BMW now has an answer to Elon Musk's ridicule last August of the German automaker's upcoming all-electric car. The President and CEO of BMW North America, Ludwig Willisch, argues in an interview with Business Insider that its EV's are environmentally friendly and new from the ground up including using hydropower and wind to power the plants that make the cars, using recyclable materials (including carbon fiber reinforced plastic), and having a lower carbon footprint. The i3 from BMW is also said to be less expensive that Telsa's EV. On the other hand, Tesla's Model S won car of the year in 2012 and received the highest score ever from Consumer Reports.
Relative to innovation, BMW has only 7 hybrid/electric vehicle patents since 2002 according to the Clean Energy Patent Growth Index while Tesla has over 38 of these patents over the same period. So maybe Elon Musk still has a smile on his face . . . Tesla may still have a few suprises up its sleeve.