The first BMW i8s were handed over to customers last Thursday during a ceremony held at the BMW Welt in Munich. The first eight owners from Germany were presented with the keys to their new cars by Roland Krüger, Head of Sales and Marketing Germany for the BMW Group, and Helmut Schramm, Head of Production Electric Vehicles at Plant Leipzig.
The BMW i8 is the world’s first production vehicle offered with laser-powered headlights as optional equipment, while full LED headlights are standard (it beat Audi to the punch). The optional laser-boost feature extends its high-beam range to up to 600 meters (1,968 feet), doubling the illumination range of the LED high-beam headlights. BMW says the new technology uses 30 percent less energy than LED lights, takes up less installation space inside the headlight and weighs less.
BMW i8 deliveries will begin in all main international BMW Group markets in June. “In November of last year, we welcomed the first BMW i3 customers here at BMW Welt. Today, we are continuing the BMW i success story with the first eight BMW i8 customers worldwide. As ‘the first of a new era’, the BMW i8 combines the sustainable design of a carbon-fibre body with a powerful plug-in hybrid,” said Roland Krüger.
BMW’s first ever plug-in hybrid vehicle combines a 1.5-liter 3-cylinder twin-turbocharged petrol engine developing 231 PS (228hp) and 320 Nm (236 lb-ft) of torque that drives the rear wheels via a 6-speed automatic gearbox with a synchronous electric motor developing 96kW (129hp) and 250 Nm (184 lb-ft) of torque that turns the front wheels via a two-stage automatic transmission. There’s also a 5 kWh lithium-ion high-voltage battery with liquid cooling.
The i8’s hybrid powertrain offers a combined system output of 362 PS (357hp) and 570 Nm (420 lb-ft), allowing it to sprint from 0 to 100 km/h (62mph) in 4.4 seconds and reach a top speed of 250 km/h (155 mph). Average fuel economy is estimated at 2.5 l/100 km (113 mpg UK, 94 mpg US) – obviously, including the use of the battery.
By Dan Mihalascu
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