Week 4
When I came to London, I immediately noticed the amount of BMW i8 sports cars. In the United States, the BMW is a very uncommon car. It has the appearance, price of a fast sports car and the sports car doors that open up, but has a small 3-cylinder gas engine and an electric engine making a relatively low 352 horsepower combined. For a long time, I could not figure out why so many people owned what I considered a fake sports car. I wanted to learn why so many were bought and I knew there had to be some reason other than Londoners just like them. On Monday May 28, in an Uber on my way back from Taylor of Old Bond Street, the driver and I were talking about sports cars and general car culture. We started talking about the difference in gas prices between the US and Britain. As we were talking, we happened to pass by an i8 and everything clicked. The i8 gives the appearance of a sports car and all of the attention of having a sports car, but its small engine and electric motors mean it gets over 30 mpg in the city. It is an extremely fuel-efficient car that looks amazing too. It the US, since gas is not $9.00 a gallon like it is in London, there is no needed own a fuel-efficient sports car, but in London, if you want to look cool and not spend a fortune on gasoline, the i8 is perfect. According to carsalesbase.com, almost twice as many i8’s have been sold in the UK as in the US, even though there are significantly more people in the US.
After figuring out why there are so many i8’s in London, I wondered if there are other cars similar to the i8, looks fast but isn’t and fuel efficient. After doing some research I concluded that the only somewhat similar car is the Honda NSX. The i8 costs around 100,000 pounds whereas the NSX costs around 150,000 pounds. Both vehicles feature a hybrid setup and are fuel efficient. What makes the two very different was the automakers design intent. The NSX was designed to be fast, ahead of its time, and most importantly to Honda, be the fastest car at that price point, which would include Mercedes, Porsche and others. The i8 on the other hand was designed to be comfortable, look like a fast car and most importantly to BMW, feel like a normal car without causing fear or needing prior sports car experience. The i8 is all bark and no bite whereas most sports cars are all bark and not afraid to bite. The ease of the i8 opens the market to far more people yet no other company has created competition and still few are sold.
I think more companies have not created a competitor for multiple reasons. I believe that anyone looking to buy a sports car, especially over 100,000 pounds, is looking for a car that is powerful, exciting and not necessarily practical or fuel efficient. Although quick and pretty, the i8 does not create the G force and fear like other sports cars in the price range. I have seen far more BMW M3’s and Mercedes C63’s, gasoline powered sports cars priced in the 100,000 pound range, than i8’s. In fact, the M3 and C63 are actually more practical as they have seating for four and a large trunk to store goods in since it is not being taken up by mid-engine mounted motor and hybrid system. Secondly, I do not think there is a significant enough market to invest millions of dollars into a new vehicle. Partially because I think that other car manufacturers believe that a car like the i8 is in a weird price point where the owner has the money to pay for expensive gasoline but chooses not to as well as wants a sports car that is fuel efficient. Similarly, a buyer looking for a sports car that is fuel efficient could buy an all-electric car like a Tesla and not have to pay for fuel at all. For these reasons, I think the i8 will likely never have a direct competitor especially if automakers continue to invest millions into all electric vehicles. More cars will be developed similar to the NSX, using the hybrid technology to fill the gap where gas engines do not create sufficient power, instead of like the i8, used for fuel economy. I learned that it is important to know the car’s intent and how it was meant to be used before disliking it. Now instead of despising the i8, now that I know its purpose, I think it is a fantastic automobile and deserves its own place in the car market.
After figuring out why there are so many i8’s in London, I wondered if there are other cars similar to the i8, looks fast but isn’t and fuel efficient. After doing some research I concluded that the only somewhat similar car is the Honda NSX. The i8 costs around 100,000 pounds whereas the NSX costs around 150,000 pounds. Both vehicles feature a hybrid setup and are fuel efficient. What makes the two very different was the automakers design intent. The NSX was designed to be fast, ahead of its time, and most importantly to Honda, be the fastest car at that price point, which would include Mercedes, Porsche and others. The i8 on the other hand was designed to be comfortable, look like a fast car and most importantly to BMW, feel like a normal car without causing fear or needing prior sports car experience. The i8 is all bark and no bite whereas most sports cars are all bark and not afraid to bite. The ease of the i8 opens the market to far more people yet no other company has created competition and still few are sold.
I think more companies have not created a competitor for multiple reasons. I believe that anyone looking to buy a sports car, especially over 100,000 pounds, is looking for a car that is powerful, exciting and not necessarily practical or fuel efficient. Although quick and pretty, the i8 does not create the G force and fear like other sports cars in the price range. I have seen far more BMW M3’s and Mercedes C63’s, gasoline powered sports cars priced in the 100,000 pound range, than i8’s. In fact, the M3 and C63 are actually more practical as they have seating for four and a large trunk to store goods in since it is not being taken up by mid-engine mounted motor and hybrid system. Secondly, I do not think there is a significant enough market to invest millions of dollars into a new vehicle. Partially because I think that other car manufacturers believe that a car like the i8 is in a weird price point where the owner has the money to pay for expensive gasoline but chooses not to as well as wants a sports car that is fuel efficient. Similarly, a buyer looking for a sports car that is fuel efficient could buy an all-electric car like a Tesla and not have to pay for fuel at all. For these reasons, I think the i8 will likely never have a direct competitor especially if automakers continue to invest millions into all electric vehicles. More cars will be developed similar to the NSX, using the hybrid technology to fill the gap where gas engines do not create sufficient power, instead of like the i8, used for fuel economy. I learned that it is important to know the car’s intent and how it was meant to be used before disliking it. Now instead of despising the i8, now that I know its purpose, I think it is a fantastic automobile and deserves its own place in the car market.