The Verge, a popular gadget and technology magazine blog, spent some time up close and personal with the BMW i8 at an event in New York, USA. They took the car from a technology point of view, where people expect it to excel, and shares some thoughts about their experience with the vehicle. Here is an excerpt:
It’s a little weird being this up close and personal with a concept supercar — it’s about a half-and-half mix of functional futuristic technology and blinky-lights mockups. Fortunately, the big stuff is all real: the car is drivable, those insane gullwing doors flip right open, and the Laserlight headlights do indeed provide light from lasers. It’s the little stuff that doesn’t work: none of the dashboard animations were real, most of the interior is a mockup, and we doubt BMW is actually going to build the doors out of glass.
BMW says this model is slightly newer than the one in Mission Impossible 4, and that the hybrid drivetrain is good to hit 60mph in around 4.6 seconds while still getting 78mpg. Obviously those numbers are a bit hypothetical until a real i8 arrives on dealer lots, but even getting in the range would be impressive.