BMW i8 review: feel the charge

Given its stunning and futuristic design, it’s easy to forget that the BMW i8 is not just a remarkable looker. In its own right, the car is also a technological masterpiece, which presents a major advance in terms of both technology as well as materials in the world of sports cars. Underneath its sharp lines and attractive shape, lies a cabin made out of carbon fibre reinforced plastic and aluminium, both materials that are lightweight and technologically advanced. In fact, carbon fibre has been one of the most exciting materials in the recent past, as it offers a combination of unbelievable strength and yet is atrociously lightweight–a dream for any automotive engineer to work with. Such is BMW’s focus on carbon fibre and its potential that it has recently developed a new facility just to produce the material and the brand intends to use the material widely in its line-up of cars other than the i range.

The other unique thing about the i8 is the plug-in hybrid powertrain, which, in this case, is used not only for its environmental benefits, but also for the performance it offers with its combination of a regular turbocharged petrol engine and electric motors. The combined output of the i8 then is 357bhp and given its low weight due to the carbon construction, the i8 rockets from 0-100 in just 4.4 seconds, while top speed is electronically limited to 250kmph. And that’s not all–the i8’s on-board battery, when fully charged, gives it the capability to drive the car for up to 35kms on electric power alone, and it can achieve speeds up to 120kmph while running purely on electric mode. However, when the driver demands complete performance from the car, both the petrol engine and electric motors work in combination to deliver seamless performance.

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The most stunning fact, however, is that despite all this performance capability and the stunning looks, the i8 delivers fuel efficiency figures that till recently were unheard of for a sports car. BMW claims that under ideal test conditions, the car can deliver figures of up to 47.45kml, which, frankly, something even the most fuel efficient cars fail to match. So, there it is… perhaps the first glimpse at what the supercars of the near future will look like, gorgeous looking, intelligently built and offering amazing performance levels with exemplary fuel efficiency and negligible environmental emissions. Sounds like a win-win solution to us.

Design

Based on the exemplary Efficient Dynamics concept car of 2009, the i8 presents a unique design that has futuristic design cues and delivers excellent aerodynamic performance. The butterfly doors, the design swoop that forms the tail lights and the extra-wide double kidney grille ensure that one will never mistake the i8 for any other beast.

Body

The i8’s body features a revolution in the materials used to construct it. The body is mainly made out of carbon fibre reinforced plastic, which result in a very low kerb weight, and it’s one of the first production cars in the world to use this material on such a large scale. Expect to see carbon fibre to be used much more in the cars of the near future.

Engines

Featuring a three-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine paired with a 129bhp electric battery mounted on the front axle, the i8 has a combined power output of 357bhp, which given its light weight offers exemplary performance. As it is a plug-in hybrid, the i8’s can be charged via a wall mounted socket in under two-and-a-half hours.

Cabin

The interiors of the i8 leave no stone unturned to make the occupants feel that they truly are in a car of the future. With the centre console tilted towards the driver in typical BMW fashion, it makes no excuses in expressing that the focus of the car is towards the driver. The i8 also comes fitted with the latest generation of BMW’s iDrive system with touch controller and handwriting recognition. It also features an 8.8-inch screen with 3D maps and a full colour head-up display.

From the June 2015 issue of FHM India.