After recently announcing some of the vital details about the 2014 BMW i8 sports car, the German automaker has revealed that the United States will become the largest market for the 2014 BMW i8.
While speaking with Automotive News Europe, the product manager for the BMW i8, Hendrik Wenders said, “The U.S. will be by far the largest sales market for the i8.” For the European market, BMW predicts that the U.K, Germany and France will be the largest markets for that continent.
The BMW i8 features an aluminium Drive module incorporating a traditional internal combustion engine, two electric motors, a battery as well as all the electronics. That traditional engine is a mid-mounted 1.5-liter turbocharged three-cylinder powertrain pumping out an impressive 231hp and 236lb-ft of torque at the rear wheels.
However, BMW wasn’t entirely satisfied with those figures and also fitted an electric motor up front which on its own produces 131hp and 184lb-ft of instantly available torque. As a result, the BMW i8 produces a total of 362hp and 420lb-ft of torque and is good for a sprint from 0-100km/h in just 4.5 seconds and an electronically limited top speed of 155mph.
Fortunately, BMW didn’t focus all their energy on the powertrain and spent a considerable amount of time ensuring the BMW i8 is lightweight. This aim has been achieved thanks to a carbon fiber module making up part of the chassis and weighing 50% less than steel. As a result of this and BMW’s incredible engineers, the BMW i8 achieves a perfect 50:50 weight distribution.
[Via Automotive News Europe]
… until China takes over the place in 2015.