????其他德國汽車制造商也不甘落后。為避免出局的危險，寶馬主要競爭對手——奧迪汽車（Audi）制造商德國大眾（Volkswagen）——增持了西格里公司9.9%的股份。梅賽德斯-奔馳（Mercedes-Benz）也不甘人后。目前，它正聯手一家日本公司，在德國建立自己的碳纖維制造工廠。據彭博社（Bloomberg）報道，梅賽德斯的目標是將下一代奔馳車結構重量減少10%。

????三大汽車巨頭并非沒有追趕目標。因為英國著名賽車研發制造公司麥克拉倫（Tiny McLaren）計劃今年就將1,000 MP4-12C賽車的底盤全部換成碳纖維材料，底價為231,400美元。

????寶馬正致力于應用碳纖維研發兩款未來車型，這兩款車計劃于2013年發布。寶馬采用一種新的加工方式——機器人加工，運用注壓成型工藝，幾分鐘之內就可完成汽車零部件的加工。而寶馬生產的車型，從迷你庫柏（Mini Coopers）到勞斯萊斯（Rolls-Royces），每一輛新款車都將與之前的款式全然不同。

????寶馬i3將采用四座設計，且由電動或汽油引擎提供動力，而重量僅有大約1.225噸，相當于日產聆風型汽車（Nissan Leaf）重量的80%。據《汽車新聞報》（Automotive News）報道，寶馬i3的產量計劃為每年30,000輛，主要投放城市地區。寶馬i8將設計成混合動力車，同時裝配燃氣和電力發動機。在保持對法拉利（Ferrari）汽車的速度優勢下，寶馬i8每行駛20英里只需一電荷的電量；而每行駛50英里，也只需消耗一加侖汽油。

????這兩款車的售價都不便宜。據權威IT網站ExtremeTech的撰稿人比爾? 霍華德估計，寶馬i3的售價將達50,000美元，而寶馬給i8的定價為170,000美元左右。相比之下，雪佛蘭純電動車Chevy Volt的售價僅為43,000美元，而全球首款量產版電動敞篷跑車Tesla roadster的售價也只有109,000美元。

????寶馬董事長雷瑟夫表示：“碳纖維是21世紀汽車制造業的關鍵原材料，將會在汽車研發和制造領域帶來一場變革。”

????然而，他并未提及碳纖維優于其他節能技術的主要特點：碳纖維隨處可見；它不會像太陽能、天然氣，或氫燃料電池那樣，說不定哪天就無處可尋了。

????翻譯：李淑玉/汪皓

????Other German automakers are following right along. To make sure that it wasn't left out, archrival Volkswagen, maker of Audi, has bought a 9.9% stake in the SGL venture. Mercedes-Benz is jumping into the carbon fiber pool as well. It is building its own manufacturing facility in Germany in cooperation with a Japanese company. Mercedes has a goal of reducing vehicle structure weight by 10% with each succeeding generation, according to Bloomberg.

????All three companies have some catching up to do. Tiny McLaren, based in the U.K., plans to use a carbon fiber chassis as the basis for 1,000 MP4-12C sports cars it plans to build this year. Base price: $231,400.

????BMW is using carbon fiber in two futuristic cars it is introducing in 2013. A new process, operated mostly by robots, can turn out parts in a matter of minutes using injection molding. The automaker's models range from Mini Coopers to Rolls-Royces, but neither new car is anything like what it has built previously.

????The i3, which carries four passengers, will be powered by either an electric or gasoline engine, and will weigh just 2,700 pounds -- about 20% less than a Nissan Leaf. BMW plans to make 30,000 i3s a year, Automotive News reports, for use in urban areas The i8, with both gas and electric motors, will be faster than a Ferrari and still be capable of 20 miles per electric charge, or 50 miles per gallon of gas.

????Neither auto will be cheap. Bill Howard of ExtremeTech estimates the i3 will go for $50,000, and BMW has priced the i8 at around $170,000. By comparison, the Chevy Volt goes for $43,000, while the Tesla roadster sells for $109,000.

????Says BMW's Reithofer, "Carbon fibers are a key construction material for the automotive industry of the 21st century and will change the way we develop and build cars."

????What he didn't mention is the key advantage they have over other gas-saving technologies: They are here today -- not off in some gauzy future like solar power, natural gas, or hydrogen-based fuel cells.