BMW I8 Dual Engine/Motor Tax Rate?

Life Cars & Motorcycles
1

For those that don’t know the new BMW I8 is different then most electric/hybrid type of cars and here is why.

Its AWD
The front wheels are driven by a 90ish HP electric motor and while at the same time the rear wheels are driven by a 230hp 3 cylinder 1500cc gas engine.

In Taiwan when a car is 100% electric its tax (I think) is based on HP.

So if you buy the new I8 do you pay tax for this car in the 1500cc tax rate???
After all the car only has one “gas” engine and that engine is 1500cc.

Sure the I8’s price is high, but give it 2-3 years and see your average mazda/honda/toyota running this type of set-up AWD with maybe a 600-800cc engine out back and a 40hp electric motor up front.
We all know AWD is better and this type of hybrid configuration looks to be the way to go in the future.

Another car for reference, the Mazda RX-8 uses a 1300cc rotary engine.
Because it has higher HP (230hp) Taiwan has taxed and placed this car into the 2600cc engine category.
(despite having only one 1300cc gas engine and no electric engines)

Should be interesting to see how Taiwan taxes these new dual engine hybrids putting out more HP.

2

Taiwan being Taiwan, you will probably have to pay tax on both engines, and a bonus tax for buying a knob car.

3

I thought this issue was sorted out with the tesla. ie: as soon as you run a hybrid or electic drivetrain, you pay by horsepower…

4

W T F ! ? ! Let’s tax the more fuel efficient engine at a higher rate because it makes as much horsepower
as a larger engine. Ya, that makes a lot of sense. Oh wait, this is Taiwan, never mind…

5

Here’s a good place for new car info. According to them, the tax for the i8 is less than my 2.0 liter Mazda.

http://newcar.u-car.com.tw/overall.asp?modelid=963

6

[quote=“johnledoe”]
… Let’s tax the more fuel efficient engine …[/quote]

Fuel efficient …RX8. Are we talking about the same car?

7

Not sure about the RX-8, but with the FD3S 7s the engines are classed as 1.3, but due to some technical details regarding the revolution cycle it was essentially a 2.6. I can’t be arsed to look it up, but read about this nearly 10 years ago. And those impeccably delightful cars feasted on gas as often as they could.