BMW i8 Spyder Hybrid Concept

A long time ago, in a world that is very alien to many of our younger readers, if you wanted to ride in style and catch the wanting eyes of the listless, wandering pedestrian, you bought a Cadillac. Not just any Cadillac would do for me and even the much loved Coupe de Ville never quite caught my eye. The Cadillac Eldorado was one of the first personal luxury vehicles that had a distinct impact on my young mind. I longed to feel the thrum of the engine and enjoy the smooth ride that the Cadillac air suspension (discontinued as a standard feature in 1960) could offer. Well, in 2002 we saw the end of an era as the line was discontinued. Even though the Eldorado holds the title for the longest running personal luxury car line produced in America, I never got the chance to drive a cherry one off the lot. Now it is time to look to the future and the future looks bright. That’s probably because the future looks like something out of Tron.
Oh dear.

This is the i8 Spyder Hybrid concept from BMW and it calls to me from all angles. Not only does it play to my car junkie roots, but it also screams futuristic science-fiction star fighter, which is just too much for me to handle. On top of all of that, it is also a hybrid, which means the more eco-friendly half of my brain doesn’t feel bad about wanting to kick up some dirt as I open up and feel what kind of ride this Spyder can offer. Who needs air suspension when you have dilithium crystal powered warp engines? Okay. It doesn’t actually have dilithium powered warp engines and I am assuming that the top speed is considerably less than warp speed, it is a hybrid after all is said and done, but it sure does look like it should. I think the word “engage” might escape my lips every time my garage door opened if I had a car like this. Also, if a car of this class doesn’t come with air suspension, there is something wrong with the world.
Sadly, it’s still just a concept, but it is something to dream about. Make sure to click on the pictures and follow those links to a gallery comparing the i8 Spyder Hybrid concept to the BMW Hommage; another amazing vehicle, but not quite a fancy tickler for me.
One more picture for good measure.