Five months have passed since BMW AG Chairman and CEO Harald Krüger promised us a roadster version of the company’s halo car, the BMW i8 plug-in hybrid sports car, and we have yet to see proof that it exists—until perhaps now.
Fans of a possible topless i8 have been forced to pull up up old pictures of the BMW i8 Concept Spyder for the last four years now. That car—first released in 2012—appeared to be a well-designed and fairly finished product, so why the delay?
We would guess that the biggest delay would be caused by the discussion of what to make the convertible top out of and where to put it. Anyone who has looked closely at an i8 Coupe knows there is not a lot of room in the car’s already tiny trunk.
A new spy video taken at the Nürburgring’s Nordschleife may at least prove that BMW is actually working on an i8 convertible, and it may hold a clue about the convertible top.
This Gumbal-captured video shows two i8s—a normal coupe and another with a mysteriously taped section where the roof normally sits—tearing up the ‘Ring.
If the non-coupe is indeed testing the roof configuration intended for a production i8 roadster or spyder, then we might hold out hope that a top-up-or-down i8 could come to market in the next two years. If, on the other hand, the car is a test mule and BMW is still evaluating the feasibility or economy of different top options, then who knows when we might see the car in showrooms?
The i8 in the video appears to have a solid but detachable roof panel, if the tape lines can be believed. The car still has its rear seats, but that could mean that it will remain a 2+2 and BMW has figured out another place to put the roof, or it could mean that the rear seats will come out, but BMW hasn’t gotten that far yet. The BMW i8 Concept Spyder was a two-seater, for those of you keeping score at home.
If we had to guess—and truthfully, at this point it’s mostly guessing—BMW will pick whatever roof system is lightest. It has gone to great lengths to make the i8 as light as possible and we have every reason to believe they will do the same for the spyder, or roadster, or whatever. Just get on with it.—Scott Blazey
[Photo and video courtesy of Gumbal.]
