It’s officially fall here in the north east, and that means car show season goes into overload as we enjoy remaining warm days. Recently, Bridgewater BMW held their first big car show called “Bimtoberfest”. I hopped into my G80 and took a ride down for the static display.
Here’s a “mini” gallery of some of the mix of BMWs to show up. It was probably one of the best in that regard – a good mix of classic and new.
Bimtoberfest Gallery
Quick take: BMW i4
On display at Bimtoberfest was the preproduction BMW i4, and it was the first time seeing it in person (I had seen the iX at UDE in the spring).
It looks like the upcoming 4 Series Gran Coupe, and aside from a dash that wraps around with one screen, it looks like every other BMW. They is being as smart as they can here. The internal combustion engine is not dead yet. And I think despite many battery advances, the ICE will be around for a long time to come. BMW hesitates to make a dedicated electric platform as a result.
So here, BMW gives you…a BMW. Do mainstream BMW customers really care about what’s under their hood (or floorboard)? Does anyone really know what the hell X3 M40i even means? It certainly doesn’t displace 4 liters, it’s not an M car, and xDrive is on every BMW. I digress.
Is it better?
From a technical standpoint, an electric car is better. There is no engine to spool up, and the battery is installed on the lowest point in the car, which aides handling. They accelerate much better than a standard car. And there is something to be said for never having to fill up again.
But I remain unconvinced. Battery production is terrible for the environment. Range is still an issue, as is infrastructure to charge your car easily and quickly. Elon Musk isn’t making Teslas to help you breath easier, he’s doing it for money. Instead of relying on many mechanics, dealerships and gas stations, you just rely on Tesla for all your needs, from software updates to charge-ups. Sounds like an excellent way to corner the market. Other makers will follow.
If anyone can figure out the electric car, it’ll be the Germans. Mercedes and Porsche are already making excellent headway. Not BMW though. Not yet. We’ll see.
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