Anyone own one? I thought they were ugly when they came out but time has tempered my opinion. YouTube said you can get these in the 30's. CarGurus is saying 50-70k.
Yes I am kind of interested in one as a fun weekend driver. The MPG on these things is quite good and from what I have been told (YouTube) they are respectably quick.
Practicality is another matter. A 911 may be a better weekend road trip get away car.
Anyone here have any real life experience with these?
Neighbor had one, I've driven it a few times.
Extremely quick, pita to get in and out of. His new NSX is better.
I believe Karaticus here on the board had one that he traded in for a new Supra.
I've wondered as well. It looks like a supercar IMO. But exotic engineering and limited production usually means associated costs that I cannot abide.
I think they look great & are quick. They came out at a time when other manufacturers were building hybrid supercars with alot more power, so the mini based 3 cylinder is a bit of a letdown. The nsx seems like a better "affordable" hybrid supercar but I would love to find one with a bad battery for a good price
Apparently the AC compressor is critical, it's used to cool the batteries. I think it's a really interesting car, it pushes my buttons a lot more than any other modern "supercar" other than maybe the Ford GT, because it moves the game on. Jeremy Clarkson really liked it.
I have seriously considered buying one instead of building an LS-powered ND RF.
In reply to johndej :
Wonder if either of them actually got one. I am curious what it is like to actually live with one. I have a ten mile commute and I could plug in to 110 at my office. I was interested in a Volt for a while and while it is a fantastic car it was kind of boring. It would be fun to park it next to my H2 in my driveway just to have the opposite ends of the GM spectrum next to each other. The I8 has always been something that for me would make a fun little commuter vehicle that was definitely not boring but the prices have always been out of proportion to what you are actually getting. I mean for the cost of an i8 you can get a very nice 911 or a Tesla or? The pricing just seems wrong on the i8 for what it is.
It is why I would really like to hear from someone that has lived with one for a reasonable amount of time. Maybe they are worth it.
For day to day living, is the back seat actually usable or simply a check box for insurance purchases?
I'm disappointed I thought this was going to be a discussion about inline 8 cylinder engines.
Backseat is only fit for decapitated double amputees, which may not be that much different than a 911-- though entry/exit is probably worse.
It's a very nice car to daily drive, less so to park-- mostly because it's quite wide. The doors actually take less free space to open then you'd thing--- better than some coupes.
I spent a very limited amount of time in one maybe 10 years ago. At the time, I was in my mid-30s and fairly athletic at 6'2" and 210 lbs. I found it really challenging to get in and out of with any kind of grace. Not something I'd want to do in a business suit...which is kind of weird considering the demographics of supercar buyers!
The impression I had at the time was that the i8 was pitched as sort of an everyday usable supercar. But getting in and out was tricky, there was no trunk space, and electric-only range was very limited ... so I felt like it kind of didn't make sense. There were all these compromises (tiny engine, skinny tires, not much power): why would you accept all that if it wasn't at least practical?
They look super cool. I would definitely consider one but the age and parts availabilty and associated cost definitely adds a lot to the pucker factor. There is one running around town with a chrome wrap on it. Looks like a space ship.
They certainly look super super cool!
A quick look on cars.com found the cheapest ones in around $44K, which is still a lot for a potentially unreliable toy.
Regardless of its other pros and cons, the Corvettes have darn good ingress and egress. I've been very impressed with how much attention they must have paid to this - clearly, they know their (new purchasing) target market.
It's a cool looking car, but a Model 3 LR has comparable 0-60, a real backseat, and is likely tens of thousands of dollars cheaper.
I know a couple people who've owned them. Supposedly the problem is that the battery is small and most of the performance is in the electric motors, so if you drive it in a spirited fashion you get reduced to just the gas motor power pretty quickly and then it's kind of a dog.
It's sort of the opposite of a standard plug-in hybrid. Rather than preferentially using the electric power and only firing up the gas motor when absolutely necessary, you kind of want to use the gas motor for the freeway drive to get you to the place that you're going to enjoy the car, use the electric power for fun on the mountain roads, and then head home on the gas motor again once the battery is depleted.
Here's a lap of the ring in one because that is totally applicable to daily driving it 
A really good friend of mine owns an i8. I've spent a fair amount of time driving it and it is a certified blast; especially the computer created engine noises (LOL). I see two pretty big drawbacks to owning an i8. First is the massive doorsill that you have to climb over getting in and out. Getting over it is definitely a pain. The other is getting it repaired after collision damage.
This friend had a young driver attempt to change lanes without use of his mirror causing him to strike the i8 on the door. Damage to the i8 doesn't appear to be huge, but it sure has become a problem to get it fixed. The young man's insurance carrier estimated the repairs at $3,800 using the parts values and repair instructions from a Honda Accord! BMW of North America in northern NJ estimated the repairs at more like $78,000 due to the carbon fiber construction of the body and super high tech adhesives and techniques used to hold it together. BMW even mentioned that the car might have to be shipped back to the factory to be repaired.
The accident was over a year ago and the car still sits unrepaired while the "How do we do this?" question remains unanswered.
Sat next to one in traffic yesterday.
I can't unsee a 911 being birthed at the back end of the i8.
Keith Tanner said:I have seriously considered buying one instead of building an LS-powered ND RF.
Now that's really saying something.
I kind of forgot the i8 existed until I saw one in traffic the other day. Definitely a head-turner.
Very quick (12 second quarter mile), great driving position, comfortable, not easy to get into or out of. Good steering, responsive automatic, a bit more understeer than I like.
A quick search on Autotrader turns up quite a few with under $50K asking prices. And a few with over 100K miles, so it seems like they can be driven. I'm hard pressed to think of anything else that has such exotic looks for less money.
I would definitely want to research common needs and local service before buying one.
chaparral said:Very quick (12 second quarter mile), great driving position, comfortable, not easy to get into or out of. Good steering, responsive automatic, a bit more understeer than I like.
An X3M and M340i are just as fast and much more comfortable to live with. And the usable powerband is available at any time.
Also, weren't most of these bought up by YouTubers and clout chasers? I'd be weary of how it was taken care of by previous owners.
DirtyBird222 said:chaparral said:Very quick (12 second quarter mile), great driving position, comfortable, not easy to get into or out of. Good steering, responsive automatic, a bit more understeer than I like.
An X3M and M340i are just as fast and much more comfortable to live with. And the usable powerband is available at any time.
Also, weren't most of these bought up by YouTubers and clout chasers? I'd be weary of how it was taken care of by previous owners.
I seriously considered getting a vanity plate that said NOTADJ
You'll need to log in to post.
