Munich/Stuttgart. The plug-in hybrid drive system in
the BMW i8 (BMW i8 Roadster: fuel consumption combined 2.0 l/100 km
[141.2 mpg imp], electric power consumption combined 14.5 kWh/100 km,
CO2 emissions combined 46 g/km; BMW i8 Coupe: fuel consumption
combined 1.8 l/100 km [156.9 mpg imp], electric power consumption
combined 14.0 kWh/100 km, CO2 emissions combined 42 g/km) has won its
category in the world’s leading engine competition for the fourth year
in succession.
The drive system powering the BMW i8 (BMW i8 Roadster: fuel
consumption combined 2.0 l/100 km [141.2 mpg imp], electric power
consumption combined 14.5 kWh/100 km, CO2 emissions combined 46 g/km;
BMW i8 Coupe: fuel consumption combined 1.8 l/100 km [156.9 mpg imp],
electric power consumption combined 14.0 kWh/100 km, CO2 emissions
combined 42 g/km*) has won its class – for units with 1.4-litre to
1.8-litre displacement – in the International Engine of the Year Award
for the fourth time in a row.
The i8’s drive solution came onto the market in 2014 and has topped
its category in the prestigious competition every year since. In its
first year on sale, it also earned the best new engine and overall
awards. The plug-in-hybrid drive system’s latest success in the award
– this is the fourth year in succession it has emerged victorious in
one or more of the categories – demonstrates once again how far it
remains ahead of the curve. The BMW i8 is the sports car of the future
and has been the world’s highest-selling PHEV sports car ever since
its market launch in 2014. The BMW i3 and i8 stand at opposite ends of
the BMW Group model spectrum as an expression of what is reasonably
achievable today. And now their technology is being rolled out across
BMW’s core models.
The recently updated BMW i8 fuses sports-car performance with the
fuel consumption normally expected of small models. The three-cylinder
combustion engine in the BMW i8 develops 170 kW / 231 hp and drives
the rear wheels. The electric motor – whose output has been raised to
105 kW/143 hp – sources its energy from a lithium-ion battery (which
can be charged from a conventional domestic power socket) and channels
the power it generates to the front axle. This model-specific plug-in
hybrid system developed and produced by the BMW Group enables
all-electric driving with a range now increased to a maximum 55
kilometres (34 miles) in the EU test cycle. The combination of an
electric motor at the front axle and combustion engine at the rear
creates all-wheel drive, gluing the car to the road. The virtues of
this drive configuration can be enjoyed most prominently under full
acceleration and through dynamically driven corners.
The more powerful of the two drive sources powers the rear wheels and
teams up with the hybrid system’s electric boost to deliver the
driving pleasure for which BMW is renowned, plus trailblazing
efficiency. The i8 needs just 4.4 seconds to sprint from 0 to 100 km/h
(62 mph). Yet the combined fuel consumption of the BMW i8 Roadster as
per the EU test cycle for plug-in hybrid vehicles stands at 2.0 litres
per 100 kilometres (141.2 mpg imp) plus 14.5 kWh of electric energy.
CO2 emissions are 46 grams per kilometre. The figures for the BMW i8
Coupe are 1.8 litres per 100 kilometres (156.9 mpg imp) and 14.0 kWh
of electric energy, which means CO2 emissions of 42 grams per kilometre.
This year marks the 20th edition of the International Engine of the
Year Award. Over the course of the award’s history, engines developed
for BMW Group brand models have notched up a total of 69 class and
overall wins. An independent jury of experts identifies the best power
units in a variety of categories. This year, the jury was made up of
70 automotive journalists from 31 countries. The award winners were
crowned on Tuesday, 5 June 2017 at the Engine Expo fair in Stuttgart.