ge4773232571749999632
5
Carsales Staff20 Dec 2011
NEWS

SPY PICS: BMW i3 in cold-weather testing

'MegaCity' EV caught in snowy Scandinavia two years ahead of production

The paisley swirls of BMW's chosen prototype camouflage can't hide the odd proportions and skinny tyres. This is BMW's i3 electric vehicle, spotted and snapped by the master spy photographers at Carparazzi while undergoing cold-weather testing in northern Europe.


According to the photographers, the i3 was tracked down to exactly the same location as the last time, 10 months ago. There's little else revealed by the pics themselves since the previous article, although BMW has been busy elsewhere in the meantime. The company recently announced the acquisition of a 15.16 per cent share of SGL Carbon SE, a company at the leading edge of carbon fibre reinforced plastics (CFRP) production for future automotive concepts and products.


BMW and SLG Automotive Carbon Fibers jointly run a manufacturing plant for the lightweight material. The plant has been established at Moses Lake, Washington state in the USA, from where the factory output is shipped to Wackersdorf in Germany. There, the materials are fashioned into carbonfibre textiles that are then freight-forwarded to another plant at Landshut, where the goods become body components for production of the i3 and i8 hybrid at Leipzig.


Clearly, BMW is ensuring exclusive supply of the exotic material for both its i-branded eco cars. There's always some lesson to be learned from the British motor industry, isn't there...?


— with Carparazzi


Read the latest news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at carsales' mobile site...

Share this article
Written byCarsales Staff
See all articles
Our team of independent expert car reviewers and journalists
Meet the team
Stay up to dateBecome a carsales member and get the latest news, reviews and advice straight to your inbox.
Subscribe today
Love every move.
Buy it. Sell it.Love it.
®
Scan to download the carsales app
    DownloadAppCta
    AppStoreDownloadGooglePlayDownload
    Want more info? Here’s our app landing page App Store and the Apple logo are trademarks of Apple Inc. Google Play and the Google Play logo are trademarks of Google LLC.
    © carsales.com.au Pty Ltd 1999-2025
    In the spirit of reconciliation we acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.