BMW has revealed more details on the upcoming i8 plug in hybrid sports car that is set to make its debut at the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show. It is the second vehicle in the i-range of cars from the German automaker and is expected to be the most premium in the range. The car has already been spied testing on multiple occasions and from the look of it seems to be a more contemporary iteration of the 8-series range of car from the mid 1990s.
The BMW i8 as is the case with the ‘i’ nomenclature is a plugin hybrid that will be powered by a 1.5-litre three cylinder mill and an electric motor. The petrol engine will produce 234PS and power the rear-wheels via a six-speed automatic transmission while the electric motor will be drive the front wheels and will produce 97PS.
The combined output has been pegged at 325PS and 420Nm of torque. Both engines can work together, technically giving it the German Automaker’s “X drive” capability, a 0-100kmph time of 4.5 seconds and an electronically limited top speed of 250kmph. Running on just the electric motor gives the i8 a range of 35km and a top speed of 120kmph, however achieving both the number may seem a little dicey.
Like we said before, BMW seems to have stuck onto the original design of the 8 Series and has made the i8 as road hugging as possible. The lithium-ion batteries have been mounted along a central tunnel which is liquid cooled. They charged up via a US spec 120 volt, 12amp plug point or using regenerative braking. All the drive train components forged from aluminium, have been fitted low down to keep the centre of gravity as low as possible.
In addition the aluminium in the drive train, BMW has made the passenger cabin using a carbon fibre reinenforced plastic. Both these measure alone have offset significant amount of weight that the batteries provide. Another notable innovation on the i8 that we will expect to see on future BMWs is the use of a chemically hardened glass that is just 0.7mm thick but provides the same effect as that of the glass on a luxury car.
While the i8 may not be in the league of other plug in hybrid sports cars like the SLS AMG Electric Drive or the Ferrari LaFerrari for very obvious reasons, its drive setup and innovative design should make it quite a viable product. This also means the legendary 8 Series gets introduced to a new generation of BMW enthusiasts albeit in a very different way.
Source: Motor Authority
