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I don't think that 3 cylinder diesel is going to make a great exhaust sound at startup. ANd I'm not sure you could even have a manual tranny with this setup.

The Eco-Super Sports car concept is based on the principles set by the Vision Efficient Dynamics which means it's combustion engine will be a reltively highly efficient three cylinder with the majority of the car's power coming from an electric motor. It is not going to be a seasoned Sports Car it will be groundbreaking by offering unique aerodynamics, low emissions and groundbreaking performance from it's unique drivetrain.
There will not be a V8.

It's not about joining the pack, it's about leading the pack with an entirely new Concept in the super sports car segment. Although you will not see the first fruits of this car until after the launch of the BMW Mega City Vehicles.

jealous at audi´s sucess with the R8...and they to have already confirmed an R8 and R4 electric aswell.

And there is the problem. With the E-Tron Concept Audi are bullish about launching the car in 2012. No public field test of the technology? no feedback? what happens when it does not work?

Which is why BMW spent it's R&D resources on the "Efficient Dynamics" inititiate and the creation of the "Project-i" strategy instead of over costly vanity projects.

The MINI E field test ongoing within the US and parts of the EU is to gain feedback in preperation for the BMW Mega City Vehicle is the first stage. Feedback is gained in order to futher progress the concept seeing what works , what does not work and keep progressing to the optimum level.
Since the MINI E there has been further development in battery technology with BMW and it's partners , amongst other technologies.
The next stage of progress will be the Active E which showcases some of the progress learned from the MINI E. Again feedback will take progress further until everything is combined before the introduction of the production Mega City Vehicle in 2015.

Testing is important , especially customer testing in the sustainability era.
You cannot just put out an untried concept and hope it works because it looks good.

Thanks to cars like the MINI E and initiative such as Efficient Dynamics BMW continue to lead their competitiors in sustainability and lowering emissions. BMW have also put forward more investment to Project-i so that they continue to have the lead over their competitors into the next decade.