Where do you think the BMW/Toyota car will be built at?

  • Japan

    Votes: 1 16.7%
  • Europe

    Votes: 1 16.7%
  • US

    Votes: 4 66.7%
  • Other

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    6
Status
Not open for further replies.

Craigy

Well-Known Member
Joined
Sep 30, 2014
Threads
3
Messages
562
Reaction score
708
Location
Louisiana
Car(s)
M3, Lexus GX
Thanks for sharing.

Yeah CLAR is supposed to pervade their lineup all the way down to 3 series, so it shouldn't be too expensive.

I don't know if weight saving is really a priority on the 7 series, so it might not be a great comparison. But yeah if it's not going to be a full carbon/CRFP platform, have anything called "steel" in it, then it's not going to be the featherweight we might have hoped for.

Speaking of the CFRP i8, I finally saw one up close, and that CFRP frame has an odd honeycomb-like texture to it. Different from anything I'd ever seen before.
Sponsored

 

323 Rider

Well-Known Member
Joined
May 31, 2014
Threads
0
Messages
49
Reaction score
19
Car(s)
Ducati
Been lurking at Bimmerpost for any info on the project. These were posted from a BMW insider who posts often there.

The pricing sounds like it will be very competitive for what the car brings, and it will be advanced, but what bothers me is he says the car is being built on a platform based on BMW's CLAR platform. That's what platform used for the newest 7 series coming out which has composite construction featuring CFRP, ultra-high-tensile steels and aluminum. Sounds great and all but it only saved 200 pounds on the 7 series and isn't full carbon fiber like the i8 or i3 like I hoped it would be.
Would be kinda disappointing if the new Supra doesn't get a full CFRP monocoque. It's clear you can produce and sell a car with full carbon tub for less than $60k now. The Alfa 4C and BMW i3 are examples.
That said, a CF monocoque is also a bit about bragging rights and if the Supra gets a composite platform with some CFRP but can still match cars with full CFRP platform, I'd still be interested :)
 

Da Hmong

Well-Known Member
Joined
Oct 19, 2014
Threads
2
Messages
48
Reaction score
11
Car(s)
2010 Impreza
He says it's a platform "based on" the CLAR, so it won't be the CLAR platform and may still feature more carbon than it. Which I hope it does. Looking at the CLAR chassis video from the released 7 series it looks like it has a significant amount of carbon fiber, but it's definitely not even the majority material. We need moar CF! :D

 

<TC OFF>

Well-Known Member
Joined
May 17, 2014
Threads
2
Messages
66
Reaction score
41
Location
LA
Car(s)
350z
Cool video and construction. But yea I want this instead! Googled image of the BMW i3 carbon body.

bmw-i3-might-be-cheaper-to-live-with-due-to-carbon-fiber-construction-73054_1.jpg
 

Supra93

Moderator
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Jul 7, 2014
Threads
82
Messages
2,486
Reaction score
4,339
Location
TX
Car(s)
Supra & RX7
Glad to see BMW is making the next 6 Series more of a 911 fighter instead of a S Class competitor.
 

Turbo GFX

Member
Joined
Nov 14, 2014
Threads
0
Messages
19
Reaction score
12
Location
Queens
Car(s)
MKV GTI
CF everything sounds neat and all but how do you make repairs on carbon fiber? If it's difficult and expensive to produce won't that mean it's also difficult and expensive to repair?
 

kamran

Well-Known Member
Joined
Nov 30, 2014
Threads
4
Messages
139
Reaction score
36
Location
seattle
Car(s)
scion frs
^yes! If small pieces, you replace em. If large pieces, dealerships will start having their inhouse certified CF shops! or possibly be shipped to centeraly located dealership with certified shops.

Kind of why the new ford GT will only be delivered to those dealerships with ford certified CF shops...nowhere in the U.S. that I know of.....

I think ultimately it'll be the insurance companies problem, since I'd think factories don't want their CF patched while still under warranty. They most likely just replace all broken CF parts, and we as the consumers will end up paying the higher insurance premiums!
 
Last edited:

Scuba Steve

Member
Joined
Jul 9, 2014
Threads
0
Messages
16
Reaction score
16
Location
CA
Car(s)
Audi S4
CF everything sounds neat and all but how do you make repairs on carbon fiber? If it's difficult and expensive to produce won't that mean it's also difficult and expensive to repair?
Here's a directly on point article about fixing carbon fiber body. http://www.cnet.com/news/crash-your-carbon-fiber-i3-ev-heres-how-bmw-will-fix-it/

That all sounds simple enough, but there's one major catch: you can't buy just a small portion of the carbon frame. BMW will offer only the entire left or right side of the Life Cell, which will then be sliced and diced as needed. It remains to be seen whether insurance companies will be required to pay for the entire portion, or if dealers will cut them up and sell the individual segments. It also isn't known what those components will cost.

dsc03898.jpg

The left and right portions of the Life Module, which will be cut into segments.Tim Stevens/CNET
That said, Malec, BMW's Technical Training Manager, estimated that overall repair cost of the i3 should be "comparable" to that of a traditional car. That's largely because, he reckons, the transition to carbon repair is actually a smaller shift than that from steel frames to aluminum, which BMW made over a decade ago. Training, Malec says, should be straightforward, and the specialty tools required are few -- basically just that new milling machine and a special vacuum to connect to it. That's good news for those considering buying -- and insuring -- an i3.
So it sounds like it won't cost any more than a traditional repair.
 

Yoyoma

Member
Joined
Dec 24, 2014
Threads
0
Messages
12
Reaction score
11
Location
US
Car(s)
US

JohnnyTX

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jan 11, 2014
Threads
0
Messages
46
Reaction score
25
Location
Lone Star
Car(s)
Celica GTS (05)
Glad to see BMW is making the next 6 Series more of a 911 fighter instead of a S Class competitor.
It'll need to be trimmed down tho it's still significantly bigger than a 911. Too big in fact.

And I'd be surprised if the next 6 series dropped 600 pounds. The new 7 series only dropped 200 with its semi-carbon fiber CLAR platform, which is the same platform that the next 6 series will be built on.
 

Supraman

Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 3, 2014
Threads
3
Messages
542
Reaction score
772
Location
FL
Car(s)
.
^ I stopped reading once it mentioned that MKIV Supra came with a V6. Plus there are more recent articles with more up to date info.
 

NeroZ

Active Member
Joined
Jun 27, 2014
Threads
3
Messages
38
Reaction score
14
Location
Virginia Beach
Car(s)
FR-S Release Series 1
The new BMW 7 Series was able to drop up to 286lbs over the predecessor using its new carbon core architecture. Obviously that's a bigger heavier car so it can drop more weight easily, but if they apply a similar carbon core chassis to the MKV Supra, we should see it come in at a nice weight since it's a much smaller car.
 

Respek

Member
Joined
Jan 10, 2014
Threads
0
Messages
17
Reaction score
2
Location
Fresno
Car(s)
2011 Mustang
The comparisons to the old Supras may not hold true for the next generation. I think we can expect the MKV to grow by a lot. The FT1 concept is a pretty large vehicle. I know they did this for stage presence but cars have gotten so much bigger and heavier since the last Supra was built.
 

NeroZ

Active Member
Joined
Jun 27, 2014
Threads
3
Messages
38
Reaction score
14
Location
Virginia Beach
Car(s)
FR-S Release Series 1
The comparisons to the old Supras may not hold true for the next generation. I think we can expect the MKV to grow by a lot. The FT1 concept is a pretty large vehicle. I know they did this for stage presence but cars have gotten so much bigger and heavier since the last Supra was built.
That's true but companies are starting to realize that you can't just keep getting heavier and bigger especially for sportier cars. You're starting to see cars drop weight and not grow as fast as before. Plus we're talking about the company that showed restraint with the FRS/BRZ's size and weight and engineering a car that had lower power but was balanced, and not just throwing raw power to deal with being overweight like most companies in recent years.
 

<TC OFF>

Well-Known Member
Joined
May 17, 2014
Threads
2
Messages
66
Reaction score
41
Location
LA
Car(s)
350z
What's funny is all this talk about a possible exotic construction chassis but then there's rumors of a hybrid version. So you go to extremes to lose weight int he body, only to gain it back in the power plant. :banghead: It'll be the gasoline-only Supra version for me thank you very much.
Sponsored

 
Status
Not open for further replies.
 




Top