BMW invests in game-changing carbon fiber
Which do you think is more important: a $200 million investment in a carbon fiber factory or $1 billion to expand an automotive assembly plant? My vote goes to carbon fiber.
BMW is planning a $200 million investment in a Washington state facility that makes carbon fiber for automotive assembly of its electric vehicles (EVs). Even though it’s the smaller of BMW’s two major investments, it underscores the success of BMW’s two EVs: the i3 city car and the high-performance i8 performance coupe. It also indicates the Munich-based carmaker will be adding more carbon fiber to its gas and diesel vehicles, such as the high-performance M series.
I’m not dismissing BMW’s significant commitment to its Spartanburg, South Carolina, plant, which produces the X3, X5, X6 and new X4 crossovers, and will be producing the new plug-in hybrid model of the X5. Since it opened in 1994, the factory has produced more than 2.6 million vehicles, of which 70 percent are exported around the world.
BMW’s additional $1 billion investment and expansion will boost production up to 450,000 vehicles a year by 2016. That will give the Spartanburg plant BMW’s single largest production capacity anywhere in the world, including Germany, according to BMW chairman Norbert Reithofer.
Back to the carbon fiber factory in Moses Lake, Washington, a joint venture between BMW and SGL Group, which runs completely on hydropower. Running manufacturing plants on sustainable energy is the green trend.
Carbon fiber is as strong as steel, and much lighter, which helps reduce weight and increase fuel economy in conventional gasoline and diesel vehicles. The lighter weight balances the extra weight of the battery packs in plug-in vehicles, so the i3 — and especially the i8 — can BMW Group plans to invest $1 billion in the company’s South Carolina plant, expanding annual production capacity by 50 percent up to 450,000 vehicles by the end of 2016. perform like a conventional BMW ultimate driving machine.
BMW’s “i” cars (i stands for innovation) are the first production models built substantially from carbon fiber, which is significantly more expensive than steel. Its high cost is why it is used primarily in Formula One racecars and high-end sportscars such as the Lamborghini Aventador. But German efficiency and economies of scale are likely to bring down the cost.
Washington state’s Moses Lake facility is expected to become the world’s largest carbon fiber plant, able to produce as much as 9,000 tons a year. The rolls of fiber material are shipped to Germany, where they are processed into layered sheets, which are then molded into body parts for vehicles, including at the factory in Leipzig, where the i3 and i8 are assembled.
BMW also is using SQL carbon fiber for the solar-powered recharging stations it has designed for the i Series vehicles. The carport uses glass-onglass solar panels designed to last 30 years, and also features a conventional plug-in charging station for rainy days.
BMW hasn’t yet released the cost of the solar BMW’s “i” cars (i stands for innovation) are the first production models built substantially from carbon fiber. Carbon fiber is as strong as steel, and much lighter, which helps reduce weight and increase fuel economy in conventional vehicles. The lighter weight balances the extra weight of the battery packs in plug-in vehicles, so the i3 (shown) — and especially the i8 — can perform like a conventional BMW ultimate driving machine. charging stations, but the sticker price of the urban mobility electric i3 is $42,275 including destination charge, with a range of about 100 miles fully charged. A recent drive shows the i3 is certainly fun — not as much fun as a 3 Series, but more fun than most EVs, and with room for five.
The i3 may need a separate garage for the awards it is winning for its engineering and design innovations. It won both the 2014 World Green Car of the award and the 2013 World Car Design of the Year award at the 2014 New York International Auto Show. The futuristicstyled i8, with gull-wing doors, is $136,625. It gets my own “Wish List” award for its cutting-edge style and technology. BMW also is using SQL carbon fiber for the solarpowered recharging stations it has designed for the i Series vehicles.