BMW Reveals Hybrid Future, i8 Spyder And Long Range i3 Confirmed

BMW have confirmed that i8 Spyder will be going into production later this year and will be joined by a new i3 with an even longer range. BMW also confirmed that it will be extending its 'i' series of cars to seven models.

The German carmaker made the announcement at its Annual Accounts press conference in Munich where it stated that it had sold 24,057 units of the all electric i3 and 5456 units of the i8 hybrid sportscar, a 66 percent increase over the previous year's sales.

The BMW i8 was first seen as a concept at the 2012 Beijing Motor Show and was also seen this year at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.

The i8 spyder will use the same combination of two electric motors and and a 1.5-litre 3-cylinder engine as the i8 to power itself. The hybrid drivetrain produces 375bhp and 570Nm of torque. The i8 can sprint to 100km in 3.7 seconds and hit a top speed of 250km/h.

The i3 is expected to get a more powerful battery pack to help extend its range from the current 130 kilometers to 250 kilometers to help it compete with the Nissan Leaf and the upcoming Tesla Model 3.

BMW also confirmed that it plans to extend its M performance range by bringing in new models as well as the expansion of its M performance model range.