There’s no denying the BMW i8 is an impressive technical achievement, not necessarily because it has all the tech that it has, but especially because it seamlessly integrates it into an otherwise usual driving experience.
It’s almost a sports car, though it isn’t really, being more of a technological halo model for BMW, a rolling billboard for they can do and will be doing in the future.
UK Autocar’s Steve Sutcliffe recently had a go in the i8, and while he drew similar conclusions to the others that have already driven it (not quite sharp enough to be a sports car, but still good fun to thread around a moderately twisty road). He does, however, explain that he personally likes it and gets what it’s about – you’d be missing the point if you only looked at it as a sports car…
It’s not perfect and BMW may be lying about turning a profit with it, as Sutcliffe suggests, but with its combination of looks, power, efficiency, decent handling and badge kudos, it really is hard not to at least be a bit curious as to what it’s like (and refrain from secretly wanting one).
By Andrei Nedelea