Top Gear Car of the Year = BMW i8
Originally published on EV Obsession (with some picture changes).
What’s the best car of 2014? According to Top Gear, it’s the BMW i8, a plug-in hybrid electric car with a slick look, great acceleration, and the ability to conveniently charge up at home. This is no small deal. Top Gear is a humungous show with a big worldwide following… and it doesn’t have a history of taking a liking to electric cars.
As Chris writes over on GAS2: “What was once a humble motoring show on the BBC has grown to become a worldwide phenomenon, and today Top Gear is one of the best known automotive outlets in the world. Top Gear’s word carries a lot of weight, and the fact that they’ve dubbed the BMW i8 hybrid supercar their Car of the Year speaks volumes about how far green transportation tech has come.”
The Top Gear crew called the BMW i8 a “glorious statement for an exciting and positive future.” They add: “The i8 never places its technology in the way of simple enjoyment, and, despite the complexity of that mixed-media drivetrain, it’s all so easy to use, so natural, so right. And it has flip-up doors. Nothing says excitement like a set of beetle-wing portals.”
Notably, Top Gear star James May actually bought a BMW i3 for his regular commuting needs. This all comes years after the Top Gear crew pretended their Tesla ran out of battery on the test track, which resulted in a Tesla lawsuit for defamation (it was staged, but not obviously so) that Tesla eventually lost.
But Top Gear seems to have come around in the past year or so. It also loved the Mercedes SLS AMG Electric Drive, and one can only assume the boys also love the Tesla Model S P85D.
Anyhow, here’s more of a look at this year’s winner, the i8:
http://youtu.be/XgxsUiY_n0w
http://youtu.be/lbz5MdnP2oA
http://youtu.be/d4CyEH9Amlo
Related:
The Devil Is In The Details: BMW i8 Tech Video
BMW i8 Commercial Shows What An Electric Car Commercial Should Be
BMW i8 Olympics Commercial Reflects On & Shows Us The Future
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