[Mani59]

     Featured on BIMMERPOST.com

Striking hybrid supercar, based on Vision M Next, was heavily inspired by the legendary M1



BMW designed a radical mid-engined hybrid supercar to succeed the i8 - but never put it into production.

Kept secret for four years but now revealed by BMW head designer Domagoj Dukec on social media, the i16 was a striking electrified supercar that could have been the M performance division's second bespoke model after the M1 supercar.

As it was, says Dukec, "the world changed in 2020" at the onset of the Covid pandemic, and "work on the project unfortunately had to be stopped".

BMW M has since revealed the XM hybrid SUV as its second bespoke product - a dramatically different proposition to the supercar revealed here.

It is a faithful evolution of the Vision M Next concept BMW revealed in 2019, albeit with some subtle revisions aimed at making it road-legal.

Dukec describes the car as having "all the style of a future classic", and notes the influence of the Guigiaro-designed M1 in its angular, cab-forward silhouette, vented rear arches and louvred engine lid.

The i16 was conceived to use the i8's composite structure – no doubt in a bid to cut development costs and thus bolster its viability as a production car – but it is not clear whether it would have used the same plug-hybrid powertrain.

The i8, BMW's first PHEV, paired a 1.5-litre turbocharged three-cylinder engine with an electric motor on the front axle for a total output of 356bhp and a 0-62mph time of 4.3 seconds - making it a natural rival to the Porsche 911.

A battery in the transmission tunnel gave an electric range of more than 30 miles in later cars.

It was produced from 2014 to 2020, being discontinued to make way for a new line of bespoke electric BMW models including the iX3, i4 and iX.

The Vision M Next hinted at what an i8 successor could look like, but plans to produce it were shelved over concerns about high R&D costs and low sales potential.

However, M boss Frank van Meel hinted to Autocar in 2022 that the door was not totally shut to the prospect of a new hybrid supercar: "It’s always something we can look at. As car guys, we are always dreaming of making such cars. It doesn’t mean we’ll make them, but we keep exploring those ideas.”

He said the concept's cancellation did not mean BMW was "not thinking of a super-sports car," tellingly adding that he was "always trying to figure out how it would work".





Source: https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/n...ssor-never-was

[Msparta]

Would be great to see what is next officially…

[werdn]

I see some G80 cues in the front and iX in the rear. I guess this was where they got their inspiration from when designing those cars.

[Dgjo2022X5MC]

Amazing. Love it. Should have built this over XM. Maybe they will still go for it.

[Daaaadadundun]

I am getting sick and tired of BMW eternal teasing of an M1 successor. There is always some bs excuse not to build it. Now the excuse is the pandemic and yet they can give us the joke that is the XM.

Next time BMW needs to keep this to themselves and only make an announcement when they actually will release the successor to the M1 or a BMW supercar....

[reprod]

The fact that he is publishing this is a sign that they are either trying to convince top brass to do it again (with the potentially positive public perception) or that BMW is recommitting to breathing some life into its hybrid lineup.

Fingers crossed this tech makes it into the next M3.

[VirtualGuitars]

Looks great. To those of you that keep dissing the XM as just the worst vehicle that was ever made…. Have you actually ever driven one?

I have an XM Label and it astonishes me every time I drive it. As hard as this is to believe, it feels like it’s an M5 inside of an X7 chassis. Sure it’s not for everyone, but I urge you to go test drive one before hating on it so harshly. It’s an incredible vehicle.

It does not feel or drive like an SUV. Go test drive one and I think you’ll be surprised.

[n55f15]

Minus the orange

[VirtualGuitars]

Can’t wait to see the performance specs on this thing.

[HotRodM4]

Just put the S58 or a TT V8 in there 😍

[rockitman07]

Originally Posted by VirtualGuitars

Looks great. To those of you that keep dissing the XM as just the worst vehicle that was ever made…. Have you actually ever driven one?

I have an XM Label and it astonishes me every time I drive it. As hard as this is to believe, it feels like it’s an M5 inside of an X7 chassis. Sure it’s not for everyone, but I urge you to go test drive one before hating on it so harshly. It’s an incredible vehicle.

It does not feel or drive like an SUV. Go test drive one and I think you’ll be surprised.

Certainly affinity to a particular car is subjective so it's great to hear that you love your car; that's the dream!

While I don't find it appealing I don't mind that it exists. What does bother me and may be at the root of some of the disfavor for it is that it feels like there was (and hopefully still is) an opportunity for M to produce a bespoke sports car unburdened by the envelope of an existing series car. An M1 successor could be one. Another would be a CSL car designed to be a 2-seater from scratch. There's a lot of grey area here but a truly lightweight M sports car continues to be out of reach. Just frustrating.

[VirtualGuitars]

Originally Posted by rockitman07

Certainly affinity to a particular car is subjective so it's great to hear that you love your car; that's the dream!

While I don't find it appealing I don't mind that it exists. What does bother me and may be at the root of some of the disfavor for it is that it feels like there was (and hopefully still is) an opportunity for M to produce a bespoke sports car unburdened by the envelope of an existing series car. An M1 successor could be one. Another would be a CSL car designed to be a 2-seater from scratch. There's a lot of grey area here but a truly lightweight M sports car continues to be out of reach. Just frustrating.

The 2025 M5, which starts production this July, is bound to be an incredible vehicle with the same powerplant as the XM Label. I can only imagine how that’s going to feel with 738 hp in a 5-Series.

I came from an M550 and then had an iX M60 for about a year. The XM Label feels like both put together. I’ve lost a lot of money in the process, but in the end it’s worth it. It’s insane that my XM handles almost as well an as aerodynamic sedan. I know the true M purists hate it because it doesn’t look like their M3, but I’m willing to bet 99% of them haven’t actually driven one. Looks are deceiving in this case.

[beammeupscottie]

Imphasis on HYBRID! 👍🏽

[cfm56d7b]

Originally Posted by Dgjo2022X5MC

Amazing. Love it. Should have built this over XM. Maybe they will still go for it.

Echoing the same even with a higher sense of urgency. This car should have been seen on the factory floor.

[VANOS]

Originally Posted by Mani59

Striking hybrid supercar, based on Vision M Next, was heavily inspired by the legendary M1



BMW designed a radical mid-engined hybrid supercar to succeed the i8 - but never put it into production.

Kept secret for four years but now revealed by BMW head designer Domagoj Dukec on social media, the i16 was a striking electrified supercar that could have been the M performance division's second bespoke model after the M1 supercar.

As it was, says Dukec, "the world changed in 2020" at the onset of the Covid pandemic, and "work on the project unfortunately had to be stopped".

BMW M has since revealed the XM hybrid SUV as its second bespoke product - a dramatically different proposition to the supercar revealed here.

It is a faithful evolution of the Vision M Next concept BMW revealed in 2019, albeit with some subtle revisions aimed at making it road-legal.

Dukec describes the car as having "all the style of a future classic", and notes the influence of the Guigiaro-designed M1 in its angular, cab-forward silhouette, vented rear arches and louvred engine lid.

The i16 was conceived to use the i8's composite structure – no doubt in a bid to cut development costs and thus bolster its viability as a production car – but it is not clear whether it would have used the same plug-hybrid powertrain.

The i8, BMW's first PHEV, paired a 1.5-litre [...]

Yes yes yes!!!! They need this look back! I love it! 😍

[Bruce322]

BMW should fire the people who decided to start the XM development. A mid-engine BMW will generate more sales and boost the brand image much more than the XM.

I Heard BMW only sold like 500 XM last year. Porsche is able to sell about 5000 gt3 per year.

[VirtualGuitars]

Originally Posted by Bruce322

BMW should fire the people who decided to start the XM development. A mid-engine BMW will generate more sales and boost the brand image much more than the XM.

I Heard BMW only sold like 500 XM last year. Porsche is able to sell about 5000 gt3 per year.

Go test drive one. I have an XM Label and I think the results will really surprise you. Every single XM that makes it to Houston sells within a matter of days or weeks. Is the vehicle misunderstood and was it mismarketed and too expensive? Absolutely, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t a beast of a vehicle - which it is. it’s OK if you don’t like it, but I urge you to go test drive one anyway. It really is a fun vehicle to drive.

[thaalrasha]

Originally Posted by VirtualGuitars

Go test drive one. I have an XM Label and I think the results will really surprise you. Every single XM that makes it to Houston sells within a matter of days or weeks. Is the vehicle misunderstood and was it mismarketed and too expensive? Absolutely, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t a beast of a vehicle - which it is. it’s OK if you don’t like it, but I urge you to go test drive one anyway. It really is a fun vehicle to drive.

I'm not sure i see any relation between a mid engine super car and a big heavy SUV... Clearly BMW has made a choice that would satisfy the US and Chinese volume market over building a super car that would see much lower sales volume and even more development cost and bespoke parts. That's a sensible board decision and quite a boring one imho... but the goal is to make money .

[AP]

I rather like that , better styling than most current BMWs in my opinion

[M2Cmtl]

Originally Posted by VirtualGuitars

Go test drive one. I have an XM Label and I think the results will really surprise you. Every single XM that makes it to Houston sells within a matter of days or weeks. Is the vehicle misunderstood and was it mismarketed and too expensive? Absolutely, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t a beast of a vehicle - which it is. it’s OK if you don’t like it, but I urge you to go test drive one anyway. It really is a fun vehicle to drive.

It simply can't drive that well to jutify the price. An XM label is 335k out the door up here in Canada. A loaded X5M is 197k.

Some argue its a complete fail:

https://www.topgear.com/car-news/bes...the%20hundreds.

[VANOS]

Originally Posted by AP

I rather like that , better styling than most current BMWs in my opinion

Agreed! Not into the beaver look loll 🦫

The one model that really captures my eyes is the new i5/5, looks gorgeous.

[spademonkey]

It’s a shame BMW cancelled this car, rumors were it was supposed to be a 4 cylinder phev this time instead of a 3 cylinder phev like the i8. Rumored performance was supposed to be just over 500hp.

We even saw the mid engine M8 test mules running around the Nordschleife for a bit but I heard they fully cancelled it after the XM unfortunately flopped. Which is a shame cause it’s a really great car to drive, but prohibitively expensive over an X5M or X6M which are both a full second faster 0-60 wise. XM is closer to G-Wagon AMG or Range Rover Sport LWB