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Originally Posted by BMWjourney
Why isn't the i8 an M car? Shouldn't it be?
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Carac's reply addresses this perfectly. Because of the i3 and i8, if/when BMW decides to make a proper super car, it will benefit from all of the weight saving CFRP production process that BMW invested in this project.
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Originally Posted by BMWjourney
This is the first super car BMW has made in a while.
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No, it isn't. The i8 is not labeled as a supercar. This has been a marketing misconception largely propagated by the design and looks of the car, which admittedly are "supercar-like." BMW does not call the i8 a supercar, and nowhere in any of the released literature from BMW regarding the i8 is the word supercar even used.
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Originally Posted by BMWjourney
It's beautiful, it's high-tech,
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Yes, and yes, agreed
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Originally Posted by BMWjourney
and it's supposed to be the rival to the R8 and the SLS AMG. How can it do that with a zeroto sixty time of over four seconds when both the R8 and the SLS AMG have zero to sixty times in a little over three seconds?
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It is not supposed to rival these cars. That being said, the R8 V8 on paper is quite similar to the i8 if not even slower by some measures. The R8 V10 and SLS AMG are proper supercars.
Further, 0-60 times are not the holy grail of performance for a supercar or any performance car. We all love to brag about the numbers and I enjoy the enjoy taking off from a stoplight in my X6M as much as the next guy, but it's the overall package of handling, speed, and power that makes a performance car.
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Originally Posted by BMWjourney
It doesn't perform.
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That's a relative statement. Compared to what, in which environment, does it not perform? The i8 as seen in Chris Harris' video is quite capable in a capable driver's hands, to say the least. It's not a track car and it won't hang above 100mph with the likes of a 12C or similar, but it has very respectable performance especially given it's powertrain. Most non-track driving is double digit speeds, and most canyon roads are even slower. The i8 is perfect for the canyons.
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Originally Posted by BMWjourney
It's amazingly light but it's got no character under the hood.
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Again relativity comes to play here. It's a different kind of character; you don't need a fire breathing V12 to have character. The i8 has a dual nature of being a docile city car in eDrive or Comfort mode, and an an aggressive canyon carver in Sport mode. The little turbo 3 cylinder in the i8 has the highest hp/liter ratio of any BMW engine to date. Not too shabby if you ask me.
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Originally Posted by BMWjourney
Shouldn't M step in and make this thing truly amazing??? I get that it has 95 mpg. That's great. Nobody can compete with that. But that's not what people are going to want out of BMW's first super car in a while. They could care less about the mpg. They want raw performance that rivals a Lamborghini or a Ferrari. That's why we need M.
I'm sure there's somebody out there who can correct me on almost everything I just said. Please, I'm begging you. Do it. Does anybody agree with me? Disagree? Anything to add?
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I think M would benefit greatly from the technology of the i8 such as the Carbon fiber construction. A performance M hybrid supercar to rival the big 3 would be awesome. However, everything in due time and as we've all seen the weight of M cars rising lately, I think that BMW should first get the production process nailed of the i8, implement any learnings to improve it, and then trickle down the technology to the M division for them to build the halo supercar everyone wants. Imagine a 918 rival that weighs 3500 lbs instead of the over 4000lbs of the 918.
An M supercar will be a dream come true for a lot of us, but as Carac stated, the vast majority of us will never be able to own, drive, or probably even see one on the road.
Let the i8 be what it is, a gorgeously sculpted futuristic sports car that has everyday usable performance, a unique dual nature, and great efficiency for its class.
Once the money starts recouping on the i project, surely BMW will then have some "fun money" and the advanced lightweight construction know-how to build the M supercar we all are asking for.