The BMW i4 is the German carmaker’s way of showing everyone it can do better than the i3. It’s a true all-electric 4 Series that keeps the Bavarian DNA alive. Watch how the i4 eDrive40 goes sideways on each of the 99 turns of the Tongtian Avenue that’s found on Tianmen Mountain.
While drifting every turn possible won’t get you to the finish line faster, it sure makes for a lot of fun and a cool video. Plus, it shows the entire world that all-electric cars aren’t fragile. This BMW remains true to its nature, even if, surprisingly, it isn’t the all-wheel-drive M50 version.
The i4 eDrive40 uses only one motor placed on its rear axle that produces 335 HP. The rear-wheel-drive Gran Coupe has an 81-kWh battery pack. BMW promises its car's good for a range of about 360 miles (579 kilometers). The model has an MSRP of $55,400 in the U.S.
Even if the stunt isn’t a continuous drift from start to finish, the fact that the machine managed to do it in a single run shows the Bavarian automaker is pretty serious about manufacturing EVs that don’t disappoint those looking for fun, yet premium cars.
The road is 6.6 miles (10.7 kilometers) long and has a 3,608 feet (1,100 meters) elevation drop.
Keep in mind this i4 eDrive40 wasn’t pre-prepared in any way, shape, or form beforehand. It’s as stock as any production car can be. Still, you should take all this performance with a grain of salt. The video appears to be taken from China’s famous social network Weibo. It looks like it was a stunt prepared by the licensed Top Gear Chinese show, but there are no behind-the-scenes recordings available. It hasn’t been featured yet on BBC’s Top Gear and it wasn’t shared by many people outside of China. You’re one of the few that get to see this new footage.
This event reminds us of the Dragon Challenge done by Land Rover in China at the same Tianmen Mountain in 2018. That attempt took place on the staircase that takes those brave enough to climb them to what’s become known as Heaven’s Gate. It was successful and it provided the British brand with a lot of positive feedback about Range Rover’s PHEV solution. The i4 got exactly to the spot where the SUV started its climb.
Car shows on TV and his father's Fiat Tempra may have been Florin's early influences, but nowadays he favors different things, like the power of an F-150 Raptor. He'll never be able to ignore the shape of a Ferrari though, especially a yellow one. Full profile
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