BMW i8 Spyder Concept eyes-on at LA Auto Show

This week we’re having a peek at several conceptual and near-market vehicles at the LA Auto Show 2012, today’s gems being a couple of BMW concept cars, one of them the most recent iteration of the BMW i8 Spyder Concept in its near-final-form. This vehicle is a plug-in hybrid machine able to reach 20 miles using only electricity, and with an amazing looking body and current real-world statistics and specifications in-tact, this machine looks just about as road-ready as we’d like – for now though, it’s still only a dream.

This beast is aiming at the moment for a full market release sometime inside 2014 and will be busting out at 62 mph in five seconds on the open road. Top speed for this vehicle is a lovely 155 mph and it’s rolling out with three driving modes right off the line: all-electric, all-gas, or combo-mode. The electric motor inside the i8 is a hefty 96kw and it’ll be bringing on 78 MPG (3 liter per 100 km) at launch.

This particular Spyder has a 100 liter storage capacity in its trunk (or its boot, if you’re English), and the whole vehicle weighs in at 3,600 lbs (just incase you want to think about lifting it up, of course.) That weight in combination with the low center of gravity on this beast (along with many other factors, we’re sure), brings on a fabulous 354 horsepower. This eco-friendly supercar uses its 131 hp/96 kW electric motor with a 223 hp turbo charged three-cylinder to bust out the greatness.

Inside you’ve got a digital instrument cluster with smart info on how much energy you’re using, how much you’ve got left, and environmental info around and inside your vehicle as well. You’ve also got a 8.8-inch Central Information Display with touch control over a variety of elements including main telematics and infotainment. A third display sits near here able to control the climate inside the car specifically.

This vehicle is able to connect remotely to your smartphone (or vice-versa) using BMW’s i App, this allowing you to set up times when your vehicle should charge, turn on to warm up, or cool down based on pre-set conditions. You’ll be able to look up directions on your smartphone and toss them over to the main display in the vehicle as well.

This vehicle is said by BMW to be 90% finished with its final form, with one rather sizable addition still on the way – two additional seats in the back. We’ll see more of this amalgamation sooner than later!