BMW AG gave the green light for series production a new plug-in hybrid sportscar which will be based on the BMW Vision EfficientDynamics concept car shown at the 2009 Frankfurt Auto Show.
The announcement was made at the Leipzig trade fair center in Germany where BMW also showed off a working prototype of the upcoming plug-in hybrid sportscar.
The 2+2 seater plug-in hybrid sportscar will have a similar acceleration rate to BMW’s M6 supercar, while emitting just 30 percent of the M6 coupe’s CO2 per kilometer.
BMW Vision EfficientDynamics concept married a rear-mounted, 1.5-liter, turbo-diesel three-cylinder engine with two electric motors — one sandwiched between the engine and a six-speed dual clutch gearbox, and another at the nose of the car, which drives the front wheels. The combination enables an overall system output of 241 kW/328 bhp.
The innovative design of the BMW ActiveHybrid technology allows performance figures at the level of a sports car, with just 4.8 seconds required for the sprint from zero to 100 km/h – with an average fuel consumption in the EU test cycle of 3.76 litters/100 kilometers, equal to 75.1 mpg imp, and a CO2 emission rating of 99 grams per kilometer (1.3 l/100km and 33g CO2/km).
BMW Vision will face stiff competition from the Audi e-tron, Mercedes-Benz SLS E-Drive and Porsche 918 RS Spyder.[wzslider height=”400″ lightbox=”true”]