Personally I would consider 0-60 in 4.4 seconds as being fast. 155mph electrically limited top speed is pretty standard fare for BMW. At the end of the day the I8 is a massive car, honestly, its yuge. The I8 isn't designed to be a hardcore track car. Even in sport mode the suspension is still pretty soft, the ride quality is genuinely impressive. Its not designed for the track. Its designed for daily driving and efficiency, for a car that does 0-60 in under 5 seconds the fact it it gets close to 60mpg(imperial) under spirited real world driving is impressive. I can only conclude that the car doesn't know what it wants to be. The car feels as though it has been designed for the only people who can afford one, frail 60 year olds, however they would struggle to get in and out. Its an excellent grand touring car, if you ignore how small the boot is. But at the end of the day it is fast in a straight line and very cool imo.
Also, that's fine for BMW in Europe, seeing as Honda apparently won't be selling petrol cars after 2019 or something here
Most Hydrogen is derived from natural gas... Therefore not as clean as electricity from renewable sources. (which also contradicts your big oil and gas comments) Most car manufacturers are making hydrogen powered cars too. Not currently for production reasons, but just in case there is a breakthrough in hydrogen tech that makes it more feasible. So that they are ready to compete in that market if it emerges. Renewable energy is the largest growing energy source, planning around that seems like a smart move. Designing for today is pointless if the reasoning doesn't make sense tomorrow. Public EV charging points in the UK are powered by renewable electricity. (via offset ofc, since you can't control which electrons go where with today's power distribution). I only specify the UK because I don't have a full comprehensive list, but its common elsewhere too. I would also like to end by saying, of course there are some governments that have no interest in being environmentally friendly. Many of them put that forward as their manifesto... However, as they seem to be finding out, industry itself is responding to environmental concerns because it is becoming uneconomical to ignore them. And equally in the case of car companies, they are worried about their relevance in the future, and as such are being forced by the marketplace to innovate or die.
For me personally it wouldnt be a car id buy if id have the money as you can get a nice GT car for less with more kit like a jaguar f type but they use alot of fuel then but when you consider that my car now drinks around 10 liters per 100km and im fine with it i probably wouldnt be having problems with a bit more
Hey, I don't know everything about the subject. I put in about 0% research into this, seeing as it doesn't really interest me. I just don't see renewable energy being at a level it needs to be to, for lack of a better example, powering the EV charging points when everyone has an EV. But abit on the convenience bit, most petrol stations have pretty long queues as it. Are they gonna do anything to counteract it seeing as you'll need to be there about an hour instead of 5 minutes? I don't think simply adding more EV charging points will do much
I certainly wouldn't buy one either The BMW I8 is way more expensive than I am currently comfortable spending on a car, maybe in 10 years second hand if I am lucky xD --- Post updated --- Most people won't ever need to visit a petrol station. Since most people don't commute more than 50 miles, never mind 150 miles. Since with an EV you can charge at home, and potentially at work. I would expect to see the number of places that offer this in the future increasing. For longer distance journeys, I reckon shops and restaurants will be inclined to install charging points, to encourage people to shop/eat at their store while the car charges.
I honestly dont like its design so i probably wont have one anyway id rather have a Jaguar XJR or something like that if i want to spend my money on a second hand luxury car
What do you all think of the more 'self driving' like cars. I remember Jaguar having that idea for only owning a steering wheel like thing, which calls a ca I guess I could see that happening. It'd make sence. Honestly my only real issue with electric cars (especially the cheaper ones) are the designs. I mean, to be fair, I don't like the look of most newer cars, but all the new 'EV' ones getting anounced just look... Weird, i guess.
In person I think they look fantastic. The one I was in today was in full black. On the cost side of things, I should add in that the BMW I8 has a carbon fibre tub. As such the door sills etc are full carbon fibre. There are very few cheap cars that have as much carbon as the I8. However I would have to add in that it does not have a particularly pretty weave to it. (Not my picture)
My boss and his wife both drive Tesla's, they haven't had to visit a petrol station. They get home and they plug in, simple.
It even plays pseudo V8 through the speakers despite only having a 1.5l Inline 3cyl... However, the 'V8' sound doesn't sound much like a V8. The car only plays it when you accelerate hard and stays silent the rest of the time (the engine is very quiet). Personally I quite like the fake V8 sound, not because it sounds anything like a V8 but because its kinda funny, but not in an annoying way, it made me smile. (Not my video)
I guess the V8 sound is kinda like adding some character to the car, in a way. Most people find the old speed chime in some Japanese cars annoying, yet it's anything but for me
I know someone who builds those tubs for bmw and with the sound i actually think that having a sound dubbed over an electric car isnt that bad
As far as the exterior sound goes, I think that's a safety feature -- if it weren't there, pedestrians might not hear you. The interior sound, though... that pisses me off. It ruins the impression that the car is powered by elvish magic and good vibes.
Id say they should atleast have a 4cyl sound on the outside so its as loud as a ordinary vw polo or something like that as theyre not too loud but you can still hear them and on the inside that you can choose if it sounds like an electric car or if it should sound like a normal car on the inside. Also with sound generators my dads old octavia had one and it was quite well made as far as i know it didnt have a speaker on the inside more with the windscreen or something all i know is that it worked really nice
Why on earth do we need sound generators in ICE cars? My own car barely makes sound at all when idle (despite almost nonexistent soundproofing) and sounds like a generic NA I4 when driving, and I am perfectly fine with it. I understand that a 90s economy car can't sound like a V6/V8/V10 etc. Neither can a modern economy car or a modern turbo four-banger sports sedan, so why pretend they can? It is like wearing a mask depicting a perfect face to look better.