BMW i8 - Prj. i12 (Spy)

[Touareg 2.5]

WS

E ancora altre foto .

[J-Gian]

Questa è interessante imho, o almeno m'incuriosisce

[Matteo B.]

gomme strettissime per le prestazioni che ha, molto curioso di leggere come va.

mi par di aver letto in giro 135k euro però.....

[ricky1750]

il 30 c'era un prototipo in autobahn poco a sud di Stoccarda.. era dall'altra parte (andava in direzione monaco), faceva abbastanza la sua scena..

[astorj]

sta girando, insieme alla nuova mini, lungo i passi dolomitici..per chi è da quelle parti occhio occhio occhio

[gigione1]

BMW i8 review, specs, price and video

Rating:

We take a drive in the new BMW i8, the comapany's new plug-in hybrid sportscar. Review, video, spec and price details here

By Harry Metcalfe

August 2013

What is it?

According to BMW, the i8 is ‘a real-world performance car’, with the ability to run 22 miles on electric power, crack 0-62mph in 4.5secs and top out at a limited 155mph.

BMW is yet to announce official figures, but the g/km CO2 rating is expected to fall below 59g/CO2, with a combined fuel consumption rating of 113mpg. Being a plug-in hybrid, the UK government will give you a £5000 subsidy towards buying one. Even so, expect to pay £95,000 for the privilege when this classy BMW arrives in showrooms in April or May 2014.

Technical Highlights?

The i8 is so stuffed of technology, it’s hard to know where to start. Power comes from three different sources: There’s a 130bhp electric motor up front, powering the front wheels via a 2-speed gearbox, then there’s a transverse 3-cylinder, 1499cc turbocharged engine sitting mid-ship – kicking out 230bhp and 236lb ft of torque to the rear wheels via a six-speed automatic gearbox.

The petrol engine is then also assisted by a 10KW electric motor-come-generator (connected to the engine via a belt) tasked with starting the engine, generating electricity or produce a quick burst of torque whenever the turbo is spooling up to eliminate turbo-lag.

Added together, this gives a total of 360bhp and 420lb ft of torque available to the driver, offering decent performance. Kerb weight is less than 1490kg thanks to the i8’s carbon fibre construction, and extensive use of aluminium for the front and rear sub-frames. Also helping to keep weight to a minimum is the lithium-ion battery, which only has a capacity of approximately 7kwh (and positioned down the spine of the car). This is around a third of the size of BMW’s i3 battery.

What’s it like to drive?

In a word, intriguing. You bring the i8 to life by pushing a ‘start button’, triggering an electronic ‘bong’ as the dash springs to life in front of you. Pull the gear selector into ‘Drive’, brush the accelerator and the i8 creeps away in complete silence.

As speed grows, there’s a noticeable whine from the front motor. It’s in no way unpleasant, and gives you the distinct impression that you’re in something special. Go beyond 40mph, or push the accelerator to the floor, and the 3-cylinder petrol engine comes into play. At part throttle, you notice it working, but push harder and a distinctive (almost 911-like) warble swirls around the cabin.

For the full i8 experience, though, you need to select ‘Sport’ mode. Only then does the i8 feel quick. As the engine whips around to its 7000rpm limiter, that warble gains a harder edge that’s particularly addictive. What’s most impressive is that you never sense that the front motor is fighting with the rear engine for attention. Driving an i8 feels entirely natural, with no excessive re-gen on the over-run either.

There’s more understeer than expected on initial turn-in, but the engineers think this can be dialed out before customer cars are delivered. Ignoring this, the car feels neutral, with crisp, lightweight and accurate steering – which encourages you to explore the outer limits of the talented chassis.

You sense that because the battery pack sits so low, and the tiny power plants are packaged as close to the centre of the car as possible – the balance of the chassis is near perfect, giving the i8 an impressive deftness through the corners. The only fly in the ointment is that the quoted 0-62mph time of 4.5secs over-flatters the actual performance on offer, and I suspect that this impressive time is a result of the i8’s excellent four-wheel traction and instant torque that all electric motors deliver. The i8 is not in any way slow, but neither is it as punchy as you’d expect.

How does it compare?

There’s nothing like an i8 out there right now. The Fisker Karma came close, but was essentially a full electric car with the engine acting as a range-extender - so very different to the i8. It’s also no longer in production, and weighed 900kg more than the BMW.

Comparing the i8 to a Porsche 911 C4S is hard too, because the philosophy between the two cars is so different. The Porsche offers much more performance and would be dramatically quicker on track, but then the Porsche doesn’t boast 22-mile electric only range or fuel consumption to rival the best super minis on sale today.

One car that might prove a threat is the next-generation Honda NSX, which uses similar technology to the i8, but will have a much bigger engine, delivering 30 per cent more power. It’s expected to weigh more too, although it’s too early to say how it will compare.

Anything else I need to know?

I expect that the tyres fitted to the i8 will be a major discussion point in the future. They’re not conventional performance tyres optimised for ultimate grip, but for low rolling resistance and fuel economy. They’re also relatively narrow, with 195 section front and 215 section rear – so they don’t provide the sort of grip you get from the 245/35 ZR20 front, 305/30 ZR20 rear tyres Porsche fits to the 911 C4S.

You reach the i8’s road-holding limits much earlier, but because the chassis is so fundamentally right, this actually makes it more enjoyable. Just as the Toyota GT-86/Subaru BRZ twins have shown, there’s more to driver enjoyment than ultimate cornering speed, and it’s the same story when you drive the i8 for the first time.

So the i8 is not an BMW M3 replacement or 911 rival; it’s much cleverer than that. Think of it as a downsized Porsche 918 for a tenth of the price, and you’ll be getting close. We’ll know more when we drive production versions early next year, but from this early pre-drive, we know the i8 is going to be very special indeed.

BMW i8 review, price, specs and video

Modificato 10 Agosto 2013 da gigione1

[Trucido]

I miei due cents:

Giudizio: Strana... ma tutto compreso - un bel quattro.

Guida: Sportiveggiante

Motore: che noioso.. diesel 3 cilindri..e motore elletrico.

Prezzo: sui 120t €, decisamente troppo

Spazio: come nella XL1, possibile costruire macchine che ne abbiano un po´ di più? Continuavo a sbattere la testa contro il tetto. Porte, belle da vedere, complicate da usare..

Se la macchina fa senso? No.

T!

[KALEL]

La menano con la 911 ma, a me, pare più piccola come dimensioni o sbaglio ?? Tipo Lotus. Il 3 cilindri montato su questa è Diesel ??

[ricky1750]

La menano con la 911 ma, a me, pare più piccola come dimensioni o sbaglio ?? Tipo Lotus. Il 3 cilindri montato su questa è Diesel ??

Se è quella che ho visto io la cosa che si avvicina di più come aspetto/dimensioni è una r8... Tieni conto che era nella corsia opposta dell'autobahn

[Kippur]

Il 3 cilindri montato su questa è Diesel ??

No, ma il carattere è quello.