2019 BMW i8 Coupe Release Date, Specs News: Plug-In Hybrid Update Features New Battery Pack, Finish Options
The new 2019 BMW i8 Coupe is the carmaker's plug-in hybrid entry for this year's 2018 Detroit Auto Show, and the car does not disappoint. An updated battery pack, new features, new finish options and 20-inch wheels propel this forward-thinking update from BMW forward.
BMW made its presence known in this year's Detroit Auto Show with this i8 Coupe update, as well as its new X2 roadster. The 2019 BMW i8 Coupe was announced late last year on Nov. 29, 2017, and now's the chance for Detroit Auto Show attendees to get up close and personal to BMW's hybrid model, as shown in the car show photos snapped by Automobile Mag this Monday.
The new eDrive tech that BMW has put into the new i8 Coupe gives it about 12 horsepower of added power, bumping up its peak to 374 horsepower for both the coupe and the i8 Roadster variant. As a hybrid, both i8s come with an electric motor the usual internal combustion engine, in this case a twin-turbo three-cylinder motor with 143 horsepower and 236 pound-feet of torque.
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All power from the three-cylinder engine is delivered to the rear, and this rear-wheel drive configuration is governed by a six-speed automatic transmission setup. Meanwhile, the electric motor is mated to the front wheels and is, in turn, connected to a two-speed automatic gearbox of its own.
The updated i8s have received new battery packs, which according to the car maker, have substantially increased capacities, bumping up charge life from 20 to 34 ampere hours. Energy cap is higher than ever, as a result, with the new 11.6 kilowatt hour capacity letting BMW engineers redesign the electric motor to output 184 pound-feet of torque at peak power without draining the battery.
The 2019 BMW i8 Coupe, Roadster, and Roadster First Edition are set to be released sometime this spring, with a specific date expected to be announced in the coming weeks.
