Now let’s get to the heart of the matter and the most interesting part of the i8. The i8 is powered by two electric motors mounted in the front that drive the front wheels and a mid mounted 1.5 litre 3 cylinder turbo petrol engine that does the duty of driving the rear wheels. This petrol engine is also used in the entry level Mini Cooper in international markets. This configuration makes the i8 an AWD. The electric motors put out 129 bhp and 250 Nm of torque while the petrol motor puts out 228 bhp and 320 Nm torque. This gives the i8 a combined power output of 357 bhp and 570 Nm torque. That’s pretty impressive for a hybrid. It does the 0 to 100 kph dash in 4.4 seconds and goes to a top speed of 250 kph. The electric motors are mated to a 2 speed Steptronic transmission while the petrol engine gets a 6 speed automatic gearbox.

The i8 starts in electric mode by default provided there is power in the batteries. The instrument cluster lights up and all you hear is a faint sound similar to a turbine engine just for a few seconds. It sounds a bit odd if you are driving a hybrid for the first time. Slot the gear shifter into D and you are good to go. The car moves forward very quickly but in total silence. The car moves in COMFORT mode by default. Here the i8 drives in full electric model up to 65 kph after which the petrol motor comes to life. Other modes comprise of ECO PRO, SPORT and eDrive. Press the eDrive button on the centre console and you go into full electric mode. The i8 can go a claimed 35 kms on full electric mode and does a top speed of 120 kph.

If you want have more fun, move the gear shifter to the left and SPORT mode is activated. The instrument cluster turns red and as mentioned earlier, a tachometer replaces the power meter. In SPORT mode, the revs are held till the red line before shifting into the next gear plus you can use the paddles to shift manually. The engine sounds nice but that’s because of the artificial engine note that comes out from the speaker mounted between the rear seats. The car doesn’t sound too sporty from the outside. You also get a power boost from the batteries in SPORT mode to add the driving pleasure. The i8 gets regenerative braking which charges the batteries but not to a substantial level. The max recharge I got during my drive was just 1 km really.

The i8 comes with electric power steering that is very light. We did not get a chance to really test the handling abilities of the car but the car felt planted around whatever cornering we could manage. Ride quality is not the best due to a stiff suspension setup but it is still good for a car that rides on 20 inch wheels. Ground clearance is low and a long wheelbase can add to bottoming out woes as well, but the i8 did not scrape any of the Mumbai speed breakers that we encountered.

The i8 can be fully charged in 4 hours via a charger that comes with the car. All you need to do is plug it into a standard 3 pin power outlet. At the same time you can buy an i Wallbox charger that you can install in your garage at home and that will charge the car in 2.5 hours.

The BMW i8 is a technological wonder and is a sign of what cars we could see in the future. Should you buy one? That depends on what you are looking for. As a sportscar, there are many others out there that will give you better performance at a much lower price . At 2.29 crore ex showroom, the i8 is very expensive. But if you want something that is very unique and makes a statement wherever it goes, there is nothing quite like the i8. It looks stunningly beautiful, drives well, has ample performance, is loaded with technology and you will save Mother Earth too. So if the high sticker price is the last thing on your mind, you should have a BMW i8 parked in your garage.

Acknowledgement: We would like to thank a very dear friend of Throttle-Blips.com for lending his awesome BMW i8 for this review.

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