Confirmed: FWD Hydrogen Hybrid 1-series concept in the works- Noooooooooooooooooooo!!

[@ri]

FWD NOooooooooooooOOOOOOOOooooooooooooo!!
:cursin:

Remember these spyshots? Looks like the photos were of a FWD hydrogen hybrid 1-series test car afterall, according to autoblog.nl. The 1-series hydrogen hybrid concept is powered by a 120hp 4 cylinder gas engine, hydrogen fuel, cell, electric motor, FWD and RWD!. The car operates on FWD on longer trips and RWD on shorter trips (RWD powered by electric motor). The fuel cell converts hydrogen and oxygen into electricity, which recharges the batteries. The energy generated from braking will also be converted to electricity and stored for use.

The hydrogen fuel cell and electric motor will power the hydrogen 1-series in local city driving and the 4-cylinder gas engine will provide assistance for longer trips.

Sauce

 

[james]

F@+£ng Treehuggers!

 

[Mike1]

What the heck is wrong with a front wheel drive BMW?

Who cares about heritage and rubbish? Why must BMW limit themselves because it may offend a few "BMW Fanboi's" whilst said fanboi's offend "tree huggers" and oh I can continue.

Am I the only one here who couldnt care less as to whether BMW go FWD?

 

[zaleonardz]

Somebody email clarkson at once.

 

[james]

I just prefer Rwd. With 6 cyls attached of course.

 

[@ri]

What the heck is wrong with a front wheel drive BMW?

Who cares about heritage and rubbish? Why must BMW limit themselves because it may offend a few "BMW Fanboi's" whilst said fanboi's offend "tree huggers" and oh I can continue.

Am I the only one here who couldnt care less as to whether BMW go FWD?

I think the car in your sig says enough :thumbsup:

 

[zaleonardz]

:bat: opcorn:

 

[james]

My first love...after the Missus of course. :-D

 

[Mike1]

@ri...

I have spent the last week with a 325i E90 which i love to bits. I have also been playing with even more powerful rear wheel drive cars too this week.

I dont see why everyone rates it so highly... The BMW even with DTC on stills goes sideways... The AMG V8 snakes if you put your foot down to quickly. No wait... All it does is twitch like its on ice. The BMW constantly cuts the power as the back wheels spin in S mode. The Audi 3.3 litre quattro just grips grips to the point where you wish it would crash for some sense of excitement.

And ironically driving GTI's, Mini's etc still feel faster and I see absolutely no reason for rear wheel drive being better then FWD. Both wheel spin (FWD slightly more). Both will go sideways with some prodding. Both chew tyres. Both are fun.

I just dont get all the hype and why you guys have such an issue with BMW going FWD...

Besides... Technically speaking... They do own Mini... And er... last time I checked the Mini was FWD. Oh wait... The new Countryman is 4WD. Sounds like the designers at BMW are in a particularly blasphemous mood lately.

Mike

---

By the way...

My post is not intended to attack anyone or be offensive.

Simply stating it how I see it.

Hugz!

 

[james]

For me, it's sentimental. It's what makes BMW unique.

 

[@ri]

Fair enough, but BMW and Mini are sperate brands!

Why are they giving these modern FWD's all this power which they cannot put down!?

And what about the weight distribution and handling?

I guess if they go FWD in the lower performance BMW's it wouldn't be a train smash...

EDIT: Don't worry Mike, I get your posts exactly

And I agree with James too

 

[zaleonardz]

Well oversteer is far more fun then understeer, this you cannot argue with.

 

[james]

A Fwd M5. Blasphemy!

 

[zaleonardz]

That would be deadly i think, but like not in a good way

 

[killua]

@minimike19 I (semi-)agree with you... BMW should expand the range, but keep still keep some RWD for enthusiasts... Another post did show that most of the 1-series drivers thought their bimmers were fwd.... I personally believe that anything with less than +-100kw can be kept FWD and still be fun... look at the fiesta ST and Mini cooper S.
That said, I thoroughly enjoy my RWD 3 and wouldn't swop it for a fwd hybrid 1

 

[veridico]

Think of the logic here....

Do you honestly think the type of person who buys a hybrid, is the same type that wants to do donuts and racing? I dont. Thats why a lame-ass hybrid can be FWD. Its an economical commuter. Not a real car.

 

[Mike1]

Guys...

Stop over reacting... You all making it sound like BMW WILL NO LONGER BE PRODUCING RWD CARS.

Just because they are making a FWD hydrogen powered eco car doesnt mean that the M5, M6 etc etc etc are all doomed to be FWD...

Bunch of bloody queens :drama:

**Runs and hides**

 

[Nic_s]

I think the main reason for people disliking the FWD idea is because a FWD car demands less respect than a RWD car. In a GTI or ST, you can plant it and all the car will most likely do is under steer. A powerful RWD car demands more respect... much more. And it's that respect that makes a RWD car different (in BMW's case... special). And if you can't see that while driving a BMW, your doing it wrong. A lot of people just assume all the technology in a car will handle everything thing. It doesn't. You still need to learn the car, know how it will react to whatever you do. You need to learn to drive it. This is especially important in a RWD car. If you just floor it and the traction control kicks in the car will feel dodgy. But it's not the car, it's the driver. All the car is trying to do is prevent the driver from doing something stupid.

Even with all the technology, you still need huge respect for a RWD car to be able to drive it properly. I know there are people who won't get it, but hopefully one day you will. :thumbsup:

 

[zaleonardz]

Well, to be honest, I would much rather put my wife in a FWD car then a RWD purely because it is more predictable, and thus boring, but boring is good when she has my daughter in the car.

Perhaps a FWD option is not so bad, provided that it is segmented properly, and this could be good for the brand, Audi and Merc do not have choices throughout their lines, except for the Quattro, but thats a differant subject all together..

 

[applehero]

There's alot of truth in what everyone's saying.

Just summarising...
My view is that BMW is characteristically RWD. BM's are driver machines (Pure Driving Pleasure), and back in the day the best way to do this was RWD. As with a FWD car, the front tyres can only handle so much force before they let go. Theoretically it is reckoned that above 225kW, FWD alone is not sufficient. So for vehicles above that, RWD or 4WD. :thumbsup:

So in keeping with BMW heritage, their cars should keep with RWD (if the decision is made to not make it 4WD). This being said, BMW's use of turbochargers is a deviation from what has been the norm for a long time. They did use turbo charging back in the day with F1. (Over 1000kW from a 1.5l engine! :excited: If i'm not mistaken)

What seems like is happening now, pressure from regulations such as emissions is forcing them to use other means to develop their cars. Such as smaller capacity performance vehicles, aka 335i. And developing hydrogen fuel systems. Look, eventually fossil fuels will run out so it's a good idea to develop alternatives. For example, I'm perfectly happy if i could run my future M3 on ethanol and not worry bout fossil fuels... Cos you still get the power and the sound.

And a 1 series that uses FWD and RWD can't be all bad, but it would be sad if they lose RWD completely. This is provided I can still purchase my high powered BMW that's RWD!