Through cynical eyes, BMW's i division is a hyper-costly experiment that hedges against strict emission laws, all so Munich can keep building cars that actually make a profit. While this is true, there are many tangible benefits to BMW's advanced carbon fiber manufacturing—such as driving down the material's cost and getting ahead of competitors—and now it has even drawn the praise of one Elon Musk. Yep, forget the diesel and hybrid Bimmers that sell for normal-ish money—Tesla CEO Musk is turned on by the i lineup's exotic construction.
According to a Der Spiegel interview translated by Reuters, Musk has been chatting with BMW executives about a possible collaboration that would include the sharing of lightweight parts and batteries. Musk says he wants to open a battery plant in Germany within the next five to six years—his "Gigafactory" in Reno, Nevada will be online in 2017—and that the carbon fiber parts on the i3 and i8 were "relatively cost-efficient." Tesla itself has not confirmed any deal with BMW, only that a "casual conversation" between a self-made billionaire and some German engineers did in fact happen.
As things sit, both companies are all-in on electrification and already have alliances at play. BMW is working with Audi and other researchers to develop carbon fiber that's 90-percent cheaper as it triples material production to 9000 tons a year. It's also tagging along with Mercedes to standardize wireless charging and recently signed a deal with Toyota to create more efficient lithium-air batteries (in addition to jointly-building a new sports car and advancing Musk's favorite brand of haterade, hydrogen fuel).
Tesla, aside from spending billions to construct the world's largest battery plant for an expanded lineup of higher-volume cars, doesn't have any willing automotive partners who'd like to split R&D costs. And while Tesla investors don't really seem to care about such things right now, sooner or later they'd like to see the company make a profit every quarter or two. A partner like BMW—which has sold only about 13,000 i models since late 2013 versus the 50,000 Model S sedans Tesla's peddled since 2012—would be key to making real money.
- 2014 BMW i3 with Range Extender Tested: And Now for Something Completely Different
- What Replaces Gasoline? Hydrogen May Be Winning the Zero-Emissions Battle
- Tesla Model S Research: Full Pricing, Specs, Reviews, and More
Tesla still builds powertrains for the electric Smart Fortwo, Mercedes B-class Electric Drive, and Toyota RAV4 EV, yet these are limited-time contracts for very small numbers of cars. (Toyota is killing the RAV4 EV in about a month, while Daimler sold its four-percent Tesla stake around the same time.) BMW is one of the few major automakers to invest so heavily in electric cars, even if many of the Bimmer EVs are actually plug-in hybrids, something Musk also derides. (In the same Der Spiegel interview, he related them to "an amphibious vehicle, not ideal in the water and not ideal on land.") But don't expect that to be a deal-killer; after all, Smart, Mercedes-Benz, and Toyota predominantly build fossil fuel–powered vehicles, and, generally, Musk doesn't say things without putting his considerable money where his mouth is. So, humble observers , you would be wise to watch how this little "conversation" concludes.
from Car and Driver Blog http://ift.tt/nSHy27
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