Aims i8 At U.S. Market.
BMW unveiled its second electric car at the Frankfurt Car Show today – the i8 supercar plug-in hybrid – and said it will go on sale in America next spring priced at $135,925, before taxes.
In a statement also released from its Woodlake, N.J., U.S. headquarters, BMW said the 2+2 sports car would have a twin-turbo three-cylinder, 1.5 liter, 231 hp gasoline engine with power sent to the rear wheels via a six-speed automatic gearbox, and a 131 hp electric motor sending power through the front wheels. There’s a lithium-ion high-voltage battery.
This would power the i8 from rest to 60 mph in just over four seconds. Average fuel consumption would be 112 miles per gallon. We’ll see about that.
And it’s not just the motor which is hi-tech. BMW says the rest of the car is cutting edge too.
“The second model unveiled by the new BMW “i” brand (the i3 being the first) combines a plug-in hybrid drive system with a passenger cell made from carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic and an aluminum frame for the combustion engine and electric motor, the battery pack and the suspension,” BMW said.
BMW has been designing the car since 2007.
“More than 1,000 people have taken part in the studies, racking up in excess of 20 million miles at the wheel. The knowledge gained as a result has been channeled into the creation of innovative vehicle concepts and mobility solutions,” BMW said.
“The BMW i8 was conceived from the ground up as a plug-in hybrid sports car boasting agile performance attributes and extraordinary efficiency,” according to the company.
BMW said the car’s range on electric power alone is up to 22 miles with a top speed of 75 mph. The more powerful of the two engines drives the rear wheels and uses the electric boost from the hybrid system to deliver power while at the same time offering groundbreaking levels of efficiency. The high-voltage battery was developed and produced by BMW. It has a liquid cooling system, offers a maximum usable capacity of five kilowatt hours and can be recharged from a conventional 110 volt power outlet.
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