BMW hybrid coupe confirmed

Confirmed for production is BMW's Vision EfficientDynamics hybrid coupe which, when it hits the road in three years time, promises to match the M3 in performance to become one of the company's quickest cars.

Until this week, Vision was an 18-month old concept hybrid first shown at the 2009 Frankfurt motor show.  Now, despite a long-lead pre-production schedule to 2013, it's the hottest eco-friendly project on the market and one that BMW Australia is trying to bring down under.
It's early days, says BMW Australia's Piers Scott, but the local company's hand is up.

"There is no specific word yet on production format, or market availability, but it is a car we would be excited to bring to this market," he says.
The carbon-fibre Vision was shown at Frankfurt with a 1.5-litre, three-cylinder diesel engine with an electric motor driving the rear wheels, aided by a second motor driving the front wheels. It can operate as a rear, front or all-wheel drive.

It is a plug-in hybrid with the engine being a range extender by charging the lithium batteries.  The result is a total power output of about 240kW and 600Nm of torque for a 0-100km/h time of less than five seconds. BMW claims fuel economy of 3.76 litres/100km and a CO2 emission of 99 grams per kilometre.

The two-door, four-seater Vision was intended to demonstrate BMW's future in hybrid and electric technology, and showcase its involvement in carbon-fibre as a lightweight construction alternative to traditional metals.

BMW plans the Vision to go on sale in Europe and the US from October 2013 and rival electric and hybrid supercars such as the Audi E-tron, the Mercedes-Benz SLS E-Drive and the Porsche 918 RS Spyder.

Vision is to date the third vehicle under BMW's Project "i" umbrella. The others are the carbon-fibre all-electric city car, the MegaCity (expected in early 2013), and the electric ActiveE (early 2011) that is based on the 1-Series Coupe.

BMW plans to lease the MegaCity and ActiveE but may put the Vision up for sale.  If so, it won't be cheap.

BMW's head of research and development, Klaus Draeger, indicates that Vision would be the company's most expensive car.  In Australia, that means it will exceed the 760Li's $386,000 entry price with Draeger saying: "Technology doesn't come cheap, and this car is packed with everything we know about alternative drive systems".

BMW's Piers Scott says it's to early to talk price or leasing options in Australia.  "It will potentially also involve a new retail approach with more flexible ownership arrangements to suit these next-generation vehicles," he says.

The first Vision test bed car copies the 2009 concept by using a diesel engine with electric motors.  However, Mr Draeger says it's possible that the Vision's diesel may be replaced with a petrol engine for the US market.

It is believed the 120kW 1.5-litre turbo-diesel will also be offered in conventional road cars, the first being the 115d expected in 2014.  This engine acts as both a generator to charge the batteries on the run, and as a direct-drive unit operating through a six-speed dual-clutch transmission to the rear wheels.

In the Vision concept, the diesel complements a rear 39kW electric motor and a 82kW motor at the front wheels.  The lithium-polymer rechargeable batteries are within the chassis spine and BMW claims full charge in only 2.5 hours.

The batteries allow 50km of zero-emission driving and the 24-litre diesel fuel tank extends the range to 700km.  BMW has completed more than 60,000km of testing with in diesel-electric form.

The Vision will be built at BMW's Leipzig factory - also to produce the MegaCity and ActiveE - with carbon-fibre body parts coming from its plant in Seattle in the US state of Washington.