BMW i3 and i8

The stars of BMW’s future have finally arrived. These are the first official pictures of the founding members of the eco-friendly ‘i’ sub-brand – the family hatch all-electric i3 and the hybrid supercar i8. 



Both models are built using BMW's LifeDrive construction. This essentially splits the car into two separate parts – an aluminium Drive section which houses the battery, suspension, and crash structures and a Life passenger section made from CFRP – a material at least as strong as steel but 50 per cent lighter. 

By using LifeDrive BMW claims to have cancelled out the weight penalty associated with the heavy battery packs electric cars must carry and the evidence suggests they're right. The i3 is taller and wider than a VW Golf, albeit around 30cm shorter, but it weighs just 1250kgs – that’s around 50kgs less than the lightest Golf. 

The ‘i’ cars come with a few subtle styling updates to mark them out as eco-specials. 

A blue ring now circles the badge, and the kidney grilles now have a matching blue background. BMW’s double circle headlights are replaced by U-shaped LEDs and both models take on a more curvaceous design than the firm's conventionally powered models.

The tall hatchback i3 gets a 168bhp electric motor mounted above the rear axle and delivers power to the rear wheels. Acceleration from 0-62mph takes 7.9 seconds and the i3 is electronically limited to 93mph. 

Power is drawn from a lithium-ion battery mounted underneath the floor which is fitted with an integrated liquid cooling system to keep the battery at the optimal temperature. In winter, the battery can also be heated by the same method. A full recharge from a standard socket takes six hours, and a quick charge can fill the battery to 80 per cent in just one hour. 

On a full battery the i3 manages a 140-mile range according to the US economy drive-cycle and BMW claims that translates to an everyday range of 80-100 miles. Customers who are looking for more flexibility can specify an optional range-extending engine called REx that will be mounted alongside the electric motor over the rear axle. 

Unlike this system – which is only ever used to top up the batteries – the engine in the i8 actually provides drive to the rear wheels directly. In the case of the hybrid supercar it’s a 3-cylinder 1.5-litre turbocharged unit with 217bhp which works in tandem with the same electric motor from the i3 to power the rears – though in this instance it produces just 128bhp for a total of 345bhp. 

With both units working together, the i8 can accelerate from 0-62mph in 4.6 seconds and on to an electronically limited top speed of 155mph. Alternatively, the i8 can run on electric power alone for up to 20 miles. Official fuel consumption stands at around 104mpg and CO2 emissions are just 66g/km. BMW admits that an everyday figure of around 50mpg is more likely though. 

BMW is still referring to both these cars as concepts but what you see here is essentially what you get when they arrive on the roads in 2013.

PAUHauto: Audi A2

The original was axed in 2005 due to the cost of its aluminium spaceframe chassis. The fresh model will retain this construction, but will be priced higher. Audi is set to justify the premium – and set the car apart from the more conventional A1 and A3 – with impressive technical innovation. 

As our illustrations show, the A2 is also likely to be highly flexible, with an MPV-style body. 

An insider told us: “It will only be an electric car. Most battery models are compromised as they are built on rehashed architecture, but the A2 will be built from the ground up as a pure electric machine.

“The idea is so popular [at Audi] that it could even spawn a family of A2 electric models and become almost a standalone brand.” The company recently bought a number of offshore wind turbines to offset the energy used in building a pilot fleet of A3s powered by natural gas, and is likely to pursue the same strategy to keep the A2 production program carbon neutral.

The model will also remain relatively light due to the aluminium structure under the skin. “The spaceframe is, was and always will be the car’s core,” our source insisted. Audi launched the original lightweight A2 to great fanfare in 1999, only for it to prove a sales flop, even though there was a special 1.2-litre version which claimed 90mpg in fuel consumption through the use of pioneering features such as stop-start technology.

The Fastest Bean Machine In The World!

The Bean Machine? Nope!

A coffee-powered car has given its owner grounds to celebrate – after breaking a world speed record.

The Real Bean Machine

The British-made Bean Machine hit 65.5mph on Tuesday to become the fastest vehicle to run on caffeine.

Inventor Martin Bacon, 42, said the 1989 Ford pick-up is driven on pellets produced from waste in coffee production.

Fuel: Martin Bacon pours in the pellets

‘We’re thrilled to have taken the speed record for the fastest car of this kind,’ he said.

‘Coffee chaf pellets, which are produced from the waste in coffee production, are heated in a charcoal fire, where they break down into carbon monoxide and hydrogen.

‘The gas is then cooled and filtered before hydrogen is combusted to drive the engine.

Record holder: Mr Bacon in the Bean Machine

‘Any car can run on gasification,’ he added. ‘In fact, during the World War II, there were over 100,000 vehicles in the UK that ran on gasification, including cars, buses and delivery vehicles.

‘At the beginning of the 20th century, there were over 90,000 vehicles running on gasifiers across the world.’

He was presented with a Guinness World Record at Woodford airfield near Manchester.