Comments suggest next-generation might come as a REEV…
When you talk about BMW's plug-in hybrid performance flagship, the i8, it’s easy to start daydreaming about a version with more power than the 275kW that the current iteration of the petrol-electric hybrid sports car. However, it seems that while the average Joe like you or I might want such a thing, those with pockets deep enough to buy one haven’t really been asking for the same thing.
At the launch of the BMW i8 in Spain, the i8 & i8 Roadster’s product manager revealed something rather contrary to popular assumption when asked if the i8 may eventually receive an ’S’ version with more power, the way the i3 had during its mid-life update.
“Customers are very happy with the performance [the i8] has. Especially as it is so quick, with the electric motor’s response, it’s like reading your mind. That’s what customers really ask for in a sports car. They don’t say ‘Ooh, I need more power.’ Quite the opposite, they say, ‘It’s so fast on public roads. I cannot believe how quick it reacts, and how quick it is.’” — Marcus Pluntke, Product Manager (i8, i8 Roadster), BMW AG
Pluntke made the comments to our friends at CarAdvice during the Mallorca launch event.
At the same time, he went on to say that BMW isn’t keen on making a lesser-powered variant, to lower entry cost into the i8 range and perhaps appeal to those who might not want so much power. Pluntke also talked about the direction that a new i8 might take insofar as upping the power on tap, which we found rather interesting.
“You should not ask if there’s room for a four-cylinder enigne, but whether there’s more power from our e-motor.” — Marcus Pluntke, Product Manager (i8, i8 Roadster), BMW AG
It’s reasonable to assume that with that statement, BMW would be looking to up the power output from the electric motors it employs in the i8, which is the easiest assumption to make. However, considering the direction that the industry is taking, favouring range-extender electric vehicles, it’s also possible that BMW may save themselves a bit of R&D cost by putting in more batteries into the next-generation i8, and retaining the 1.5-litre three-cylinder mill as a generator rather than as a propelling motor (turning it into a range-extender, like variants of the i3). That’d be rather interesting.
But of course, that’s just a theory at this point. It’s perhaps more likely that the company will, as we said earlier, up the power output from the electric motors and leave the turbo-petrol triple unchanged.
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