Every once in a while, the topic of a BMW supercar tends to pop-up. And every single time, the answer is the same – a business case might not make sense at the moment. But at least, the BMW supercar has one other fan – BMW’s R&D Chief Klaus Frolich.
According to the development boss, a BMW supercar is a “personal wish” that he would like to see it come reality in his tenure at BMW. But would BMW consider a supercar in the same vein as the legendary M1?
“That’s a hard question for me, because I am a car guy,” Klaus Frolich, board member for BMW development, commented to Australian journalists in a recent interview. “Personally, once in my life, I would like to make a supercar. I am very looking forward and positive, and I have not given up.”
“I think there is a next window of opportunity whenever we have the life cycle for i8,” Frolich added.
The BMW R&D Chief says that the chassis of the i8 is the perfect candidate for such a car.
“The chassis is so robust, so good and so lightweight that I would like to use it for a second generation,” he said.
“I have a wonderful carbon fiber chassis for a sports car in my portfolio – currently it’s used in the i8.
“This car was launched in 2014, so I would like to use something like that, with much more performance, electric and conventional. Then it will be very soon in the 600 horsepower or something region and it will not have a weight of two tonnes.”
While a V8 or V10 petrol engines are out of the question, Frolich did mention a four or six-cylinder engine powered the rear-wheels and working together with an e-motor at the front axle. A similar idea we’ve floated around recently in regards to the second generation i8.
Now, the future for such a car rests in a proper business case. Fröhlich admitted the market is small for such a car but that the “halo” effects could help lift the brand overall.
“This market segment is so small … there is always a business case discussions about it … we have to invest in the brand, too.”
[Source: Drive]
