2014 BMW i8

BMW i8 has 'swan-wing' doors
 

TYPE: Compact plug-in 2+2 hybrid coupe

DRIVE FORMAT: All-wheel drive

BASE PRICE: $136,625

ENGINE: 1.5-liter turbocharged I-3 (drives the rear wheels), assisted by a lithium-ion battery pack and 96 kW electric motor (drives the front wheels)

HORSEPOWER: Total system: 357 hp

TORQUE: 420 lb.-ft.

REQUIRED FUEL: Premium

TRANSMISSION: Gas engine: Six-speed automatic; electric motor: two-stage transmission

SUSPENSION: Fully independent

BRAKES: Four-wheel disc, ABS, stability and traction control; regenerative charging system engages when not accelerating

EPA MPG: 76 mpgE; gasoline-only combined city/hwy rating is 28 mpg (i8 features 22-mile electric range on full-charge; full charging time at 240-volt outlet is 2 hours; total electric and gasoline i8 range is 310 miles);
WHEELBASE: 110.2 inches
LENGTH: 184.6 inches
CURB WEIGHT: 3,285 lbs.
CARGO: 5 cubic feet
WHERE BUILT: Leipzig, Germany

If the BMW i8 is the future of sports cars, the sports car of the future will be gorgeous to behold from the outside and thrilling to drive once you're inside. Getting from outside to inside, however, may result in many chiropractors of the future being on speed dial.
This ultra-high-tech plug-in hybrid seems a real-world descendent of the DeLorean in "Back to the Future." It may not have a flux capacitor, but it has just about everything else, including "swan wing" doors that open vertically.
To get in, we found the best way is to place posterior on the seat, swing feet up and over the high door sill and then down into the footwell and, finally, reach up, grab the door handle and pull down to close it. Fortunately, the aluminum-and-carbon fiber door, assisted by a strut, is not heavy.
Getting out requires a running start.
Power to this future-is-now machine is provided by a 1.5-liter turbo I-3 assisted by an electric drive motor and lithium-ion battery pack. The electric motor powers the front wheels, the gas engine the rear, creating all-wheel drive.
Total-system horsepower is a muscular 357, while torque ripples asphalt to the tune of 420 lb.-ft.
Punch the start button ... and nothing happens, save the instrument panel lights up. That's because the car is waiting for the driver to select one of five drive modes, ranging from thrifty electric-power-only to full-throated, turbocharged, fossil-fuel swilling Sport mode. In Sport, which retains electric boost, 60 mph arrives in less than 4 seconds.
i8's electric range officially is 22 miles, but we couldn't confirm because our i8 was a European-spec model; its Euro electric plug wouldn't fit US outlets.
We did, however, avail ourselves of Sport-mode charging, which provides a mile of storable electric drive for every mile, up to 22, of Sport-mode driving. Alas, our car could never bank more than 11 electric miles. That — along with more than our share of hot-rodding in Sport mode — helps explain the sorry 32 mpg we got in 130 miles. EPA's electric+gas rating is 76.
One low-tech item missing is an AM radio! A BMW spokesman said that's " ... due to concerns about signal interference from the (car's) electric motor."
Still, i8 is fun to drive and astounding to behold, attracting attention like Ozzy Osbourne in the girls' choir.
Finally, saving money on gas is expensive. This hybrid starts at $136,625.