Whether you liked or loathed its looks, the earlier, fourth-generation 7-series – the one that started the Chris Bangle styling revolution – was a success. Nearly 160,000, including the 567 cars that Indian dealerships sold, had been delivered to customers worldwide after 38 months on sale, beating its predecessor by eight percent and making it the best-selling Seven of all time. BMW hopes this new Seven will do as well against the Mercedes Benz S-class and the Audi A8 as its predecessor did. It’s based on an all-new platform under an entirely new body shell that happens to resemble Chris Bangle’s controversial original. AutoCar (March ’09) takes a road test….

Design & Engineering

This is certainly a more beautiful, less challenging-looking 7-series. On a closer look, the whole shape has been subtly reworked and is softer and easier on the eyes. The big difference between the old and new Sevens is around the nose, which thrusts its way out of the bonnet and at the rear; the earlier Seven’s dowdy tail-lights have been replaced by a pair of exquisite flaming lamps.

Length wise, this ‘L’ long-wheelbase version is 5212mm long with a 3210mm wheelbase, giving it 45mm more space between the axles than a Mercedes S500L.Needless to say, it’s huge and at 1980kg it’s heavy too. But by using aluminum doors, bonnet and wings, BMW has managed to save about 22kg on the overall weight of the car. Despite this, torsional rigidity of this body shell is up by 20 percent thanks to the clever use of tailored blanks of steel in its construction.

Beneath the skin too, the Seen makes several strides forward and as ever is a showcase for BMW’s various new technologies. The platform is new but the suspension is similar to the old one. Innovation comes in the form of a double-arm front axle – one to handle damping forces and one for the steering – it helps isolate steering forces from damping action. At the rear, the 750Li’s standard air suspension maintains the car’s ride height and ground clearance at all times.

Also standard are BMW’s three-stage electronic dampers witih a switchable program that also ties in with throttle mapping and gear change speeds. The AutoCar test car had the optional four-wheel steering, a dynamic drive roll-control system, the head-up display in the cabin and a brake energy restoration system. This, in addition to BMW’s usual automatic Stability control, ABS, Cornering Brake Control and Dynamic Brake Control, makes this the Boeing  787 among Airbus A380s.

What’s more – there are a staggering 16 control units on-board to control these functions. All 16 interact between themselves to maintain stability. Linked by a data transfer system called FlexRay, BMW claims its data transmission rate is 20 times faster than conventional systems.

At the wheels, the Seven gets massive 374mm vented discs in front and 370mm vented discs at the rear. The front and rear tyres are different sizes too – the fronts are 245/45 R19s, the rears are Ferrari-beating 275/40 R19 Dunlop Sport Maxx GTs.

Interiors

The cabin is typical BMW – very business-like but brilliantly built. The front seats are comfortable, amply supportive and can move in more ways than the average yogi. Rear seat space is humongous and comfort is so good, it’s easy to imagine an airhostess offering you a drink while you decide what movie to watch on the big 9.2-inch high resolution screens, gush AutoCar testers (March ’09). Without a doubt, this is one of the comfiest spots on four wheels. But despite the car’s width, it is best as a four-seater. The middle seat in the rear s compromised by the massive armrest that houses cubbyholes and the iDrive controller and doesn’t fold back completely.

As expected, all the buttons and switches work with BMW precision and the big news is that the air con functions separately from the iDrive.  But the new iDrive with buttons for sub-menus could be more intuitive…

Engine, Gearbox & Performance

The 750Li can demolish distances like few other cars can and the seemingly never-ending surge that builds from almost-idle speeds right up to the 6500rpm redline is sometimes terrifying says AutoCar (March ’09). One does not expect this kind of thrust from such a large seemingly cumbersome machine. Press on, and it will get to 100kpg in a scarcely believable 6.38sec and top out at an electronically limited 250kph. The engine’s smooth, absolutely silent under normal driving and hums a cultured whine when one gives it the beans.

At the heart of this ferocity is BMW’s 4.4-litre V8. It offers an almighty 407bhp and a big-rig-like 61kgm all the way from 1750 to 4500rpm. This direct-injecion twin-turbo engine has a turbocharger supplying each bank of cylinders with compressed air. It is double VANOS-enabled, which means the camshafts are infinitely variable, and part of the reason for the high torque output at the un-petrol-motor-like 1750rpm.

What also adds to the effect is the excellent relationship it shares with the six-speed automatic gearbox. Left in ‘Drive’ with the dampers, throttle mapping and gearchange modes in ‘Normal’ mode, the transmission seems to hook up the right gear for every occasion. Set it on ‘Sport’, the dampers stiffen up and throttle responses are sharper, gearchanges are quicker and AutoCar (March ’09) believes this is mode one will enjoy the most while the ‘Comfort is perfect for city traffic.

Ride & Handling

This Seven attempts to play ultra-luxurious cruise and surprisingly sporty big saloon by allowing the driver four suspension settings. These four settings change the behavior of the car rather dramatically. The modes you want to use are ‘Normal’ and ‘Sport’. It is in these modes that you’ll find the best ride and handling combinations.

One can also opt for the Dynamic Drive package and you’ll get active anti-roll bars that help reduce body roll in corners.  Despite this, the Seen still feels too big, too heavy and not especially well controlled at the front over undulating roads. The four-wheel steering system gives it a slightly better agility in town and high-speed lane change stability, but it’s a disappointment. There’s not enough feedback and it feels peculiarly vague and un-BMW like, even though it is ultimately accurate.

Ground clearance is also an issue over big speedbrakers and you must watch out for the long rear overhang when reversing – a good thing that a reverse camera is standard. The best thing to do is to set the suspension on ‘Comfort’ and let the chauffeur do all the hard work.

Fuel Efficiency

AutoCar testers (March ’09) did not expect fantastic fuel figures, so they were not disappointed. The 750Li gives a 4.1kpl in the city and 7.1kpl on the highway.

Verdict

By any objective measure, the new 7-series is a fantastic car. With its world-beating engine, mighty performance, plenty of interior space and equipment, solid build quality and a great image, it’s got almost everything one would want in a car like this. But there is a fair bit of tyre and road noise at speed and in a segment where the ultimate refinement takes precedence over cornering abilities, this is a shortcoming. Also, in these tough times, this mighty 750Li model and its wonderful ngine may end up as a very low-volume irrelevance. The 730d is the one AutoCar (March ’09) is really waiting for.