The luxury automaker BMW Group is going green in a big way, with plans to roll out purpose-built pure electric and hybrid-electric cars that will make heavy use of carbon fiber materials.
Two new BMWs -- the all-electric i3 and the hybrid-electric i8 -- will hit the streets in 2013 and 2014, respectively, BMW said at a recent sneak preview. They'll make their North American debuts November 16-17 at the Los Angeles Auto Show. They are the culmination of years of research by BMW engineers on concept electrics known as the Mini E and the ActiveE. The new vehicles have been designed from the ground up to use electric powertrains. Doing so assures that the vehicle's available volume is used more efficiently, BMW said.
Click the image of the BMW i8 plug-in hybrid below to view a slideshow of the two upcoming Beemers:
The doors of the BMW i8 plug-in hybrid swing upward like wings to provide a sporty feel. (Photo courtesy of BMW)
"If you can tell your designers that they have freedom from having to house this big engine that needs airflow around it, it opens up your ability to rethink what the automobile is," Tom Plucinsky, a BMW spokesman, said in a Design News interview. "That's why our engineers worked so closely with our designers. They rethought how to design a car that is purely electric."
Both vehicles are part of the BMW i "sub-brand." As a result, both will use a BMW system known as LifeDrive, which is composed of two functional units -- a Drive module and a Life module. The Drive module, made from aluminum, integrates the suspension, battery, drive system, and structural components. Its partner, the Life module, sits atop the Drive module. It is a high-strength passenger cell made from carbon fiber-reinforced plastic (CFRP), which is said to offer a huge weight reduction.
The i3 will take advantage of the lightweight body to travel long distances on a single charge. Using a lithium-ion battery of as-yet-unknown capacity, the i3 will have a range of about 90 miles. BMW engineers say they learned from their work on the Mini E and, based on that knowledge, were able to reduce the space requirements for the electric motor by about 40 percent. A 170HP electric motor is mounted in a small space above the rear axle, along with the power electronics, transmission, and differential. The battery, rechargeable in about six hours from a standard power socket, will offer the option of a "range extender," which consists of a small gasoline engine and a generator.
In contrast, the hybrid-electric i8 will use two distinct drive systems. The front axle will employ the i3's 170HP electric motor, while a 220HP three-cylinder internal combustion engine will drive the rear. Using that arrangement, all four wheels of the i8 will be driven at the same time, in a manner similar to an all-wheel-drive vehicle. The all-electric range for the i8 will be about 20 miles, and the battery will be fully rechargeable in about two hours using a standard power socket.
"You want as much range as possible, so you can drive in future inner cities, where you might only be able to drive electrically," Plucinsky said. "And a 20-mile range would probably satisfy that need."
The two vehicles differ significantly from BMW's ActiveE electric car, which will roll out this year. Based on the well-known BMW 1 Series, the ActiveE is essentially a converted gasoline-burning car.
To keep up with our Chevy Volt coverage, go to Drive for Innovation and follow the cross-country journey of EE Life editorial director Brian Fuller. On his trip, sponsored by Avnet Express, Fuller is driving a Volt across America to interview engineers.
To TimJones: Wow...you get the heads-up reader award. Here's an item from BMW's press release: "The BMW i8 Conceptn is also the successor to the BMW Vision Efficient Dynamics car featured in Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol staring Tom Cruise to be released in December..."
Sensor Pro I agree with your assessment of political correctness. I don't see the design connection between the futuristic styling and the EV power train. The consumer demand for hybrid and EVs that does exist today is being met by Toyota, Honda, and Hyundai. With minor styling changes, these manufacturers begin with a nearly stock Camry, Civic, or Sonata and pour a hybrid power train into it. These consumers are looking for the mpg of hybrid and maybe even a smaller environmental footprint without driving around in a signboard that screams "look at me!".
I feel the concept EVs with all of the futuristic styling and materials are attempting to make a political statement that indirectly says EVs are our future and they are really, really cool. The volt looks like a video game on wheels. Why didn't Chevrolet put an EV power train into well-equipped Malibu? I suggest it would have been adopted a heck of a lot sooner. Rule of any experiment: It is best to change only one variable at a time.
I don't think fender skirts chased buyers away from the Insight.. It just had too small payload for my needs! and it wasn't 100% EV... I see a lot of 50 ish men commuting in them though, and the second hand market is much younger! EVen CARDBOARD fenderskirts gave my EV noticible additional range!
Sensor Pro, I see your point too regarding the electric sports car, because the performance aspect mitigates the whole idea of energy savings. So I guess we're kind of meeting in the middle on this subject. Thanks for the reply.
I see your point that there are clear possibilities and demands for an electrical vehicle, but when we are fightring for low cost fuel and trying to market an electrical car a savings tool, expensive sports car just makes no sense.
This is why it is a pure marketing decision based on polytical correctness.
Nissan definitely believes there's money to be made in pure EVs. To some degree, CEO Carlos Ghosn has staked his reputation on it. Most other automakers believe that pure EVs will sell well in Asia, but not in the U.S. Still others are just dipping a toe in the water so they'll be ready if the market suddenly accepts the idea.
I respectfully disagree about EVs and politically correctness. The automakers clearly perceive that there's money to be made here. If we were talking one carmaker, maybe, but there's a mass movement towards building electrics. One should also note that numerous electrics were extant BEFORE the rise in popularity of the internal combustion engine. For an interesting sidenote on this, see Chuck Murray's recent story on Thomas Edison's electric storage battery, produced in mass quantities in a factory, circa 1916. Link is here.
I personally feel that at this of the game the sports car and electric car are not suitable to be in the same section. Electric car is a polytically correct vehicle with a large distance in mind. Sports car is a performance oriented vehicle.
I agree mellow fellow. The acceptance of EVs is inevitable. We just don't know whether the tipping point will come in two years or 15 years. There were mobile digital music devices long before the iPod, but the iPod drive a while new level of consumer acceptance. Maybe we need an Apple EV. Interestingly, it wasn't price that tipped mobile digital devices. The iPod was more expensive than its predecessors.
Tesla Motors plans to roll out a “compelling, affordable electric car” that will sell for about half the price of its high-profile Model S by the end of 2016, company chairman Elon Musk said last week.
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