What's Wrong With the BMW i8?

The BMW i8 is one of those vehicles that immediately catches peoples' eyes. It has a futuristic design paired with the butterfly style doors which makes it a show stopper. However, I have a few reservations about this vehicle. Click down below to see what I think about the i8.

The BMW i8 has a few downsides to it. Let's name a few to start off with.

1) It's not a supercar, it's simply an exotic. It lacks the horsepower from its three cylinder producing only 357 hp and 420 lb-ft of torque. These's outputs are not great for something that is designed to be the flagship model for BMW. The 0-60 sprint for reference is about 3.7 - 4.1 seconds depending on source. 

2) I don't know where BMW was going with this vehicle. The car isn't particularly fast compared to others in this price range. It's hybrid technology only gives it 15 miles of electric only range. The hybrid technology weighs this vehicle down more than it helps it along. I feel like it would simply be better off with a 6 or 8 cylinder producing more horsepower. I think this vehicle was intended more so to be a concept and flagship model that would make BMW stand out for the near future.

3) The vehicle is incredibly difficult to get out of. There is no graceful way to maneuver out of the car. I've been in other supercars and even those with a carbon fiber monocoque are easier. The Huracan, Aventador, 570S and NSX are all far easier to get out of than the i8. The seat is located below the door sill and behind it as well. This makes for extreme difficulty to get into.

4) This isn't particular with the i8 but the butterfly doors make the vehicle difficult to find parking for. The doors open out and up, making it necessary to have excess space to have the door up. Unfortunately, most parking spots won't allow enough space for this if you park next to another vehicle. The upside is that the door will not get curbed since the door goes up.

I think that the mid cycle refresh for the i8 is long overdue. The convertible i8 will come out in the near future as it has already been spotted out for testing. I really hope that the next generation of i8 will bring in a lot more horsepower as it desperately needs it. ​