BMW USA site now lists July availability for i8

[Carac]

     Featured on BIMMERPOST.com

A little later than they originally announced but at least still when there's enough good weather left in the year to fully enjoy.

[ddk632]

Ha! I saw that yesterday, it must have been just recently added. Still no other info. Getting close!

[barcius13]

$135k Ok got it. Pay almost twice as much compared to a Tesla P85 and have less horsepower and less room. Thanks, but no thanks BMW

[jc1654M4]

Honestly, I thought it was going to be more. 135 is Audi r8 money and in my opinion, "looks" wise, the i8 is right there with it and the power isn't too shabby. Can't wait to see one of these out in the streets...... And smoke it in my new M4.....

[Needsdecaf]

Originally Posted by barcius13

$135k Ok got it. Pay almost twice as much compared to a Tesla P85 and have less horsepower and less room. Thanks, but no thanks BMW

Almost twice as much? Ever build a P85 S+? Well over $100k. Most I have seen are about $110k.

Twice as much. Not quite.

Your comparison is also quite flawed. By your margin, a Porsche 911 should be terrible deal compared to a 300 SRT8. After all, less HP and less room for more $$, right

That's not even apples and oranges, it's kiwis and papayas.

[motortrend]

I like this car but for 130k… GT3 please.

[TheBingoBalls]

Originally Posted by Needsdecaf

Almost twice as much? Ever build a P85 S+? Well over $100k. Most I have seen are about $110k.

Twice as much. Not quite.

Your comparison is also quite flawed. By your margin, a Porsche 911 should be terrible deal compared to a 300 SRT8. After all, less HP and less room for more $$, right

That's not even apples and oranges, it's kiwis and papayas.

LMAO @ Kiwis and papayas.

Actually, using his comparison, all German cars are a terrible deals.

[335dM]

Tesla = no petrol engine lol

[barcius13]

Originally Posted by Needsdecaf

Almost twice as much? Ever build a P85 S+? Well over $100k. Most I have seen are about $110k.

Twice as much. Not quite.

Your comparison is also quite flawed. By your margin, a Porsche 911 should be terrible deal compared to a 300 SRT8. After all, less HP and less room for more $$, right

That's not even apples and oranges, it's kiwis and papayas.

Well wait until you add options to the i8. My price comparison is sticker vs. sticker ($85k vs. $135k). Let's wait until the options of the i8 become available before you throw any stones at me.

What I meant about room is practicality. Tesla P85 looks great and drives like a sport sedan and IMO is a much better purchase than the i8. That is the reason for example I bought a M3 E90 and not a 911. I believe Tesla and BMW are in the same league as oppose to SRT8 and 911. Talking about kiwis and papayas

[Crisp]

Originally Posted by jc1654M4

Honestly, I thought it was going to be more. 135 is Audi r8 money and in my opinion, "looks" wise, the i8 is right there with it and the power isn't too shabby. Can't wait to see one of these out in the streets...... And smoke it in my new M4.....

Smoking plug-in hybrids in a super sport coupe really does it for ya huh?

You remind me of myself when I downshift next to every Prius I see.

[GOLFFRR]

exciting!

[Envyscorpio]

Hum... Other than the fancy doors I don't find it logical to purchase new for that price.

Mclaren 12C is depreciating well into the 170k range. I won't be surprise to see some in the 150k range soon with less than 15k miles. Same carbon tub, but gobs more power and no batteries to go bad.

[ddk632]

Originally Posted by barcius13

Well wait until you add options to the i8. My price comparison is sticker vs. sticker ($85k vs. $135k). Let's wait until the options of the i8 become available before you throw any stones at me.

What I meant about room is practicality. Tesla P85 looks great and drives like a sport sedan and IMO is a much better purchase than the i8. That is the reason for example I bought a M3 E90 and not a 911. I believe Tesla and BMW are in the same league as oppose to SRT8 and 911. Talking about kiwis and papayas

The i8 comes fully loaded at that price, there are NO options.

Comparing a 4 door electric family sedan to a hybrid 2 door sports car makes zero sense.

In the looks department, there is no comparison. Only one of those cars looks like the bastard love child of a Kia and a Hyundai that got electrocuted, and as a hint, it's not the i8.

It's like saying a CTS-V sedan is better than an R8 because it's cheaper, has more power, and more room. R8 owners will laugh at the prospect.

+1 @ kiwis and papayas!

[W///]

Originally Posted by Needsdecaf

Almost twice as much? Ever build a P85 S+? Well over $100k. Most I have seen are about $110k.

Twice as much. Not quite.

Your comparison is also quite flawed. By your margin, a Porsche 911 should be terrible deal compared to a 300 SRT8. After all, less HP and less room for more $$, right

That's not even apples and oranges, it's kiwis and papayas.

That's classic

Originally Posted by Envyscorpio

Hum... Other than the fancy doors I don't find it logical to purchase new for that price.

Mclaren 12C is depreciating well into the 170k range. I won't be surprise to see some in the 150k range soon with less than 15k miles. Same carbon tub, but gobs more power and no batteries to go bad.

But those 2 cars don't even close to competing unless you are maybe talking about price. IMHO, regardless of what BMW says, the i8 is more of a sporty car with new technology, rather than all about performance car like Mcl. Look at the tires it wears, who's going to track that?

I really do think the i8 is carving its own little niche.

[owerr]

Originally Posted by W///

I really do think the i8 is carving its own little niche.

A niche for what?... An overpriced but underpowered half electric car that can only seat two people? You guys do know the tesla is faster than this thing right?...

Im a huge fan of BMWs, but this car doesn't make any sense to me

[ddk632]

The i8 is not a track car, it was not intended for that. It will not do a track day - the battery will generate too much heat and shut down. Think limp mode.

I specifically asked this question of Jacob Harb, BMW i Brand Manager, when I met him in December at a private BMW i8 event at the SLS hotel in Miami.

He said "it'll do laps, but not sessions/days"

It is just not intended as a hardcore supercar.

Surely it will drive the canyons all day though - you're not going all out 10/10ths in the canyons. I will test this theory and report back when I get my i8.

[ddk632]

Originally Posted by owerr

A niche for what?... An overpriced but underpowered half electric car that can only seat two people? You guys do know the tesla is faster than this thing right?...

Im a huge fan of BMWs, but this car doesn't make any sense to me

The Tesla P85 has been said to be (infinitesimally) faster 0-60 than an M5. At higher speeds the M5 destroys it. Also I haven't seen anyone touting how the Tesla handles so great and is a hard-core track car. Maybe I missed those articles...

The i8 performance has been stated by BMW to be faster/better than the E92 M3. Looking at full picture of the numbers, i.e., power-to-weight, 0-60, etc., it is very similar and close to the R8 V8, as well. This car is hardly under-powered.

Also my other pet peeve with the arguments against the i8:

Why is everyone hung up on how many people can fit in a sports car? If you need that much space, buy a Sprinter van or a GL550.

I've never heard anyone say, "That 911 / GT-R / M6 / TTRS / etc. can't fit 5 people, what a piece of crap" - but there are so many comments about the i8's lack of being able to carry lots of passengers it's absurd. Maybe these people are secretly waiting for the i8 Gran Coupe to come out?




Please consider, people who want a 2 door sports car ... don't give 2 shits about carrying 5 people anywhere. And if they do, they have other cars that can handle that task better than a Tesla or an i8!

[smashhell]

Originally Posted by owerr

A niche for what?... An overpriced but underpowered half electric car that can only seat two people? You guys do know the tesla is faster than this thing right?...

Im a huge fan of BMWs, but this car doesn't make any sense to me

Rather than R8. Think of the i8 as a more Eco friendly Mercedes SL550. They are similar in price, practicality, and performance.

[ddk632]

^^

Actually I quite like that comparison, well stated.

But ... the SL550 doesn't carry 5 people, what a piece of crap!!! /sarcasm

[bosz]

The majority of ppl who purchase an i8 will be the ones who've been buying new from BMW for a long long time. They are the ones who dont switch brands ever (or too often). They choose from the options BMW gives them, and when the get to that point in their lives where they want a more exclusive 2 seater, they would consider an i8. The sales rep will do the usual: build them a deal where their current car is traded in for an i8 for a great payment plan blablabla. The sales rep will take this indivudial for a test drive in an i8 which I'm sure will feel fast compared to the 5 series or 7 series he or she is trading in and will win over their heart and sign a deal right there! This type of individual is not very well researched in making car buying decisions, but will just almost blindly buy any car BMW makes bc of BMW's brand name.

For many other enthusiasts, i8 just doesn't make sense for the obvious reasons we've all spoken about here many times. I bet the i8 will be a heavily depreciating car (as are many other BMW's such as M5, M6, 7 series etc) compared to say an R8 or a Gallardo or 911 Turbo etc.

[W///]

Originally Posted by owerr

A niche for what?... An overpriced but underpowered half electric car that can only seat two people? You guys do know the tesla is faster than this thing right?...

Im a huge fan of BMWs, but this car doesn't make any sense to me

Obviously not a niche for you then! Jesus, if a car company makes a vehicle that doesn't suit your lifestyle, then it's automatically worthless. It's like comparing an 3er to a Z4, and saying well people should buy the 3er because it has a proper trunk and seats 5 people.

If it was such a worthless car, how come they've already filled the order for the first year? I'm not saying if I had $135k burning in my pocket this is the car I'd go for, but I certainly understand why it's there.

Apart from a Tesla (which is a heavy sedan, so kiwis to papayas again), what electric sports car can you get for $135k?

[owerr]

Originally Posted by ddk632

The Tesla P85 has been said to be (infinitesimally) faster 0-60 than an M5. At higher speeds the M5 destroys it. Also I haven't seen anyone touting how the Tesla handles so great and is a hard-core track car. Maybe I missed those articles...

The i8 performance has been stated by BMW to be faster/better than the E92 M3. Looking at full picture of the numbers, i.e., power-to-weight, 0-60, etc., it is very similar and close to the R8 V8, as well. This car is hardly under-powered.

Also my other pet peeve with the arguments against the i8:

Why is everyone hung up on how many people can fit in a sports car? If you need that much space, buy a Sprinter van or a GL550.

I've never heard anyone say, "That 911 / GT-R / M6 / TTRS / etc. can't fit 5 people, what a piece of crap" - but there are so many comments about the i8's lack of being able to carry lots of passengers it's absurd. Maybe these people are secretly waiting for the i8 Gran Coupe to come out?




Please consider, people who want a 2 door sports car ... don't give 2 shits about carrying 5 people anywhere. And if they do, they have other cars that can handle that task better than a Tesla or an i8!

You don't get the point. No ones comparing the number of the seats. The point was that there's actually a full electric sedan that's faster than this thing, at a much lower price. And im pretty sure this is not considered to be a track car by any means...

I think the SL550 is more of a fair comparison, even though its a hard top convertible, and fully equipped it will still be cheaper than this

Heck the new S class coupe will probably be cheaper, a lot more luxurious and faster than this. If anything this car feels more like a tesla roadster, but only half electric. It's a nice concept, but priced so high for so little. There are just so many other choices for a better car at that price range, and its not even all green.

Maybe BMW will get their electric cars right in a few years down the road.