4 Reasons Why The i8 Doesn’t Need An 800bhp V8
German tuner Gabura Racing Technologies was clearly not impressed with the standard i8 hybrid powertrain. Instead, it has dumped the whole lot and replaced it with an 800bhp Alpina-tuned V8. The build certainly looks very impressive, but we can’t help but think the whole thing is a little pointless.
1. Weight distribution
The i8 has been designed and built from the ground up as a mid-engined hybrid sports car. Thousands of hours of research and development have resulted in a car which has a near perfect 50:50 weight distribution. As a result, the i8 is a well balanced and playful car at the limit.
So we can only imagine what dumping a heavy 4.4-litre V8 up front will do to the handling characteristics…
2. Cutting edge technology
The i8 was never intended to be a flame-spitting supercar. Its 362bhp, 420lb ft of torque and 4.4-second 0-60 time are certainly impressive figures, but they’re nothing special in a world dominated by 1000bhp GT-Rs. What makes the BMW such an exciting car is that it showcases what the future might hold.
A turbocharged 1.5-litre transversely-mounted engine, carbonfibre tub and thermoplastic body are purely 21st century tech. So it feels kind of wrong to hot rod such an innovative car. Anyone can effectively shoe horn a huge engine into a new vehicle. We’ve been seeing tuning firms do it for years. Perhaps we’d have been more impressed had the Alpina V8 been working in conjunction with the 131bhp electric motor. I guess we can only dream.
3. You could just buy an M6
Completely reworking the i8’s chassis is not going to be an easy feat. That’s probably why they haven’t finished the project yet… And even though GRT haven’t released a price yet, we can assume it’s not going to be cheap.
So why not save your money and buy a much more appropriate BMW M6. It has the same 4.4-litre V8 as the GRT i8, but with a chassis that was actually designed for that power. Oh, and it also has a reasonably sized boot and room for some passengers. And with the money left over, you could probably afford to pay the ludicrous fuel bill for the next couple of years. Or maybe even buy an R34 GT-R. Either way, the M6 sounds like a winner to us.
4. There's probably an M version on the way
BMW has already hinted that it is working on an even faster version of the i8. Rumours from BMW insiders have claimed that the Bavarian firm is keen to show off the potential of an M-fettled version of the high tech chassis, and that another 300bhp could be expected.
The LaFerrari, P1 and 918 have shown that hybrid supercars can actually be more exciting than their purely petrol-powered counterparts. So we can’t wait to see what the M-Divison can produce. And we can almost guarantee that their answer won’t be to just stuff a huge engine into the mix.
Comments
A 4.4L V8 isnt “heavy”, actually Volvo B8444S weights only 190 KG. The i8 already have a electric and a 1.5 engine, so the weight ratio wont be affected so much. Also that Astra dont understeer because of front fitted engine. The engine would actually make it grip better. It under steers because of wheel spin.
Why would someone buy a M6 when you can have a badass looking i8 with V8. It rhymes too.
Yeah they ruined it, I want BMW to make a Superi8, properly, that has 50/50 wd and is a hybrid.
WHY THE IS THERE AN ALPINA B6 WHERE YOU CLAIM TO HAVE AN M6 THERE!??!?!?!!?
Next time on Car throttle: 60 reasons why the BMW i8 needs a v8
posts poll between i8 and R34
posts sht about i8*
Saying a car doesn’t need that much power or that type of engine, or really saying ‘that car doesn’t need’ and follow it up with any type of modification and you’re going to be right. Most of the cars out there don’t need 99% of the stuff on them. You might even be able to go as as far to say that cars don’t need seatbelts, we just need to drive slower.
I don’t know if I see anyone who is buying this V8 i8 saying that it needed it, let alone anyone who is buying the i8 say that they needed the i8.
I do see everyone who will be buying it saying “I wanted it, I didn’t need it.” Everyone is so worried about getting the best HP/dollar, the best weight distribution, or somehow justifying their purchase with arbitrary numbers and then getting into internet arguments over whose numbers make more sense for their own subjective reasons.
The reality is, we all do these things because we want to. We want a big meaty V8 exhaust on the i8. We want a perfectly balanced E30. We want a 500hp rwd car. We want faster lap times or faster 1/4 mile times.
We all want these things….I feel like this author needed to write something about this car and wanted it to be profound. Instead it’s a pointless article geared towards enthusiasts telling them why some amazing car doesn’t need to be even more amazing.
might not need but i want
Well, it worked with the 918
The BMW i8 in my opinion is just a total waste of time that they couldve used to build a real M1 sucessor!
I have one perfect reason why. Because f* you that’s why. They are doing it to make something unique and awesome. There no need for the pessimism about it.