This week Chia Kougianos got behind the wheel of a BMW i8. Find out what went down when heels and wheels combined in one exhilarating evening…

BMW South Africa recently launched the i8, a revolutionary supercar which has fondly become known as the “BMW of the future”. It is built for comfort, speed and ultimate luxury whilst still maintaining the utmost in style.

A stunning exterior combined with an eco-friendly interior makes for one futuristic sports car. The i8 truly is a sight with its large butterfly-style doors, big wheels and curvaceous body.

The great thing about this car is that If you are one to do a zero-emissions drive, this car will allow you to commute between recharges as BMW has made use of recycled and natural material to put this car together, making it environmentally-friendly.

The Socialite first set eyes on the i8 in November when we produced the video showcase detailing a preview of the sexy little model and if you missed it you can view it below:

[youtuber youtube=’https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcskCE5-4Zk’]

I set out for a quick test drive alongside the fabulous company of Kirsty Bisset who assisted as co-driver, GPS instructor and DJ. The i8 was fully charged and rearing to go and the only thing stopping us leaving the parking lot was the onslaught of people gawking from sidewalks and nearby cars. A few pics of us leaving the car park even surfaced and all of them were slightly blurry – possibly due to bad camera phones or possible speeding. We won’t say which…

Once we were on the freeway it was free sailing and we were able to experience the car in all its glory. Driving in Sport mode rapidly recharges the battery so we were simply doing it a favour by increasing speed. Although even in standard driving mode, the car seamlessly recharges the battery whenever possible.

With the increasing speed you can sit back and enjoy the purring soundtrack of the engine noise pumping through the speakers. Backing vocals were provided by the distant hum of the electric motors and Kirsty singing along to Coldplay.

It manages to balance high performance with awesome fuel economy and it is capable of being driven on just battery power alone for 135km. But don’t let that fool you as it is still able to achieve an impressive 0-100km/hr speed in less than five seconds and a top speed of 250 km/hr.

The i8 delivered a speed of 130-140km’s/hr in just 4.4 seconds and going around 140-150km’s/hr took just under double that. I suspected we’d have a meet and greet with the Durban Metro any faster than that… The BMW i8 is as daring and exotic as you can imagine and driving the car enabled us to experience the state of art technology and design elements behind it.