You may have heard of the upcoming BMW i3 electric car. It's set to go on sale in Germany today and at dealerships across the rest of the globe over the next several months. Did you know, however, that it's the luxury automaker's first attempt to produce a carbon made almost entirely of carbon fiber? No other automakers have taken on a challenge this large, and it's one of the largest production innovations since all-aluminum automobile frame were introduced in the 1980s.
BMW began developing the i3 about six years ago, when CEO Norbert Reithofer took a look into the future and determined that soon, stricter emissions regulations would be put in play and that some of the current new BMW models were not on a sustainable path. So, BMW decided to offset its lineup's emissions by creating a practical electric vehicle, and that's how the BMW i3 was born.
As Bloomberg explains, " At the time, electric cars had the reputation of being sluggish because of the heavy battery needed to hold a charge capable of moving the car at least 100 kilometers (62 miles) -- the range considered necessary for daily use. That meant the car needed to be lighter to reduce the size and cost of the power pack and improve handling. The lightest and strongest material available is carbon fiber."1
What do you think of BMW's innovative move to use carbon fiber? Leave us a comment on our BMW of Cape Cod blog, and let us know! And, if you come across a luxurious model on our site you simply have to test in person, don't hesitate to drop by our showroom in Hyannis, MA.
Source: 1 http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-11-14/bmw-makes-lone-shift-to-carbon-fiber-to-gain-auto-edge.html
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