BMW i8

Design

The front appears extremely low and wide. Everything is arranged to be optimally aerodynamic. Drag of only 0.26 cW leaves no doubt that the BMW i8 is a sports car.

Long wheelbase, short overhangs, solid status as it crouches on the street: the BMW i8 has all the characteristics of a full-blooded sports car. The front appears extremely low and wide. Everything is arranged to be optimally aerodynamic.

Dynamic proportions show off its acceleration potential even when it’s standing still; and yet it doesn’t rely on being a pure-blooded sports car. Its aesthetics always follow a functional goal: for example, more aerodynamics for maximum efficiency and absolute performance.

Surfaces and lines overlap and interlock, a method known as ‘layering’. This joins all the surfaces harmoniously and allows compact and unbelievably agile look.

All lighting elements are completely in LED and low-beam and high-beam are widely spaced. The optional high-beam headlights with laser light technology (available in a special edition from the end of 2014 onwards) include a typical BMW i U-shaped frame.

The consistently sporty look of the exterior is continued seamlessly in the interior of the BMW i8. All elements are light and dynamically positioned. In the interior, the layering principle creates a novel relationship between functionality and clear form.

Drive.

Combustion engine and electric drive interact precisely, while the exceptional control of all flows of energy results in an optimal combination of efficiency and dynamics.

A BMW TwinPower Turbo 1.5-litre three-cylinder petrol engine with 170 kW (231 hp) of peak performance and the electric drivetrain with 96 kW (131 hp) accelerate the BMW i8 from 0 to 100 km/h in 4.4 s. And all this with consumption of just 2.5 l/100 km and CO2 emissions of 59 g/km.

Efficiency.

Thanks to the innovative LifeDrive vehicle architecture, the BMW i8 fulfils the ideal conditions for weight-optimised construction – with an extremely low centre of gravity 50:50 axle distribution. The perfect basis for the characteristics of a classic sports car.