The world premiere of BMW’s first urban electric car, i3, will be held on 29th this month in London, New York and Beijing together. The company has revealed its technical specs along with the introductory price of the BMW i3 for the USA. However the Bavarian automaker has not revealed the official images of production i3 which now has become a traditional aspect for automakers before the launch of any new model. Pictures have of course leaked before the debut, like they mostly do.
The design of the BMW i3 is more on peppy and futuristic side rather than mature and executive language of BMW’s sedan series. The high body style with interesting coach doors at the rear has redefined the design language in a classic way. The most prominent element in the i3’s design is the traditional kidney grille that defines its origin, otherwise the complete body shape differs from BMW’s context. The cabin is interestingly sculptured with several curious as well as sober control modules including a digital LCD-like instrument console on the dashboard.
The BMW i3 features a electric motor, which produces 168 BHP of maximum power with a constant torque of 250 Nm. The vehicle accelerates from 0 to 100 km/hr in 7 seconds with a claimed top speed of 150 km/hr. The i3 is capable of roaming for 130 kms to 160 kms in one complete charge that can be increased up to 12 percent in ECO PRO mode and 12 percent more in the ECO PRO+ mode.
A petrol-electric variant will also be offered that has a 2-cylinder, 650cc petrol engine that produces 34 BHP of power and enables the i3 to commute for 250-300 kms in a single fuel top-up. The retail sale of the BMW i3 will start from mid-2014 in the US market with a starting price tag of US $41,350 (approximately Rs. 25 lakhs in India).
Pictures Source – Autoblog.nl