BMW’s $130,000 hybrid sports car, the i8, is spotted extreme weather testing in Dubai, UAE. We think.
Chances are our recent feature on the BMW i8 left many of you sitting on the fence: ‘yes, the principle is all well and good and the technology seems sound, but is this something we should be taking seriously?’ According to Harald Krueger, who is on the Group’s board of management, absolutely. And considering a prototype version (or something very similar) has now been spotted extreme weather testing in Dubai, crankandpiston thinks so too.
Since confirmation has yet to drop from Munich that this is in fact a development of the i8, we’re working with speculation at present. That, despite the model being ‘almost at the point of launch’. Still, with the test model bearing the same camouflage design as that the i3 prototype was sporting in the region during its own test program, the conceptually sculpted carbon fibre rear end and the now famous BMW kidney grilles boasted so astutely by the new 3-Series, it seems a safe bet.
The new $130,000 sports car is set to drop during the first quarter of next year, and while the ‘emotionally sexy car’ has been doing the Motor Show rounds for quite some time, interest now surrounds its on-board hybrid powerplant. Running a turbocharged three-cylinder engine, the i8 also uses an electric motor powered by a lithium-ion battery pack. Combined, the system produces a hardly-shabby 349bhp, enough to whip the Beemer from 0-100kph in a claimed 4.6 seconds.
– Shots courtesy of Rafik Jabbour
