Text by Tomi Lin, Photo by Joe
There are certain images and perceptions that comes to mind when someone mentions ‘Hybrid’.
To me it conjures up images of the Toyota Prius, Honda Civic Hybrid, Tree Huggers, World Savers, and Early-Adapters. Gas Saver and carpool lane access also comes to mind too.
Depending on where you live in the United States, these can be a positive or a negative. In the beginning of the Hybrid Revolution, Toyota and other car companies tries to convey a great story of saving the planet when you buy a hybrid car. You are not exhausting the dead dinosaurs (crude oil) in the ground and making the world we live in a better place. It is a nice story but the truth is, it is worse for the environment. We are depleting the resources and precious metals needed to build the batteries and other parts of the car, and the return on investing in a hybrid is too long for it to really make a difference. What was once a positive image of green and love for the planet, has turned to smugness and ‘I am better than you’ persona.
I remember having a conversation with my friend Shaun a couple of years ago about getting a Prius to save on gas money for my commutes, his response to me was
‘If you buy a Prius, we cannot be friends anymore!’
Of course he was joking when he said it, but so much was the hate and negative image of Prius owners to my friend and countless others that there is a backlash to the Prius and what it stands for. Don’t get me wrong, it is a great car for what it was designed to do. Unfortunately, the baggage and the perceived image that comes with owning such car have put off many potential buyers.
During my time at Audi, I attended a design presentation on why car companies should build an ‘Alternative Power’ vehicle. An expert gave 3 valuable points as to why a company should build hybrid cars.
- It should be a ‘Halo’ Car to showcase the technology and forward thinking of the company. A mobile showcase for the brand.
- Is building a Hybrid the answer to Toyota because they are building it? And to not seem left behind by the rest of the pack, we should do it too?
- What is the purpose for doing it?
The BMW i8’s existence is BMW’s answer to the above questions/points.
BMW created the i-Series of cars to exhibit their hybrid technology. To change the game and the image from being a boring, docile, appliance to an exciting car that is in line with their tag line of ‘The Ultimate Driving Machine’
For BMW to get into the hybrid game, they have two hills to climb to change the perception of the car and also the image of the BMW Owners.
Some readers might agree with the BMW Owner’s image in the United States and other parts of the world as being negative. Many creative names are used to describe these owners. D*&hbag, A%*#ole are just a few that comes to mind. When you get into a BMW, you are automatically categorized as such.
I own a BMW myself, and I am on a one man mission to change that perception, one person at a time!
Exterior
Now back on topic for this article, a little background on the evolution of the exterior design of the car. The first time we saw the exterior styling exercise was on the show car called ‘BMW M1 Hommage Concept’. You can see certain details on the concept car that eventually made it into the i8. The design was led by Mr. Adrian Van Hooydonk, the Dutch Design Director of BMW. The proportions of the car and details like the BMW kidney grills, C-Pillar design cues and horizontal slots in the rear can be connected to the lineage of the final i8 production.
The next iteration of the designs from the M1 Hommage Concept was carried over to the i8 Concept Car. Since this was still a concept, the details are still quite ‘Blue Sky’. The glass doors and the chassis was brand new, the proportions looked so much cooler in the concept form, which in the production car, lost some of its attractiveness. I feel BMW did a pretty good job of translating the details into the production car, the scalloped rear fender surfaces that leads into the fins on the tail, and the Kidney Grill, Hofmeister Kink in the C-Pillar make it unmistakable BMW.
The latest concept car from BMW also has some of the i8’s DNA as well, The BMW 3.0 CSL Hommage. It has similar rear fenders, scalloped treatments.
The exterior design of the i8 is very eye catching as this was the case when we drove the car around Los Angeles. People stopped to take pictures from their cellphones and kids pointed with big smiles on their faces. Everyone was interested in the car and many questions were asked by passersby.
Interior
Once you open the gull wing doors of the i8, there is no graceful way of ingress or egressing the car. The opening is small and with the big door sill from the carbon fiber tub, you will be lucky not to scrape your head every time you attempt to drive. After squeezing yourself into the seat, you are greeted by swoopy and curved interior design elements. The color combination of light beige and black with a hint of blue is very tastefully done and pleasing to the eye. You would expect nothing less from BMW. The center instrument cluster is a LCD digital screen, and the center monitor dominates the dash, displaying all the vital information of the car. The i-Drive in the i8 is equipped with hand writing recognition to make the process less painful to use. The gear selector is again typical BMW, a small stalk in the center console like the ones in other BMW range. Typical to all the latest exotics on the market, it has a Start button too.
There is no luggage space to speak of, you would be lucky to stow a small backpack in the concave tray at the back. There is room behind the front seats for more overnight bags, but the space is not big enough for humans or golf clubs.
Overall when you own an i8, it is an ‘Experience’. A lot of drama and presentation from the way the car looks to how the door opens. BMW had succeeded in pushing the automotive design of the future and differentiating itself from other car companies with this car. There is no way anyone will mistaken the i8 to another model. It is a spectacular event for the surrounding crowd, but unfortunately it cannot be said for the driver.
After driving the car in the city, the verdict from all the testers was the same. It drives like a Prius. It is too quiet to make your pulse racing, the rev. noise is piped in to the speakers to create a synthetic sound. The ride comfort is like your typical BMW. For a car that costs $150,000 after tax, maybe it is cheaper to buy a pink Prius?
*When you look at the i8 from the back, the bumper looks like it is giving birth to a Porsche 911 Carrera.
