Photo: BMW
BMW’s i8 is the kind of car that gets people talking, and many wonder if and when will it get an M version.
Officials of BMW’s M division, along with other representatives of the main brand, have underlined the fact that they do not plan to make an i8 M.
However, interest in a version of the i8 with some performance enhancements is high, and BMW is probably observing this from its “Vierzylinder” office in Munich, Germany.
If a fully fledged M version of the i8 is temporarily out of the question, the Bavarian brand still has options on the table, and one of them includes developing an “M Performance” version, while others include offering something with a suffix behind the i8 name. Whatever the solution, BMW’s performance-enhanced i8 is something that seems more than plausible in the current portfolio of the brand.
BMW’s i3, the smaller brother of the i8, is also being considered for a sporty variant, which might come to market in late 2017. The said model is reportedly named i3S, and will come with enhanced dynamic abilities.
In other words, straight line performance might not be dramatically improved, but it will get an addition to handling. The i8’s performance version might also integrate elements that will lead to a similar behavior, especially since modifying the current hybrid drive train might be too much for a version like this.
After all, the i8 and i3 get decent sales figures, but none of them reached volumes high enough to justify the development of dedicated performance versions that feature more powerful engines.
While the decision might be unusual for a company like BMW, the idea makes sense if you think about the topic thoroughly. After all, BMW’s alleged performance versions of the i3 and i8 have to be developed with reasonable costs, and creating uprated power trains for them might be more expensive than for an internal-combustion-engined vehicle.
However, interest in a version of the i8 with some performance enhancements is high, and BMW is probably observing this from its “Vierzylinder” office in Munich, Germany.
If a fully fledged M version of the i8 is temporarily out of the question, the Bavarian brand still has options on the table, and one of them includes developing an “M Performance” version, while others include offering something with a suffix behind the i8 name. Whatever the solution, BMW’s performance-enhanced i8 is something that seems more than plausible in the current portfolio of the brand.
BMW’s i3, the smaller brother of the i8, is also being considered for a sporty variant, which might come to market in late 2017. The said model is reportedly named i3S, and will come with enhanced dynamic abilities.
In other words, straight line performance might not be dramatically improved, but it will get an addition to handling. The i8’s performance version might also integrate elements that will lead to a similar behavior, especially since modifying the current hybrid drive train might be too much for a version like this.
After all, the i8 and i3 get decent sales figures, but none of them reached volumes high enough to justify the development of dedicated performance versions that feature more powerful engines.
While the decision might be unusual for a company like BMW, the idea makes sense if you think about the topic thoroughly. After all, BMW’s alleged performance versions of the i3 and i8 have to be developed with reasonable costs, and creating uprated power trains for them might be more expensive than for an internal-combustion-engined vehicle.
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