Ch. 11- Developing and Managing Products

When BMW launched the new i8 their intentions wasn’t primarily to replace obsolete items, but their objective was to have an impact on the electric car market (especially with up and coming competitors such as Telsa ) and still influence gas operated cars while maintaining the luxury title of the brand and enforcing their mission statement “ setting standards for the future today.” The idea generation behind the i8 came essentially from customers, research and development and competitors. BMW is known for its spacious vehicles and has received a significant amount of positive feedback from customers, therefore BMW increased the interior space of the vehicle without changing the exterior attraction. After research and development BMW designed the body of the car for its most efficient dynamic performance such as the lightweight chassis is made mainly from aluminum. The windshield, top, doors and fenders are made from polycarbonate glass making this car extremely lighter than usual, also the location of the battery pack in the energy tunnel gives the vehicle a low center of gravity, enhancing its dynamics. Surprisingly enough the brainstorming behind the i8 were flawless, leaving the only major issues for some consumers is just the price alone. BMW released a prototype in 2011 as an idea but the feedback were so influencing that they were forced to proceed with their plan which led them in July 2012 BMW i8 won the North American Concept Vehicle of the Year and the BMW i8 won the 2013 best production preview vehicle award which made an high demand of the BMW i8 leaving consumers on their toes. Pricing for the BMW i8 destined for the U.S. market starts at US$135,925 including destination and handling fees and before any other applicable incentives. Finally August 15^th 2015 the United States was introduced to the BMW i8.