A efficient Dynamics super car unveiled at the 2009 Frankfurt auto show, BMW promised a four-seat gull-wing machine with the acceleration of an M3 and the fuel economy of a Mini diesel. At that point, the car's complex hybrid system had never been tested. Now, production is just two years away, in 2013.
Between engine and box, a disc-shaped motor adds a peak 51 horsepower. Another bigger motor adds up to 139 horses to the front wheels, in bursts of up to 10 seconds. Any longer and the batteries would overheat, so the front motor drops to 80 horses in steady-state running. Overall system power becomes 323 horses. The test car's engine is a tiny 1.5-liter three-cylinder diesel, which would achieve the claimed economy figure. The car will have enough battery capacity to act as a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle, giving a claimed electric-only range of 30 miles.
BMW Efficient dynamics Super car Low Front Three Quarters The 2+2 weighs 3100 pounds, including batteries, enabled by widespread use of carbon fiber. Low mass is critical to squeezing good performance out of this power train, but so is low aerodynamic drag. Thanks to the concept's very low frontal area, the drag coefficient was just 0.22. Its "layered" construction has outer body panels mounted to the main body structure with a gap to channel air to critical parts such as the brakes, while creating little turbulence.
Between engine and box, a disc-shaped motor adds a peak 51 horsepower. Another bigger motor adds up to 139 horses to the front wheels, in bursts of up to 10 seconds. Any longer and the batteries would overheat, so the front motor drops to 80 horses in steady-state running. Overall system power becomes 323 horses. The test car's engine is a tiny 1.5-liter three-cylinder diesel, which would achieve the claimed economy figure. The car will have enough battery capacity to act as a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle, giving a claimed electric-only range of 30 miles.
BMW Efficient dynamics Super car Low Front Three Quarters The 2+2 weighs 3100 pounds, including batteries, enabled by widespread use of carbon fiber. Low mass is critical to squeezing good performance out of this power train, but so is low aerodynamic drag. Thanks to the concept's very low frontal area, the drag coefficient was just 0.22. Its "layered" construction has outer body panels mounted to the main body structure with a gap to channel air to critical parts such as the brakes, while creating little turbulence.
