[evanevery]

That's an interesting video - thanks. Even though it supports my opinion - the guy driving the M4 seems to be a real hack! He's not a smooth driver by any measure and you can clearly see him losing it in several corners and then abruptly catching it...

The i8 is a much more refined vehicle than the M4. As such, I'm not inclined to "grind it up" on an autocross course. The i8 also suffers from a bit of understeer when you reach its limits in the corners. The M4 is much better balanced in that regard.

I'm not sure why everybody is so keen on trying to track/autocross their i8's. Its not like the i8 should have to do those types of tasks to be properly appreciated. The car was simply never designed for that type of use. Its a GT cruiser and canyon carver at best - not a track car. But there is absolutely nothing wrong with that!

Similarly, I would take the i8 all-day-long over the M4 for high speed cross country cruising. Its just more comfortable...

$0.02

[orion1977]

Originally Posted by evanevery

That's an interesting video - thanks. Even though it supports my opinion - the guy driving the M4 seems to be a real hack! He's not a smooth driver by any measure and you can clearly see him losing it in several corners and then abruptly catching it...

The i8 is a much more refined vehicle than the M4. As such, I'm not inclined to "grind it up" on an autocross course. The i8 also suffers from a bit of understeer when you reach its limits in the corners. The M4 is much better balanced in that regard.

I'm not sure why everybody is so keen on trying to track/autocross their i8's. Its not like the i8 should have to do those types of tasks to be properly appreciated. The car was simply never designed for that type of use. Its a GT cruiser and canyon carver at best - not a track car. But there is absolutely nothing wrong with that!

Similarly, I would take the i8 all-day-long over the M4 for high speed cross country cruising. Its just more comfortable...

$0.02

At 2:06 of the video the i8 driver says there's no electricity left, so the car is not being driven at it's top potential.

[evanevery]

Originally Posted by orion1977

At 2:06 of the video the i8 driver says there's no electricity left, so the car is not being driven at it's top potential.

Sure it is... Its absolutely running at its top potential. Its just that it has nothing more to give. That's "just the way it is". Whats the problem? Get over it!

[orion1977]

Originally Posted by evanevery

Sure it is... Its absolutely running at its top potential. Its just that it has nothing more to give. That's "just the way it is". Whats the problem? Get over it!

It's not running at it's potential. The front axle is turned off b/c there's no more electricity in the battery.

I'd be curious to see how well it does with a full battery. Wouldn't you?

[evanevery]

Originally Posted by orion1977

It's not running at it's potential. The front axle is turned off b/c there's no more electricity in the battery.

I'd be curious to see how well it does with a full battery. Wouldn't you?

So you're missing the point...

The car is running at its full potential. The point is that the car's potential CHANGES over time. If you want to talk about the track-ability of a specific vehicle then this needs to be taken into consideration... If a car can only put out its peak power for a short duration of time then that's just the way it is. Similarly, if a car overheated quickly in a track environment and went into limp mode, then it would also have to be taken into account.

The i8 is not suitable for track use. It was never designed for track use... That's not why what most people buy it.

Why do you seem to think the i8 is somehow diminished if it's not particularly good on a track? Whats the big deal?

[orion1977]

Originally Posted by evanevery

So you're missing the point...

The car is running at its full potential. The point is that the car's potential CHANGES over time. If you want to talk about the track-ability of a specific vehicle then this needs to be taken into consideration... If a car can only put out its peak power for a short duration of time then that's just the way it is. Similarly, if a car overheated quickly in a track environment and went into limp mode, then it would also have to be taken into account.

The i8 is not suitable for track use. It was never designed for track use... That's not why what most people buy it.

Why do you seem to think the i8 is somehow diminished if it's not particularly good on a track? Whats the big deal?

I’d like to see footage of the car with charge. Why is this hard to understand?

[evanevery]

So watch the video BEFORE 2:06?

[orion1977]

Originally Posted by evanevery

So watch the video BEFORE 2:06?

There’s no footage at all with a charged battery. It’s been depleted for a while. They’ve been driving it in a depleted state.

Aren’t you curious, as well as I am, to see it with charge? I can’t imagine you wouldn’t be. Without charge, it didn’t do that bad following the M4. Imagine with charge.

[evanevery]

Originally Posted by orion1977

There’s no footage at all with a charged battery. It’s been depleted for a while. They’ve been driving it in a depleted state.

Aren’t you curious, as well as I am, to see it with charge? I can’t imagine you wouldn’t be. Without charge, it didn’t do that bad following the M4. Imagine with charge.

Actually, not really... I have an i8, and I have run an i8 on the track, so I'm not sure what additional insight that would provide. My M4 will run circles around my i8 on the track - even for the very brief time the i8 had a useable charge.

Also, neither of those guys were pushing the cars very hard. ...and the guy driving the "other car" seemed to be overdriving the car most of the time. Its not a video I put much confidence in...

[drlonline]

My interest in trying the i8 in an autocross at least once is simply to see how it would perform. As I had a chance to do my first autocross at a recent BMW UDE in a M4 and had so much fun, I'm just curious to see what the experience would be like in my i8. I certainly don't plan to do it on any regular basis.

Trust me, I love my i8 and that won't change regardless of how it does in an autocross. I totally agree the car was never intended to be a track car, and as you point out, it excels at so many other things. But, I'm still curious enough to try it out, and I figured in an autocross, the performance wouldn't suffer from the limited battery capacity.

[evanevery]

Originally Posted by drlonline

My interest in trying the i8 in an autocross at least once is simply to see how it would perform. As I had a chance to do my first autocross at a recent BMW UDE in a M4 and had so much fun, I'm just curious to see what the experience would be like in my i8. I certainly don't plan to do it on any regular basis.

Trust me, I love my i8 and that won't change regardless of how it does in an autocross. I totally agree the car was never intended to be a track car, and as you point out, it excels at so many other things. But, I'm still curious enough to try it out, and I figured in an autocross, the performance wouldn't suffer from the limited battery capacity.

I'm sure it will be fun! Let us know how it goes!

[zorgzx]

Originally Posted by SleepingBMW

So does i8 run out of battery on the track? Typical US track day is 3 30 minute sessions.

Would be annoying to lose 120 hp after a few laps. Or does the car regenerate power to make it around.


Also, how do you handle the gears. My understanding is the car uses the electric motor at low rpm and the power of the ice at high rpm. Thus exiting a corner would you up shift for torque and let it transition to power in the rear rather than max the torque in the rear axle?

Also, can you fit bigger wheels?

Yes it runs out of Epower, and goes from m3 killer to GTI. Its still fun but not fast enough.
It does not regen it. well it regens, but your constantly depleting it 20x.

In Sport the Emotor comes in as soon as you apply a decent amount of throttle, so it sharpens the line and explodes out of a corner. Think 911turbo 4x4 exit (without the powaah to keep doing it down a straight).

I use conventional high revs to get every bit from the 3pot (in the rear) combined with the e in the front.
The chassis is good enogh to handle it, no need to upshift.

[zorgzx]

Originally Posted by evanevery

Actually, not really... I have an i8, and I have run an i8 on the track, so I'm not sure what additional insight that would provide. My M4 will run circles around my i8 on the track - even for the very brief time the i8 had a useable charge.

Also, neither of those guys were pushing the cars very hard. ...and the guy driving the "other car" seemed to be overdriving the car most of the time. Its not a video I put much confidence in...

Have you tried a i8 on sticky + wide tyres? Remember the M4 is delivered on nice sticky stuff.
I'd agree with you that a M4 driven to its limits IS faster than a i8. Running circles while the battery is still on, I'd say is false. After its gone, hell yes.

I just did a bunch of laps on the nurbrugring with lots of gt3, m3, m4 etc around me. All the well driven 500ps cars was just gone.. no chance of sticking with them. So a 991 or 991.2 gt3 - forget it. But they all do run Rcompound tyres from factory in steamroller size and have gearing to tracks. oh and copious amounts of power.

The M3, M4's. Not so much. Some of them had nice Rcompound tyres and stipped interiors.. gone. Some where street cars.. Those where either just a bit faster or just a bit slower. Mostly faster on the straight bits and slower in the corners. Prbbly mostly down to driver skill.

I think the issue we probably all can agree on is:
The i8 is NOT a great track car.
once the battery goes its too slow.

But if say it was your only car and you only ever drove track 1-2 times a year with buddies in Mx-5s and 135i's and the occational 996 gt3 or e92m3. It would be lots fun, even after Epower runs out.

But if your friends have M4's with Rcompounds and you race eachother.. your going to loose a LOT.

I still would agree with our M4 owner here: Being slow on a track detracts nothing from the i8 ownership. Its a fantastic car in its own right, and not built on a crummy 3series with all the compromises having to be made there.

I only track my i8 because I can't stop myself. I'll probably never track it again or just for a few laps. Next trip to the ring I'm definitely bringing my slower NSX, so I dont have to faff with battery.

[Big boi m5]

Originally Posted by zorgzx

Have you tried a i8 on sticky + wide tyres? Remember the M4 is delivered on nice sticky stuff.
I'd agree with you that a M4 driven to its limits IS faster than a i8. Running circles while the battery is still on, I'd say is false. After its gone, hell yes.

I just did a bunch of laps on the nurbrugring with lots of gt3, m3, m4 etc around me. All the well driven 500ps cars was just gone.. no chance of sticking with them. So a 991 or 991.2 gt3 - forget it. But they all do run Rcompound tyres from factory in steamroller size and have gearing to tracks. oh and copious amounts of power.

The M3, M4's. Not so much. Some of them had nice Rcompound tyres and stipped interiors.. gone. Some where street cars.. Those where either just a bit faster or just a bit slower. Mostly faster on the straight bits and slower in the corners. Prbbly mostly down to driver skill.

I think the issue we probably all can agree on is:
The i8 is NOT a great track car.
once the battery goes its too slow.

But if say it was your only car and you only ever drove track 1-2 times a year with buddies in Mx-5s and 135i's and the occational 996 gt3 or e92m3. It would be lots fun, even after Epower runs out.

But if your friends have M4's with Rcompounds and you race eachother.. your going to loose a LOT.

I still would agree with our M4 owner here: Being slow on a track detracts nothing from the i8 ownership. Its a fantastic car in its own right, and not built on a crummy 3series with all the compromises having to be made there.

I only track my i8 because I can't stop myself. I'll probably never track it again or just for a few laps. Next trip to the ring I'm definitely bringing my slower NSX, so I dont have to faff with battery.

I'll agree, my 135i has upgraded M performance brakes and rotors (lol I know, couldn't resist) but is otherwise stock. I had no problem keeping up with most M3s and M4s that were driven to the track, and this I chalk down to skill (not that I'm that skilled).

My friend had his Z06 vette though and blew my doors off. Unreal what a proper sports car can do. The spectacle of seeing it blow by me on a straight was something else.

That's my main concern with the i8. I have little doubt that it could do better than my 135i and with skill out pace most of the other cars that out power it. but for the $80k to get a 2014 i8 you have many options that have thes slider from GT all the way over to track. C6 Z06 being an NA V8 extremely close to the c6.R or your choice of any used M car.

My infatuation with LMP1s makes this car very appealing to me though for my 2-4 track days a year.

[zorgzx]

Originally Posted by SleepingBMW

I'll agree, my 135i has upgraded M performance brakes and rotors (lol I know, couldn't resist) but is otherwise stock. I had no problem keeping up with most M3s and M4s that were driven to the track, and this I chalk down to skill (not that I'm that skilled).

My friend had his Z06 vette though and blew my doors off. Unreal what a proper sports car can do. The spectacle of seeing it blow by me on a straight was something else.

That's my main concern with the i8. I have little doubt that it could do better than my 135i and with skill out pace most of the other cars that out power it. but for the $80k to get a 2014 i8 you have many options that have thes slider from GT all the way over to track. C6 Z06 being an NA V8 extremely close to the c6.R or your choice of any used M car.

My infatuation with LMP1s makes this car very appealing to me though for my 2-4 track days a year.

I'm actually looking for a c6 z06 as I think this is one of the most undervalued cars on the sportscar market. Never driven one thou, and from friends I know vette's are supposedly built from cheese compared to bmw build quality.

[Big boi m5]

Originally Posted by zorgzx

I'm actually looking for a c6 z06 as I think this is one of the most undervalued cars on the sportscar market. Never driven one thou, and from friends I know vette's are supposedly built from cheese compared to bmw build quality.

The philosophy behind the modern corvette (C6 onward) is to use GMs ability to mass produce to create a supercar performance for a much cheaper price than a supercar.

When you get in the Z06 you'll see its got the same interior as a base Chevy cruze. I guess in Europe we are talking a Peugot or one of those French cars.

The reason Ferrari is so expensive is they have to make everything in small numbers thus even a plastic interior would expensive for them so they up the quality of material to make the price justifiable. Its expensive to make a Ferrari and the price reflects that more than performance.

The corvette on the other hand uses the same parts GM already makes in massive numbers so the price can be lower.

That's where the 'cheap' 'unreliable' reputation comes. Its odd to get into a 504 hp car and see the same turn signal stalk as a minivan.

The Z06 C6 in the US is about $30k depending on miles. The only bad thing I can see about it is the keyless feature was primitive and causes excessive battery drain. You'll have to drive it every 2 weeks or risk the battery being dead.

Engine is a classic NA V8, practically bullet proof, and only slightly modified version was used to win Le Mans.

Funny enough, GM execs didnt really 'get' the point of doing a Z06 that wasn't a muscle car (aka why does it need to turn?). They were gifted each a Z06 when production began and it had a 20% crash with in a few months.

So they ended up all getting track driving lessons at the vette museum in KY and suddenly they gained an understanding of 'tracking a car'.

Anyway the Z06 is about as close as you can get to buying a race car, except it has the compromises you'd want for street driving.

[zorgzx]

Originally Posted by SleepingBMW

The philosophy behind the modern corvette (C6 onward) is to use GMs ability to mass produce to create a supercar performance for a much cheaper price than a supercar.

When you get in the Z06 you'll see its got the same interior as a base Chevy cruze. I guess in Europe we are talking a Peugot or one of those French cars.

The reason Ferrari is so expensive is they have to make everything in small numbers thus even a plastic interior would expensive for them so they up the quality of material to make the price justifiable. Its expensive to make a Ferrari and the price reflects that more than performance.

The corvette on the other hand uses the same parts GM already makes in massive numbers so the price can be lower.

That's where the 'cheap' 'unreliable' reputation comes. Its odd to get into a 504 hp car and see the same turn signal stalk as a minivan.

The Z06 C6 in the US is about $30k depending on miles. The only bad thing I can see about it is the keyless feature was primitive and causes excessive battery drain. You'll have to drive it every 2 weeks or risk the battery being dead.

Engine is a classic NA V8, practically bullet proof, and only slightly modified version was used to win Le Mans.

Funny enough, GM execs didnt really 'get' the point of doing a Z06 that wasn't a muscle car (aka why does it need to turn?). They were gifted each a Z06 when production began and it had a 20% crash with in a few months.

So they ended up all getting track driving lessons at the vette museum in KY and suddenly they gained an understanding of 'tracking a car'.

Anyway the Z06 is about as close as you can get to buying a race car, except it has the compromises you'd want for street driving.

Well for me the problem has been a first world problem. Apparrently the 7litre engine is dead easy to pull an extra 100ps from, using only porting and cams, thus giving it the meanest nascar soundtrack. So that's a must have. But then it fails emissions here, and hard to import. Currently I'm looking to see if I can find a cheap std motor to bring with it from the states so I can swap it back if I have to.
just 2minutes on youtube with some of the lightly tuned z06's gets me all giddy
Probably the last of the great Na's.

[Mikegg]

Congrats!

I have a 2017 RR SVR and love it!