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      09-25-2014, 10:06 AM   #1
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BMW i8 Hot Lap at Laguna Seca. Places 8th in 2014 Best Driver's Car

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BMW i8 Hot Lap at Laguna Seca - 2014 Best Driver's Car Contender
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Pro driver Randy Pobst hot laps the new 2015 BMW i8 around Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca for Motor Trend's 2014 Best Driver's Car. The M4 placed 5th: http://f80.bimmerpost.com/forums/sho....php?t=1039579

The i8 placed 8th in this year's competition. See the review/results at Motor Trend.

Of the i8, Motor Trend had this to say:

"It felt extremely light, very small, with immediate reactions," said Nate Martinez. Christian Seabaugh opined,"The i8 is the first of the current-gen BMWs to actually feel like a Bimmer should to me -- "I love the sculpture of it and the extreme styling," said Randy Pobst. "I think that's a wonderful thing, and the world needs more of it."

All this helps the i8 glide over most bumps and provides great handling through most corners. It's fun. However, many editors noted the car's very light electric power steering and awkward regenerative braking. Those idiosyncrasies mean it might take some time to really learn how to wring it out.

The gas-electric powertrain takes even more time to understand. There is the three-cylinder turbocharged engine that creates 228 hp and 236 lb-ft of torque for the rear axle. Then the front gets 129 hp and 184 lb-ft from an electric motor, and a tiny rear motor adds 8 more hp. Combined, 357 hp and 420 lb-ft stand at the ready.

However, not all of that power is always available. The i8 carries a lithium-ion battery pack with a usable capacity of 5 kW-hrs that when fully charged provides roughly 18 miles of gas-free driving. But we had difficulty keeping that charge very long. The i8, when driven hard, has a tendency to drain the batteries quickly. In Sport mode, the engine always stays on and will send a charge to the batteries, but it's a small charge at best. On the track, the i8's batteries drained quickly, causing it to have a 6-second time difference between its first and third lap. Simply put: It ran out of juice.

But most people will never push this nearly $140,000 car that hard and should, therefore, have more than enough battery to keep those front wheels spinning. Civilians need only mash the accelerator and enjoy the slightly stereo-amplified exhaust note that sounds superb for a three-banger in the trunk. (That's why the trunk is barely big enough to fit a single carry-on bag.) The i8 points to a bold and distinctive future for BMW and sports cars in general in terms of powertrains and materials. It's just not quite good enough to rank as the Best Driver's Car of the present."



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      09-25-2014, 10:18 AM   #2
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Great, now throw a twin turbo v8 in there and we have a supercar!
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      09-25-2014, 10:22 AM   #3
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He didn't seem too impressed...

It's amazing how much like an M3/M4 that sounds.
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      09-25-2014, 10:24 AM   #4
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Not too bad for this side of vehicle 1.44 at Laguna where the M4 beat it by almost 6 seconds at 1.38.
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      09-25-2014, 10:24 AM   #5
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Rankings for the BMW pair

5th - M4
8th - i8
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      09-25-2014, 10:34 AM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by zamboni View Post
Not too bad for this side of vehicle 1.44 at Laguna where the M4 beat it by almost 6 seconds at 1.38.
Huh?

The M4 ran 1:39.69 Far way off 1:38.

1:44 for a car that light with that much power an tq is not impressive in the least bit. For instance, a Cayman S runs 1:41. A 991S is 1:39.3, and 991C4S was 1:39.0. This car was made to compete with a 911, which is doesnt...the m4 really doesnt either.
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      09-25-2014, 10:38 AM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Cl0ud7 View Post
Rankings for the BMW pair

5th - M4
8th - i8
Not too shabby for the i8!
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      09-25-2014, 10:54 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 2FastBro
Great, now throw a twin turbo v8 in there and we have a supercar!
Ideally an 8 would be awesome, but for the space they have available to work with I think the M division could squeeze a tt i6 and higher performance electric motors up front and it would be perfect. I think an 8 would be overkill unless it's under 4Liters. It would lose what little storage space there is but I don't think anyone would mind. Just needs to lose the bicycle tires haha.
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      09-25-2014, 11:15 AM   #9
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i8 share the tech please

The i8 should not be part of this comparison, but it does show that BMW has a great thing going for it with the carbon tech and e-motors. I was speaking with a senior Ferrari official and he made in an intresting remark that car should have had a Ferrari badge. He went on to remark that BMW was way ahead in using electric/weight tech to ensure that performance motoring does not clash with Eco responsibly agenda. That says a lot.

BMW has risen the bar with this car and all the other manufacturers are busy catching up and planning to leap frog it. Time for them to up the game once more. It is time they surprise all with a car that gives a 918/P1 brief but costs as much as 911 turbo. Wouldn't that be something?
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      09-25-2014, 11:25 AM   #10
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Best Driver's Car Overall Ranking:

1. Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 (1:37:82)
2. Alfa Romeo 4C (1:43:78)
3. Porsche 911 Turbo S (1:35:62)
4. Nissan GT-R Nismo (1:35:51)
5. BMW M4 (1:39:69)
6. Ford Fiesta ST (1:51:25)
7. Subaru WRX STi (1:47:16)
8. BMW i8 (1:44:29)
9. Jaguar F-Type Coupe R (1:42:01)
10. VW Golf GTI (1:50:11)
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      09-25-2014, 11:47 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 2FastBro
Great, now throw a twin turbo v8 in there and we have a supercar!
I had exactly the same thought immediately reading the last lines. Let's see what BMW come out with in terms of supercar,hope it also uses hybrid
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      09-25-2014, 11:49 AM   #12
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The i8 is really a looker. I think a larger engine and different tires would make it a more interesting car to me. I wonder what larger engine would fit back there, perhaps the 2l 4 cylinder tuned to make 300 hp. The review mentioned battery drain was a problem under hard driving, perhaps a software upgrade is needed.
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      09-25-2014, 02:06 PM   #13
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Looks really slow
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      09-25-2014, 02:22 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Diver
The i8 is really a looker. I think a larger engine and different tires would make it a more interesting car to me. I wonder what larger engine would fit back there, perhaps the 2l 4 cylinder tuned to make 300 hp. The review mentioned battery drain was a problem under hard driving, perhaps a software upgrade is needed.
The i8 is basically the snobs Prius, or the Tesla owner's "sports" car.
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      09-25-2014, 08:31 PM   #15
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I have been close to everything I8 as I have a deposit down and I sat in it and so far the one thing missing for me is driving this darn thing. These reviews make me wonder if I am putting my money into the right car - I would like the performance to be a bit more pronounced. The price is 911 GT3 money once you spec it out after all.

I KNOW that they are different cars with different purpose, however this is reality in the (or my) decision making process. And if they produce a more powerful version down the line I will be beyond myself!

If I don't get to drive it first I may cancel my spot and get my deposit back - too many unknowns for me to date. I am patient though....plus winter is coming soon anyways......
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      09-25-2014, 10:11 PM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ChiTownM View Post
I have been close to everything I8 as I have a deposit down and I sat in it and so far the one thing missing for me is driving this darn thing. These reviews make me wonder if I am putting my money into the right car - I would like the performance to be a bit more pronounced. The price is 911 GT3 money once you spec it out after all.

I KNOW that they are different cars with different purpose, however this is reality in the (or my) decision making process. And if they produce a more powerful version down the line I will be beyond myself!

If I don't get to drive it first I may cancel my spot and get my deposit back - too many unknowns for me to date. I am patient though....plus winter is coming soon anyways......
Well I watched the full hour long video and they had almost nothing but positive things to say about the i8, including they end where they said it is ahead of the curve at showing the future of enthusiast cars and how closely related it was to the Porsche 918 (which ran a 1:30, five seconds faster than anything else there). Deciding not to buy an i8 because it came 8th in the best driver's car competition would be like dumping your girlfriend because she came 8th place in an arm wrestling competition among female body builders. It ignores the rest of the package as a whole. (i.e. don't lose faith because it wasn't the best car in production at a subjective comparison of the best new sports cars on the market) The general consensus among the press and anyone who's driven it has been overwhelmingly positive, more than any other BMW I've seen since the 1M Coupe and before that you have to go back even further to the E39 M5/E46 M3 to find a more positively received BMW.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?featur...fY1fVYNk#t=249

Last edited by Carac; 09-26-2014 at 12:20 AM..
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      09-26-2014, 02:31 AM   #17
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I think review is spot on. I looked at the car carefully and noticed some small differences that an average car mag reviewer would not (as probably they are not important to 99.9% of the people). But the core important things about this cat are written in the review (imo). Did a u turn and approx ten drivers in ten cars moved there heads towards the car with the same expression on their face. Looked like synchronized swimming.
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      09-26-2014, 02:32 AM   #18
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Some photos
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      09-26-2014, 02:39 AM   #19
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Contd. Higer resolution and smoother than in F10 6WB. I do not know where the reviwer found the sport mode though, bcs I could not
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      09-26-2014, 04:33 AM   #20
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Amazing; Dreams can come true!

Quote:
Originally Posted by N & M View Post
The i8 should not be part of this comparison, but it does show that BMW has a great thing going for it with the carbon tech and e-motors. I was speaking with a senior Ferrari official and he made in an intresting remark that car should have had a Ferrari badge. He went on to remark that BMW was way ahead in using electric/weight tech to ensure that performance motoring does not clash with Eco responsibly agenda. That says a lot.

BMW has risen the bar with this car and all the other manufacturers are busy catching up and planning to leap frog it. Time for them to up the game once more. It is time they surprise all with a car that gives a 918/P1 brief but costs as much as 911 turbo. Wouldn't that be something?
I just read this speculative article on a possible i9. Basically, it says they are looking to mice the i8 formula to the next (more performance oriented level).

http://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/ne...2016-centenary
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      09-26-2014, 04:43 AM   #21
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Those times are really incredible for the bicycle tires that the car has. I think it's a good performance, but still the price/performance ratio is way off. Even if you consider the build quality, the ratio is still off. And I would like to see the fuel consumption figures during the race...I think they aren't pretty either
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      09-26-2014, 07:23 AM   #22
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 1230vani View Post
Contd. Higer resolution and smoother than in F10 6WB. I do not know where the reviwer found the sport mode though, bcs I could not
Dude lucky you got to drive one!

Sport mode is engaged simply by moving the gear shift lever to the left.
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