BMW races to get hybrid plug-in sports car on the market by 2013

While manufacturers like Nissan and Chevy have been pimping out their hybrid and electric cars, luxury carmaker BMW has remained pretty quiet about the subject except for a handful of hybrid SUVs. This week they announced that they will start production on a new car based on the sporty plug-in hybrid Vision EfficientDynamics Concept car.

BMW’s new model is quite different from the current crop of EVs for a few reasons. Its primary feature is its styling which makes the Nissan Leaf look more AARP than a hot EV. BMW’s Norbert Reithofer said, “The message is: Sustainable mobility can be at least as exciting as conventional mobility – if you get the best engineers and the best designers together to develop the best result.”

The carbon fiber sports car will use a three cylinder diesel engine with electric motors finding a home on each axle. BMW hasn’t announced the precise range of the production model, but the Vision EfficientDynamics Concept car had an all-electric range of thirty-one miles.  Combined with the backup 6.3 gallon tank, it had a range of 434 miles. In all, it beats Toyota’s Prius when it comes to mileage.

The yet to be named model will also have a ton of horsepower. The combination of gas and electric power will give the sports car 328 horsepower which is similar to the M6. However, the car will emit 70% less CO2 per mile than the M6 coupe. One other attribute that the oddly named concept car has it it’s quick charging feature. Plugged into a standard European socket, the car can charge up in just two and a half hours, a quick boost that could cover many commuters.

Due to it’s odd design that includes glass doors that open upwards, they’ll obviously need to tweak the design of the Vision EfficientDynamics Concept car before it hits the market. But one thing will be certain, it won’t be in the same price range as a Prius.