Finally - a BMW i8 Roadster worth talking about

The i8 is an infamous secondhand bargain. But what if it becomes famous again just for being good?

The last time we spotted a BMW i8 Roadster, it was in June 2020. The timing was significant because it was the same month that production of the car came to an end in Leipzig. The i8 had started life six years earlier in astonishingly high demand; partly driven by exemption from the London congestion charge, it promptly sold out in the UK. But by the end demand had slackened to the extent that it resembled a burst balloon. The year-old car we highlighted had 125 miles on the clock - and £50,000 knocked off the asking price.

At the time, we were inclined to ponder just how low used values would go. But as is often the case when no new stock is appearing at the top of the funnel, the wildly steep angle of the depreciation has flattened a tiny bit. Sure, you could buy an older, less desirable coupe for £40k when cast an eye over the market last time around, and now you get one for just north of £30k. But well-kept examples of the Roadster are still above £50k.

Obviously in the grand scheme of things that’s still a decidedly chunky amount of money to have evaporated - let’s not forget that the i8 Roadster launched in 2018 as a £124,645 model, and had you spent that much on an early 992-generation Porsche 911, there’s no chance it would only be paying you back £50k now. But back in 2020 we lamented that, for all its faults, the used values weren’t taking into account the idea that the i8 was undeniably ‘a bold, innovative, original and desirable take on the hybrid sports car, the kind of which we hadn't seen before and probably won't again’ and should be remembered as such.

To suggest that the market has come around to that way of thinking is optimistic to the point of daft when you can have a very lovely looking one in E-Copper for under half the price it was when brand new. Nevertheless, when there is also one at a franchise dealer, with just 766 miles recorded, for £99,850, you do wonder if the worm is finally threatening to turn. Of course, there can be no question whatsoever that the i8, with its three-cylinder petrol engine and charmingly small 11.6kWh battery, is a product of its time - but it is also arguably among the landmark BMWs of the past decade. And that’s traditionally a description that makes cars exceptionally collectable.

To that point - and neatly positioned between the two cars mentioned above - here’s a prime contender for preservation. Perhaps Sophisto grey metallic is not the ideal colour to show off one of BMW’s most audacious styling efforts, but the paint is said to be flawless (as it should be after only enduring 861 miles). Being a February 2020 car puts it right at the end of the production run, too - and while it won’t have been among the very last examples (the final 18 were treated to a unique paint job), it is certainly within touching distance.

But is it worth £81,995? According to the vendor, which is evidently very familiar with the car and its previous owner, it was bought new for £127,105. So you’re still getting £45k off for a Roadster that ought to be virtually no different to when it left Leipzig. But with so many other perfectly worthy examples available for an additional £20k saving, the only reason for doing so is if you think the i8 will eventually make good on its trailblazing reputation and do the sort of about-face that sees it become a highly sought after model with values to match. And if you already do think that, how long do you think it will take? And would you care to place a wager?

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