Quote:
Originally Posted by mr-karim
Hello everyone, I'm about to trade my Gallardo for 2015 BMW i8.
I just have a few questions bothering me, please help:
1) So if you drove a lot in 1 day, and your electrical engine is out of power, does it mean you now using just the rear wheels of the car?
2) Continuing question #1, if your electrical engine out of power, does it mean all you have in terms of power is a 3 cylinder rwd motor, and honda civic has a chance to beat you in a drag race?
3) How is the car in terms of speed after 150km/hr? Does it feel like there is a big lack of power?
4) I haven't had a chance to check out the car closely, but does the interior of the car seem cheap?
5) Did you have any engine problems so far?
6) How attention grabbing is i8?
7) How many km can you drive on 1 tank and full charge? (realistically)
8) Is it a good investment? Apparently the price is keep going up for i8, but it might drop like a rocket if the new i8m comes out, or i8 becomes more available in quantity
9) What if someone park super close to your door? Gallardo can open just a little, giving me a chance to squeeze in, the doors on i8 go all the way up. Anyone had problems?
I appreciate any help. Thanks!
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1) I usually drive in sports mode (when both the engine and motors are running) which enables the i8 to regenerate up to 75% of its battery capacity. As an example, I started off with a 21 miles (33.8 km) of electrical charge for a 347 mile (558 km)trip and ended with 13 (21 km) electrical miles remaining in the batteries. It would be rather challenging to fully draw down the batteries while in sports mode. I haven't driven in strictly electric mode nor comfort mode to provide any anecdotal evidence to help you in this area. Although, I understand that the i8 regenerates electrical charge when the brakes are applied.
2) Never had the chance to square off with a civic with the front motor decommissioned. Probably would be a hilarious and humbling experience if that were to occur. However, the i8 seems to consistently nudge past my friend's 458 Italia on several (6 trials) quick starts to due the collaboration between the i8's front motor and rear engine. This is rather impressive since the 458 has been reported to achieve zero to sixty in the low 3 second range.
3) Ditto Epirali - no power fade.
4) The interior is modern and has clean lines. However, it does not exude the same quality and luxury that a Gallardo offers (the Gallardo interior has been one of my favorites). However, I do like the cockpit like feel of the i8 in comparison to other sports cars in the market.
5) In for a turbo replacement (technician found one of the turbos leaking oil). Also experienced some software glitches.
6) I picked the mephisto grey color in order to avoid attention which has been a total fail. Encounter lot's of thumbs up and photo/video shots while on the road. Have resorted to early morning refueling in order to avoid attracting crowds at the gas pump. Somehow the i8 seems to garner a lot more attention than when I drove the Gallardo or the Ferrari 430.
7) Haven't fully drawn down the gas and batteries to confirm the max distance to render any accurate conclusion.
8) Never had much luck in investing in cars and would therefore be the last one to offer any sound advice in that regard.
9) Familiar with tight parking in Vancouver B.C. and in Toronto. Based on my experience parking in tighter spots within San Francisco, the door clearance should not be a problem. As a matter of fact, you should try opening the i8's doors within a confined space or close to a parked vehicle at your dealership to see if there's an issue for yourself.
I was looking at several other sports cars before finally zeroing in on the i8. Looking back, I've had the most fun and enjoyment with this forward thinking and cutting edge sports car. Good luck on your decision.