From A DESIGN Perspective, Will BMW's All-New i8 Have The SAME Fate As The DeLorean DMC-12?

I remember the first time I saw the production version of the all-new BMW i8. It was stunning. It has the right mix of the M1 Homage concept without completely being overkill and it looked like a car that would serve as a proper halo car.

But, I have to say, as time has gone on I've started to have wandering eyes. Perhaps I have the attention of a gold fish, but I've realized that the i8 has a bit in common — from a design perspective — with the old-school DeLorean.

2015 BMW i8

**See MORE photos of the BMW i8 and DeLorean DMC-12 together HERE!

This is where there's a fork in the road for many. Essentially, it's like The Matrix. You can take the blue pill or the red pill.

If you've taken the blue pill, you think that the i8 will be a style icon for the foreseeable future. It's an innovative design that brings the wedge shape back to the Bavarians and looks like something styled in 2020.

If you've taken the red pill, you think that the i8 may look good right now; however, you're a bit concerned what perception will be like in 30 years.

The DeLorean, best known for its appearance in Back to the Future, is either loved or scoffed at as though it's a badly cut, white suit from the 1980s. Essentially, it's become a relic that's the very definition of bad style from that time period .

All that said, what pill are YOU taking?

Will the BMW i8 have the same fate as the DeLorean?


2015 BMW i8















































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MDarringer - 10/12/2014 8:37:10 AM

0 Boost

What fate? To star in a movie? To be found out as a garbage-for-quality nightmare?

iamdabest1 - 10/12/2014 11:41:40 AM

0 Boost

im from new york and have seen zero on the road so i cant say im tired of it. at 140k+ you will never see too many of these so i think it will always have a wow factor.

dwagent - 10/12/2014 2:52:52 PM

+2 Boost

I don't like it now. I don't think the styling will last 5 years, much less 20 or 30.

It has an overall generic "dynamic" bodystyle. The blue and black panels and trim are random and awkward...just plain gaudy. The rear quarter-panel details and the tailights attempt to be trendy and flashy.

This styling direction reminds me of Hyundai and Infiniti (not a compliment).

And I don't see a strong resemblance to the DeLorean, BTW.

Agent00R - 10/12/2014 4:44:02 PM

+1 Boost

@dwagent

I didn't say it looked the same but they are both cars created with a futuristic spin to them. The designers of both cars likely said let's create something ahead of its time. That's what I am getting at.

outsider - 10/12/2014 4:29:36 PM

+2 Boost

De Lorean have had a poor marketing.
BMW i8 is a marketing strategy itself.

DMC looks like an Alpine A310.
BMW i8 looks like an BMW concept from Paul Bracq.

MDarringer - 10/12/2014 8:31:22 PM

0 Boost

The i8 looks like what the next Mitsubishi Eclipse would have looked like had Mitsubishi done one. The i8 is garish and vulgar.

MorePower - 10/13/2014 2:58:09 AM

+3 Boost

Different segments of the market and the vehicles share different purposes.

DeLorean was a car that was meant to be sold to the masses, both production volume and Delorean's ambitions prove this.

The i8 was never meant to be mass produced. It is a low volume, halo car with a heavy ecological tilt.

40flash - 10/14/2014 10:40:17 PM

+1 Boost

I'm not a BMW fan in general. I've liked some but not many. I like the I8 but the multi-color scheme doesn't do it justice. Much better in one color.
As to the Delorean. It wasn't bad marketing that killed it. Lotus was hired to design & develop the chassis during the time when the Esprit was their top of the line car. Delorean insisted on a rear engine design to facilitate 4 seats. People were suspicious of the Renault running gear in a car with that price tag. For the same money you could have an Esprit which drove better. I believe a Porsche or BMW could be had for similar money as well. The car just couldn't compete with the competition at the time.