BMW Vision EfficientDynamics Concept Car revealed +video

The BMW Vision EfficientDynamics Concept Car which has been revealed

The BMW Vision EfficientDynamics Concept Car has been revealed

Well, they weren’t kidding when they said this was something different.

BMW has released full details, including a massive 90 photos and a video, on the BMW Vision EfficientDynamics Concept Car. And it really is quite impressive.

We speculated a couple of days ago that the Vision Concept would be a diesel electric hybrid with stunning performance and impressive economy. And it is.

The Vsion Concept is a plug-in Hybrid with a 1.5 litre, 3-pot turbo diesel with 163bhp and a peak of 224lb/ft of torque. Which in itself is pretty impressive, but when you throw in to the equation a couple of electric motors – one in the transmission as in the ActiveHybrid 7 and another at the front wheels – you end up with 356bhp and 590lb/ft of torque. That translates in to a 0-60 mph of 4.6 seconds.

The sensible thing with the Vision Concept is that performance is designed to come from a blend of the electric motors and engine, instead of using one to power the other. A lithium-polymer battery back weighing in at 87lbs runs down the centre tunnel and can be charged in 2.5 hours from a domestic socket and is enough to power the Vision for 31 miles on electricity alone, althouigh that is not the point.

Aerodynamic efficiency is a big deal on the vision, and BMW are quoting a drag coefficient of just 0.22. This aids economy as does the low weight of the Vision, at just over 3,000lbs (under 1.4 tonnes). The highly efficient 3-pot diesel – which is effectively half of the V6 diesel in the 335d – means huge economy and the Vision makes do with a 5.5 gallon tank which will yield a 400 mile range, averaging over 75mpg.

There is more information in the BMW Vision EfficientDynamics Concept Car Press Release – which is huge – and a full set of photos in the gallery for the BMW Vision Concept. Plus of course the video below.