Benjamin M. Monroe Blog: BMW i8 Roadster shines under the Mallorca sun

Wednesday, April 25, 2018

BMW i8 Roadster shines under the Mallorca sun

Last week, BMWBLOG headed to Palma de Mallorca, Spain to test drive the all-new BMW i8 Roadster. Our test drive report is just days ahead, but while on the shores of the Balearic Sea, we’ve put the beautiful open-top plug-in hybrid through a photoshoot.

As one would expect, the i8 Roadster attracts a lot of prying eyes, as you’d expect from a supercar. Yet the most interesting part is that very few are immediately recognizing the car, but are quickly mesmerized by the design that BMW has put out.

With the top down, the new BMW i8 Roadster looks fantastic. The BMW i8 was always a fascinating looking car, one that brought styling from the future to our current roads. And now with the the top removed, the BMW i8 Roadster looks prettier than the Coupe. Sans roof, the i8 Roadster has more personality, character and style.

Replacing the fixed hardtop roof of the BMW i8 Coupe is an electrically-operated soft-top roof on the i8 Roadster. The heavily soundproofed, all-season soft-top roof can open and close in less than 16 seconds. It can also operate on the move, up to 31 mph.

The engine remains unchanged, so it still makes 228 hp and 236 lb-ft and is mated to an electric motor and six-speed automatic gearbox, powering the rear wheels. While an electric motor powers the front wheels, thus giving it real-time torque-vectoring all-wheel drive. The latter motor makes 141 hp and 184 lb-ft of torque, up only slightly from the non-LCI BMW i8. So 0-60 mph happens in about the same 4.2 seconds.

According to the US pricing sheet, the 2018 BMW i8 Roadster has a base price of $163,300, plus the $995 Destination Charge.

In the base price, BMW includes the E-Copper Leather, 20 inch bi-color wheels, Head-Up Display, heated front seats and the other usual BMW standard features. Special colors are also extra, such as the Crystal White Pearl Metallic with Frozen Grey or Frozen Blue accent for $1,800. The standard colors are E-Copper, Sophisto Grey Metallic and Donington Grey.