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      07-07-2014, 04:27 PM   #1
drlonline
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i8 Pure Impulse: worth it or not?

Given the priority production that has been assigned to cars with the Pure Impulse World interior, those of us with early production slots may have no choice but to take this package. Aside from one's preference for another interior color, it begs the question as to the value of the package considering the cost. Of course, if one is already spending $135K+ for a car, another $10K may not be too daunting, but I at least like to feel like I'm getting my money's worth if I'm shelling out more.

Obviously the extra features that come with Pure Impulse aren't worth $10K, but I started to think of another consideration. I've heard the this package may only be offered for the first couple years of production. If that is the case, I'm wondering if the scarcity of cars with it would help the car maintain (or possibly drive up) its resale value in the future. Curious to know what others think about this.
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      07-07-2014, 06:26 PM   #2
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The Pure Impulse package may have a very limited run. Interesting that in Germany, this package come with the Halo interior.

If you are spending $135k on a car, I think you should wait for what you want. You may have your delivery delayed 30 days or so.

I like the Pure a Impulse package and hope its a limited run. But, in my opinion, the Carum Silk Grey interior doesn't work with Crystal White. Halo is a much better fit.
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      07-07-2014, 06:34 PM   #3
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I for one choose the PI to go with protonic blue, friends in Germany say the interior is quite claustrophobic in black. My original choice was the dalbergia brown which is classy. That comes with bright blue stitching on steering wheel which I do not like. PI is grey stitching. My car week 32 is a 2014, I think next year BMW will revert to normal change over so 2016 will be a August 2015, making 2015 a short model year.
The upcharge in the USA for PI is half of European or UK destinations, so we are fortunate in that respect.
As for model revisions and elimination of PI in future, I think BMW will try and price up to $200K accompanied by the battery motor from the i3 which already gives a 50bhp extra kick when it comes to mid life revisions.
Incidentally are you buying the BMW wall charger, I found Clipper Creek Model LCS-25P a compact wall mounted alternative which you could pack to a vacation residence or office garage, not that you are EV dependent like the standard i3.
Finally I do not think these cars will be collectibles like the Z8, perhaps a year of scarcity will allow you to sell next year at above MSRP, however technological innovation will make these follow selling curves like a Ferrari 458 for instance. I drove my 458 for 2 years and traded it for MSRP, then promptly lost $80,000 in just under 3 years on an FF !

Last edited by Arezzo; 07-07-2014 at 08:18 PM..
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      07-07-2014, 06:38 PM   #4
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Is it worth it in terms of content over Giga or Tera? I don't think so. (FWIW, I don't "get" a lot of optional trim things on cars. AMG offered a $5400 carbon fiber engine cover for the SLS you only saw if you popped the hood, so 99.9% of the time you'd never know you had it)

Do I have choice if I want an i8 the first year or two? Not really (I don't like brown)

As for scarcity, time will tell. Depending on how production goes, the Giga and Tera trim levels might end up being rarer than the "limited" edition trim PI package...at least for the first couple of years.
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      07-07-2014, 07:58 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Arezzo View Post
I for one choose the PI to go with protonic blue, friends in Germany say the interior is quite claustrophobic in black. My original choice was the dalbergia brown which is classy. That comes with bright blue stitching on steering wheel which I do not like. PI is grey stitching. My car week 32 is a 2014, I think next year BMW will revert to normal change over so 2016 will be a August 2015, making 2015 a short model year.
The upcharge in the USA for PI is half of European or UK destinations, so we are fortunate in that respect.
As for model revisions and elimination of PI in future, I think BMW will try and price up to $200K accompanied by the battery motor from the i3 which already gives a 50bhp extra kick when it comes to mid life revisions.
Incidentally are you buying the BMW wall charger, I found Clipper Creek Model LCS-25P a compact wall mounted alternative which you could pack to a vacation residence or office garage, not that you are EV dependent like the standard i8.
Finally I do not think these cars will be collectibles like the Z8, perhaps a year of scarcity will allow you to sell next year at above MSRP, however technological innovation will make these follow selling curves like a Ferrari 458 for instance. I drove my 458 for 2 years and traded it for MSRP, then promptly lost $80,000 in just under 3 years on an FF !
I too prefer the Dalbergia brown interior (Tera World) and am trying to get that for my Crystal White Pearl car. Hope to hear something on that this week. As for the wall charger, I'm not currently planning to install a special outlet. I understand that the car will fully charge in around 4 hours from a normal 110V outlet, which should work fine for me for overnight charging. BTW, my commute to work is just under 11 miles, so I'm hopeful that my normal travel to/from work can be done solely in Edrive mode. Sport mode will be for the weekends.
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      07-07-2014, 08:23 PM   #6
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Crystal White and Dalbergia brown is a great choice, Protonic Blue suits PI.
I agree, good point why spend $700 on a 220 V charger when you can use 110 V charger which comes with the car. in any case the i8 will charge itself.
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      07-07-2014, 08:31 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by drlonline View Post
I too prefer the Dalbergia brown interior (Tera World) and am trying to get that for my Crystal White Pearl car. Hope to hear something on that this week. As for the wall charger, I'm not currently planning to install a special outlet. I understand that the car will fully charge in around 4 hours from a normal 110V outlet, which should work fine for me for overnight charging. BTW, my commute to work is just under 11 miles, so I'm hopeful that my normal travel to/from work can be done solely in Edrive mode. Sport mode will be for the weekends.
Home Depot was having a special on Level 2 chargers a month or two ago, picked up a highly rated GE unit. Will probably end up being about $1k installed, including what I paid of the unit, which isn't that bad. I'm curious about how the charging while in hybrid/sport mode works, whether it recharges the battery pack back to full or some other level. The CAR magazine article said something about running the battery down on a track in eDrive but two laps at 7/10ths in sport charged it back. That would make sense from their "philosophy of use" talk. Leave home under electric, get on the highway in hybrid (charging the battery back up), enter city under electric and park for work (ideally at a car park with a charger) and return the same way.
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      07-07-2014, 10:07 PM   #8
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As I see it, why buy a 220V charger when overnight you can use the supplied unit and plug into 110V. i8 after depleting battery charges itself.
Only reason to buy 220V unit is if you constantly want to run in EV mode.
I for one am going to switch to Sport and get that 3 cylinder engine spinning as soon as I am out of my garage !
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      07-07-2014, 10:28 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Arezzo View Post
As I see it, why buy a 220V charger when overnight you can use the supplied unit and plug into 110V. i8 after depleting battery charges itself.
Only reason to buy 220V unit is if you constantly want to run in EV mode.
I for one am going to switch to Sport and get that 3 cylinder engine spinning as soon as I am out of my garage !
Mostly for future planning and convenience. The house is fairly new and I've got friends that come over with a Volt and Nissan Leaf. The cost is negligible in the long run.
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      01-13-2015, 05:33 PM   #10
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Any updated thoughts on the value of Pure Impulse vs the others? Seems like a large price difference to me, but maybe I'm missing something here.
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      01-13-2015, 05:49 PM   #11
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Originally Posted by ucla95 View Post
Any updated thoughts on the value of Pure Impulse vs the others? Seems like a large price difference to me, but maybe I'm missing something here.
It comes down to whether you think paying $10k to get something other than brown leather and plastic door sill covers. PI gets you a very light grey leather and laser etched steel door sill covers (better protection against people dragging their feet). All the stuff is fluff in my book (leather engine cover, "i8" in the headrest, ceramic instead of plastic gear knob). I would have got Giga Black leather in a HEARTBEAT if it was a choice.
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      01-13-2015, 09:41 PM   #12
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I went from no way in hell to having the car with PI. It gives you individual little details that just fit the car's personality so to speak. It is a great interior color for Sophisto gray. At the end it is your money and get what you want. I am happy with it. I am not sure if this car will become another bmw collectible.....I wish for it though
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      01-14-2015, 09:24 AM   #13
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If you want the car now you have to buy the Pure Impulse Package. I feel it's better than a 10k expedite fee (added value premium). At least you are getting something for spending 10k on the PI. I think the i8 will sell for MSRP in the next few years.
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