FINE DRIVING: 2016 BMW 7 SERIES
Technology-packed sedan is a surprising speedster
NEW YORK — Time flies when you’re having fun.
Back in 1993, I attended my first 7 Series launch — the thirdgeneration model. At the time I was impressed by how far the company had taken an already solid luxury car. Since then I have been to all Series 7 launches, including the latest one: BMW’s sixth-generation flagship sedan. As with each preceding model, the thrust was to make the rider’s life more comfortable and ever more luxurious.
The lineup has been enlarged to include the 750i ($113,900) and the 750Li ($117,900). The 740Li arrives later, with a price to be announced. Then there’s the newbie — the 740e xDrive plug-in hybrid. All models come with BMW’s xDrive all-wheel drive.
As well as adopting a ton of connectivity technology, the new car embraces the “light makes might” philosophy that has served the i3 and i8 so well; the new 7 is a blend of carbon fibrereinforced plastic (CFRP), ultrahigh tensile steel and aluminum. In the end it cuts 86 kilograms from the mass when compared to the outgoing model.
The 740Li arrives with a 3.0litre turbocharged in-line six that delivers 320 horsepower and 330 pound-feet of torque. That’s enough to deliver a run to 100 km/h in 5.7 seconds. However, the 750 variants get BMW’s 4.4-L twin-turbo V-8. It churns out an effortless 445 hp and 480 lb-ft of torque at a leisurely 1,800 rpm, which cuts the run to 100 km/h to 4.6 seconds.
The 740e xDrive plug-in hybrid blends a 2.0-L turbocharged four cylinder with an electric motor that’s integrated into the eight- speed automatic transmission. The electric side gets its power from a lithium-ion battery that yields an electric-only driving range of 37 km. This model will be coming in 2016.
The reworked suspension features double-wishbones up front and a five-link rear setup with load-levelling air springs. This feature allows the ride height to be tailored to the conditions; on a rough road it can be raised by 20 millimetres over normal and it automatically drops 10 mm below the norm when the car is travelling at speed, which reduces drag and improves stability.
The entire car can be tailored and now includes an Adaptive mode — it augments the Eco Pro, Comfort and Sport modes, each of which alters the engine, transmission, steering and suspension accordingly. When Adaptive is activated, the vehicle setup is tailored to the prevailing driving style and, using navigation data, it predicts what is about to happen and readies itself for the future. It also changes its thrust according to the gearshift position (Drive or Sport).
Slip inside the big 7 and the most noticeable change to the cabin — which remains truly opulent and features all the mod cons — is the iDrive system. Many have complained about the fact BMW has been steadfast in its refusal to use touch-screen technology. Well, it has finally seen the light with the latest version.
It makes things so much easier to command, and beyond that it recognizes voice commands and has gesture control. Using predetermined hand gestures over a 3-D sensor on the centre console, the driver can alter things such as audio volume and accept or decline a phone call by wagging a finger.
Next up is the new 12.3-inch instrumentation display. Again, according to the drive mode selected, it alters the information displayed. Then there is the new head-up display, which houses a host of information in a format that is 75 per cent larger than the outgoing system, and in full colour.
As for the other technologies (there are too many to list here!), the 7 comes with an updated self-park feature for both parallel and perpendicular parking spots, there’s a 3-D surround view from a series of cameras, frontal-collision warning with city-collision mitigation, automated braking, active blind-spot detection and lane-departure warning.
The latest 7 Series takes some significant steps forward. The on-board technology is dizzying, the cabin is truly luxurious and the upgrades to iDrive are both welcome and long overdue. For me, however, it was the over-the-road comportment that proved to be the defining characteristic. On the one hand it does the city thing as well as anything in the segment; on the other, it is a self-respecting speedster that is not overwhelmed by a track environment. Harnessing such disparate abilities in a formal sedan is nothing short of extraordinary.