03-08-2011, 10:58 AM | #1 |
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BMW i3 (Megacity) Spied For First Time!
BIMMERPOST NEWS BMW i3 (Megacity) Spied For First Time! BMW i news on a roll today. Just moments after the first ever BMW i8 spy shots, here are the first ever BMW i3 spyhots. The BMW i3 is the production version of BMW's pure electric and long-awaited Megacity Vehicle. The vehicle was spied in scandinavia, where BMW-TV was working on their own movie. The BMW i3 will hit the market in 2013 and targets an annual sale of at least 30,000 units. According to Ian Robertson, "As with all BMW Group products, the BMW i3 will be a premium car." This translates to a premium price of at least € 40,000 in Europe. BMW recently finished the Mini E program to evaluate the needs and demands people have of a purely electric car. They'll continue to do so with the 1er Active E program commencing later this year. The BMW i3 will make use of the experience BMW made and makes during these programs. Here is a summary of the philosophy behind the i3's design and consturction: -- Vehicle structure: Unlike most other small cars, the Megacity will not be a unibody vehicle. Instead, its structure will resemble that of a body-on-frame vehicle. BMW describes the design as "two horizontally separated independent modules." The lower half is the "drive" module -- an aluminum chassis that melds the battery, electric drive system and crash structure. A high-strength, lightweight, carbon fiber passenger compartment is attached on top. The key benefit is weight reduction, a prime consideration in reducing the weight and cost of the battery, while providing sufficient range, Draeger said. -- Materials and manufacturing: Draeger said BMW will push suppliers for 100 percent recyclability of parts. Innovative use of weight-saving carbon fiber is a key to making the design work. BMW has partnered with SGL Automotive Carbon Fibers to build a carbon fiber plant in Moses Lake, Wash. He added that carbon fiber-reinforced plastic parts will be impregnated with color, removing the need for a paint shop. That will reduce energy use and emissions. BMW will go to great lengths to reduce the cost of carbon fiber. BMW's process involves reuse of scrap, enabled by a new technique of turning carbon strands into sheets of fiber, Stuermer said. BMW will use a new "quasi-stamping process" to make smaller carbon fiber-reinforced plastic parts than automakers normally use, saving cost and time. -- Recycling: BMW will design the vehicle for recycling, Draeger said. But, he said, with the Megacity's design, its life cycle might be extended beyond current expectations. "We could re-skin it," he said. "We could recycle the body-in-white [exterior shell], although we are still working on that." -- Consumer financing: BMW AG CEO Norbert Reithofer has said the company's initial EVs will be expensive and will probably lose money. That may spur the company to come up with extended leasing, perhaps with mandatory vehicle recycling, Stuermer said. Otherwise, the cost of the car would be a barrier, he said: "The consumer is looking at a small car with unproven technology that's likely to carry a very large price ticket. If you want to get into everyone's garage, you need to reduce the risk of ownership."
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03-08-2011, 11:37 AM | #4 |
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sigh....no.
just no. but well, i am merely just an owner of one of BMW's product. i really haf no say in terms of how the company market themselves. but if u ask me wt my first reaction is to this car: wtf? |
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03-08-2011, 11:56 AM | #6 |
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I like the idea behind the i3, and will reserve judgement on aesthetics until a little more is revealed.
I’m curious about the 100% recycling claim right after they mention the extensive use of composites (CFRP). From what I understand, carbon composites recycling is far from mainstream right now. There isn’t a single commercial composites recycling facility in North America, and only one exists in each of the UK (Recycled Carbon Fibre Ltd) and Japan (unsure of the name). The UK facility can only process 2000 tons annually vs. the 7.8 million metric tonnes of composite products made globally last year. How do they plan to pull this off?
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03-08-2011, 12:05 PM | #7 |
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Horrible.
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03-08-2011, 12:32 PM | #12 |
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I will reserve judgment until I can see more of the lines in the car, but that is not the most inspiring start.
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03-08-2011, 12:35 PM | #13 |
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Strange, kind of a bad dream.
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03-08-2011, 12:43 PM | #14 |
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good luck selling that to Americans.
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03-08-2011, 12:47 PM | #15 |
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that looks absolutely terrible, even the fat bloke inside doesnt look like he wants to be in there
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03-08-2011, 12:58 PM | #16 |
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What. The. Fuck.
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03-08-2011, 01:09 PM | #18 |
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The whole idea of the recyclable car is quite foolish. I mean this is going to go forth as a dispossible vehicle. Vehicles that is cheap, has a short life span, and is shortly after distroyed. Which will allow people to buy less expensive vehicles more often. Which means instead fo purchasing 10 cars in a lifetime we might go through 20 cars.
Now think of all the energy required not only to produce more cars but to recycle these cars. I can assure you that the energy consumed in the future will outweigh the waste left behind on todays cars as fas as an impact on the environment goes. People are so easily lead into this whole "green" movement. Consumerism is what's really going on here, not the well being of the environment. I like the idea of making a "greener" car. Sometimes I just wonder if that's really what's going on. |
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03-08-2011, 01:31 PM | #22 |
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Thanks BMW
You've answered the question no one was asking
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