‘It’s a future classic’ – drivers urged to buy discontinued sports car with ‘exotic’ looks that’s also ‘cheap to run’

A PETROLHEAD has picked out a gorgeous hybrid sports car as a “future classic”.

Motoring YouTube star Jonny Brighton, who runs the channel , recently posted a video highlighting a selection of great value secondhand BMWs that are sure to turn heads and won’t completely break the bank.

The expert picked out five Beemers for his list, but the one that really stood out was undoubtedly the iconic i8 plug-in hybrid.

The aggressive-looking sports car – produced between 2014 and 2020 – is perhaps one of the German brand’s most striking road cars that they’ve released in recent times.

Capable of hitting a top speed of 155 mph while boasting a decent 0 to 60 mph of just 4.3 seconds, the unique hybrid motor had a relatively short production run but is fondly remembered for its futuristic design and ground-breaking tech.

Jonny said: “I recently had a chance to drive and review the BMW i8 and it really surprised me as it was nothing like I expected, though I’m not really sure what I expected.

“It almost looks too exotic for its main purpose, which is basically to be a comfortable grand tourer with an interesting powertrain.”

The car nut went on to describe it as a “cheap to run, good-looking city car” with a surprisingly small, 1.5-litre turbocharged engine produces 356 bhp thanks to a handy boost of electric power.

Jonny added: “It’s crazy to think that a car that looks like this would come with an engine that small.”

The popular sports car was canned in 2020 despite being highly popular among motorheads, and could be considered a modern classic.

Jonny added: “I actually think the i8 is a future classic, because not only did it dominate its class as a hybrid sports car, it was cancelled while it was still pretty popular.

“That means there’s now a finite amount of highly popular, successful, exotic-looking BMWs that was one of the first of its kind.

“It’s the perfect recipe for future intrigue.”

Sadly, the i8 doesn’t come cheap, with Jonny pointing out that they can be picked up for around £31,000 – with £35,000 likely to be enough for a 2015 model with 30,000 miles on the clock.

However, as Jonny hinted at, the i8 is fairly affordable to run and drivers can reasonably expect to enjoy small car running costs.

In an in-depth review in 2020, motoring outlet said: “It’s possible to run it completely on electricity for 22 miles at speeds up to 75 mph, or alternatively, use the combination of the two power sources while the car is set to EcoPro mode to achieve a 330-mile total range.”

They went on to say: “Over longer journeys, the i8’s fuel economy figures falls in line with that of a conventional car, although it will prove to be more fuel efficient than a Porsche 911 long term.”

This comes as another eye-catching BMW was restored by an enthusiast – having been locked away for seven years as a result of recurring issues.

And elsewhere, Wheeler Dealers host Mike Brewer has picked out his most underrated motors in an exclusive chat with The Sun – with the TV star including a VW supermini in his list.