BMW News
The revolutionary i3 all-electric city car that BMW has been preparing for quite a while will be unveiled (in production form) at the Frankfurt Motor Show, in September, according to AutoWeek.
BMW has announced that the i3 has a range of up to 100 miles on battery power alone, and will go up to 180 miles with the highly anticipated range-extender. Latest reports suggest that this option will be prepared in collaboration with Korean scooter-manufacturer Kymco. The company has successfully broken into what used to be the domain of Italian manufacturers Vespa and Lambretta, with smoky two-stroke engines. U.S. emissions regulations required a changeover to four-stroke motors in 2007.
No pricing has been announced, but according to BMW CEO Norbert Reithofer "several hundred advance orders" have already been received at BMW dealerships from early adopters. Maximilian Kellner, head of product management of BMW i Division said the i3 has a range on a single electrical charge of 80 to 99 miles," reassuring the public that the "city-Bimmer" will be more than ready for daily commutes.
The range-extender available for the i3 has been the source of many controversial rumors. At first, everyone thought that it will be a 2-cylinder BMW Motorrad engine that would power up the batteries and not be directly linked to the gearbox. But now it sounds like BMW will collaborate with Kymco in order to increase the car's autonomy. –– Paul Duchene
No pricing has been announced, but according to BMW CEO Norbert Reithofer "several hundred advance orders" have already been received at BMW dealerships from early adopters. Maximilian Kellner, head of product management of BMW i Division said the i3 has a range on a single electrical charge of 80 to 99 miles," reassuring the public that the "city-Bimmer" will be more than ready for daily commutes.
The range-extender available for the i3 has been the source of many controversial rumors. At first, everyone thought that it will be a 2-cylinder BMW Motorrad engine that would power up the batteries and not be directly linked to the gearbox. But now it sounds like BMW will collaborate with Kymco in order to increase the car's autonomy. –– Paul Duchene
