Quote:
Originally Posted by MKSixer
LOL.
Many of the voters ARE REAL ENGINEERS. For example, I don't know if you have heard of a little publication named CAR AND DRIVER. The writing staff is littered with mechanical engineers.
I appreciate what the SAE says about the VOLT and I have driven one, myself. Impressive technology as is the ability to sync 2 completely independent drivetrains in multiple modes, on the fly while altering the deployment of power. Let's be realistic...electric motors and their use is not special. Like many things, the devil is in the details and this powertrain and it's dynamic management and deployment of energy is nothing short of amazing. I am a real-world user who puts serious mileage on cars and I am stunned each time I drive the car.
Additionally, I have owned german cars since I was 18 years old and grew up in a Mercedes family. We came to own BMWs when the local MBZ would not cover a repair on my dads E320 when the vehicle was one day out of warranty in 2003. Since 2006 I have personally owned 6, 4 of which are still on the ground. My M6 and i8 are both Int'l Engine of the Year award winners. The award is special and prestigious and generally indicates that quite a bit of serious engineering went into the design of the awardees.
Dismissing the award that went to the S85 (an engineering masterpiece) for multiple years may indicate less than complete knowledge and appreciation of drivetrain engineering.
BTW. On the highlighted portion...the i8's version of the B38 has an electric motor incorporated into the ICE. And please show me the GM engine that can develop 152bHp per liter.
Cheers-mk
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Automobile Magazine and thier mechincal engineering editor is the source that SAE thinks the the Volt Gen 2 drivetrain is the most complex they've seen. I'll double check it later but I believe the electric motor in the i8 rear is basically a copy of Honda's IMA design, which came out over 16 years ago IIRC. But we're getting off point. You are discussing engines specifically, I am adressing claims of BMW leadership though out the spectrum of automotive technology. BMW didn't have any hybrid drivetrain 16 years ago, especially in unit production. And if the price point of the vehicle is $150,000 there's plenty of room to gain 152 BHP per liter. I'm just not that impressed.
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A manual transmission can be set to "comfort", "sport", and "track" modes simply by the technique and speed at which you shift it; it doesn't need "modes", modes are for manumatics that try to behave like a real 3-pedal manual transmission. If you can money-shift it, it's a manual transmission. "Yeah, but NO ONE puts an automatic trans shift knob on a manual transmission."