We’re still a good two years away from the market launch of the most anticipated model of BMW‘s new i sub-brand, the i8 Coupe, but the Bavarian automaker has already outlined a pricing strategy for the plug-in hybrid.
Speaking to reporters at the grand opening of the i sub-brand’s first sales outlet worldwide on London’s Park Lane, BMW global sales chief Ian Robertson said that the hybrid sports car will sell for “more than €100,000 (about US$125,400 or £80,600)” – apparently in Europe, according to a report from Bloomberg News.
In concept guise, the i8 combines a mid-mounted, 1.5-liter three-cylinder turbocharged gasoline engine with 217hp (220PS) and 300Nm (221 lb-ft) driving the rear wheels with a single 129hp electric motor turning the front wheels.
BMW claims a 0-100km/h (62mph) sprint time of under 5 seconds and an average consumption in the European test cycle of 3.0 lt/100 km (78.4 mpg US) – evidently with the use of the electric power.
Robertson would not give a ballpark figure for the smaller, electric-powered i3 subcompact that is scheduled to reach dealerships at the end of 2013, but he did say that the price will be “very competitively for the substance you get”.
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