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Reverse-engineering i3 shows BMW profits after 20,000 sales

"This is, without a question of a doubt, the most advanced vehicle on the planet. It's as revolutionary as the Model T was when it came out." That is exceptionally high praise, and it's not even being heaped on one of the million-dollar hybrid hypercars from Ferrari or McLaren. It's not even being attributed to a particularly zealous Tesla fan. Nope, it's coming from a mustachioed man in suburban Detroit, and he's discussing a $42,400 BMW hatchback with Forbes. Of course, said hatchback is the revolutionary i3, and Sandy Munro's statements carry some degree of authority, as his company is tearing apart and analyzing every little nut, washer and bolt on the four-seat EV. Munro's eponymous company performs reverse-engineering analysis, meaning they rip apart brand new cars and sell the information to the world's automakers, saving OEM's both time and money. The most interesting thing it has discovered thus far? That even with the high costs of two of the i3's most important elements – carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic and lithium-ion batteries – his company's analysis shows that BMW need only sell about 20,000 units a year to turn a profit, Forbes reports. While Munro's company is often contracted by automakers, he's gone it alone on the i3 project, dropping about $1 million into in-depth analysis. That's a lot of money, but the company should be able to turn around and sell its findings for about $500,000, with a batch of Chinese automakers already queued up and ready to buy. Analysis of individual i3 components will also be available from a sort of a la carte menu. To see what it is about the i3 that has Munro speaking so highly of it, head over to the Forbes website and check out the feature article and video on the reverse-engineering process. Featured Gallery 2014 BMW i3: First Drive View 33 Photos News Source: ForbesImage Credit: Copyright 2015 Sebastian Blanco / AOL Green BMW Hatchback Electric Sandy Munro

BMW working on 2 Series Active Hybrid Tourer

The cover may have officially been pulled off the BMW 2 Series Active Tourer at the Geneva Motor Show, but BMW has apparently continued working on other variants behind closed doors. While at first glance this prototype looks like any other Active Tourer, the "Hybrid Test Vehicle" stickers on the passenger door and rear bumper give it away as something a little different.
Details about the hybrid Active Tourer are somewhat sketchy at the moment, but BMW indicated its likely direction for the electrified hatchback in the earlier Concept Active Tourer. It used a hybridized 1.5-liter turbocharged three-cylinder engine coupled with an electric motor with a total system output of 190 horsepower and 147 pound-feet of torque. The company claimed that it had a roughly 19-mile electric range and could hit 62 miles per hour in under 8 seconds. However, the Bavarian automaker hasn't said yet whether this powertrain would be used in the production version.
The internal combustion 2 Series Active Tourer is rumored to come to the US in 2015. Given the nearly complete look of the test car, the hybrid might not be too far behind.

BMW and Jaguar Land Rover to jointly develop electric car tech

FRANKFURT – BMW and Jaguar Land Rover on Wednesday said they will jointly develop electric motors, transmissions and power electronics, unveiling yet another industry alliance designed to lower the costs of developing electric cars. Both carmakers are under pressure to roll out zero-emission vehicles to meet stringent anti-pollution rules, but have struggled to maintain profit margins faced with the rising costs of making electric, connected and autonomous cars. "Together, we have the opportunity to cater more effectively for customer needs by shortening development time and bringing vehicles and state-of-the-art technologies more rapidly to market," said BMW board member Klaus Froehlich. BMW and Jaguar Land Rover said they will save costs through shared development, production planning and joint purchasing of electric car components. Both companies will produce electric drivetrains in their own manufacturing facilities, BMW said. The BMW Jaguar Land Rover pact comes as rivals FiatChrysler and Renault explore a $35 billion tie-up of the Italian-American and French carmaking groups. Nick Rogers, Jaguar Land Rover's engineering director said, "We've proven we can build world beating electric cars but now we need to scale the technology to support the next generation of Jaguar and Land Rover products." BMW was in talks with rival Daimler about developing electric car components but was also in discussions with Jaguar Land Rover, a company it once owned, to explore an alliance on engines. BMW already has a deal to supply an 8 cylinder engine to Jaguar Land Rover. Carmakers are increasingly open to sharing electric car parts because the technology is expensive and because customers no longer buy a car based on what engine a vehicle has. "Carmakers are much less precious about sharing electric car technology because it is much harder to create product differentiation with electric car tech. They all accelerate fast, and everybody can do quality and ride and handling," according to Carl-Peter Forster a former chief executive of Tata Motors and a former BMW executive. Jaguar Land Rover is still run by former BMW managers, including Ralf Speth the company's chief executive who spent 20 years at BMW prior to joining JLR, and Wolfgang Ziebart, the engineer who oversaw Jaguar's I-Pace electric car program, who is a former head of research and development at BMW.