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BMW i8 - the future of sports cars?

BMW i8 - the future of sports cars?

Tom Unwin

The new BMW i8 is probably the most technology-forward new car on the market. Coming from the same family as the much smaller i3 and hailed as "the key to the city" this month. The i8 couldn’t be more different, for this is a sports car in its purest form, just a hybrid version.

The i8 is stunning, Auto Express says “elegant curves, spaceship-style rear lights and distinctive flying buttresses all make for a low-slung car with more presence than almost anything else on the road”. The i8's bodywork is crafted from carbon-fibre-reinforced plastic. This plastic is underpinned by an aluminium sub frame with plastic body panels that are reinforced with carbon-fibre.

Yet despite possessing just a twin turbo 1.5 litre engine built in the UK and an electric engine across the front axle, the i8 can reach speeds of 155mph. How you ask? Well, the petrol engine produces 231bhp, the electric engine adding an extra 131bph, providing 362bhp for a car that weighs 1500kg. Perhaps the key to the i8 is the data that is transmitted between the two engines, helping to cover each other’s weaknesses and reach 60mph in just 4.4 seconds.

Despite glowing reviews of its speed, design and economy, the i8 has its problems. Criticisms have stemmed from its steering, described as “lacking front-end bite” and having “strange under steer” by Andrew English of the Telegraph.

One things for sure though, you won’t get bored of driving an i8.

Read more: Telegraph
                       The Week 

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