emission of 59 grams per kilometer. The i8 has a range of just only 35 kilometers when running fully electric. With the fuel engine helping as a range extender the i8 has a range of 500 km.

The BMW i8 is made of CFRP, which is a combination of plastic with carbon fiber. The i8 is a pretty big car (it has a length of 4m70) and has a kerb weight of 1.490 kg. The dashboard is made of magnesium. Also the windows are lighter than a normal production car: the windows are made of chemical hardened glass which makes a window about 50% lighter than normal glass. The wheels are made of special aluminum and these rims have size of 20 inch. A very cool car in my opinion. But the BMW i8 won't be cheap: it will cost about 120.000 Euro, which sets the i8 in the price range of the Audi R8, Porsche 911 and Jaguar F-type. But the running costs of the i8 will be much lower and the car has a perfect weight distribution of 50:50. It might be a big competitor in its range.