BMW travels by sea and ocean – Puls Biznesu

Imagine an all-electric BMW with a length of more than 13 m that, instead of tearing up pavement, cuts waves. Ready? Well, congratulations! You’ve guessed Icon – the first electric ocean boat from … BMW.

A show of strength

Of course, BMW The Icon does not live alone. The Bavarian carmaker has no experience in building waterplanes, which is why he chose a partner. Icon is a collaboration between BMW and boat manufacturer Tyde. However, the initiator of the project was not this company, but BMW. The reason? As always: proud. On the one hand, a general approach to mobility that is widely understood, on the other – the skills of its engineers. And not only from batteries and electric motors, but also design experts. Designworks, a subsidiary of the BMW Group, is responsible for the boat’s design. Tyde’s experts were responsible for developing and implementing the concept of a luxurious, luxurious and electric superyacht. What does it mean?

The manufacturers guarantee that the speed, energy storage and unique design will allow the boat to travel 50 nautical miles (about 100 km) on a single charge. It is a good result. First of all, because marine electricity has so far been limited to small, slow and short-range units. How was it achieved? The energy storage is provided by six traction batteries from the BMW i3. The total is 240 kWh. Drive: two electric motors of 100 kW each. And that leads to the second distinguishing feature of Icon – speed. The electric yachts available on the market are usually catamarans or monohulls that develop a cruising speed of several to several kilometers per hour. Icon is very fast with them. The working speed is 24 knots (about 44.5 km / h). The maximum speed is 30 knots (more than 55 km / h). Such performance is not only guaranteed by the propulsion, but also by the hull design and the technology taken from the regatta: underwater lifting wings. These are called hydrostabilizers. According to the parents of The Icon, their use reduces the need for energy up to 80 percent. compared to a conventional hull. The method of foiling, in which the boat rests on the bearing surfaces under the surface of the water, while the hull floats on the surface of the water, also provides great comfort, as well as the high speed mentioned above.

Glass sides

Icon is not just a fast electric boat. It is also a vision of luxury. The unit is noiseless. Users are not accompanied by the rumble of V8 or even V6 engine, but this does not mean that they are not accompanied by emotional sound. Hans Zimmer, the film’s music composer, handled that. And if someone doesn’t like his concept of car sound, he can listen to what is playing in his soul using the Dolby Atmos system.

The section is very flat. The deck plan has a prismatic shape with a sternum of 4.5 m width. The normal sides were replaced with glass ones, so that the passengers get the feeling of floating on the water even more. In addition, sliding glass doors, decorative furniture and … carpet. Something like a modern floating living room. The driving position is managed in a style known from … BMW road models. Instead of multiple navigation devices, the interface combines all important functions into a single digital control unit. The interface is a 32-inch touch screen with a resolution of 6,000 dots. size and BMW iDrive operating system. Important functions such as frequency information and weather forecast can be called up using voice commands.

What? will the boat be sold? That seems to be fine. The unit shown at the recent Cannes Film Festival is – as the builders assure – not a design study or a concept car, but a product ready for mass production. Most importantly, the stylistic solutions presented on the Icon are just one of the suggestions and visions of using a floating, electric platform, which this boat really is. The platform can be customized to suit your needs. It is therefore possible that ships based on this platform will be used in the future as private luxury ships and in the commercial sector as a means of maritime transport. In other words: BMW has only officially become a manufacturer of floating equipment. Price? As with boats: the sky is the limit.

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