We are used to cars getting bigger and more complex with each successive generation and the all-new BMW 7 Series is the largest and most complicated car the company has ever built. But perhaps the most impressive thing is that all this has been achieved together with a weight saving of up to 130kg over the outgoing car.
Like a BMW, just bigger - business as usual!
We'd been promised a technology transfer from the all-carbon i3 and i8 and here it is in a 'mainstream' BMW, the new 7 Series getting a 'carbon core' construction that uses CFRP together with high-tensile steel and aluminium. The latter features extensively in the panels and suspension components, contributing to a 15 per cent weight saving in unsprung weight alone for improved ride comfort and a more responsive feel. This all adds up to a car over five metres in length (in standard-wheelbase form!) that emits just 124g/km in diesel-powered 730d form. BMW has always been good at playing the emissions numbers to its advantage. But that remains hugely impressive. Still not good enough for you? The forthcoming plug-in hybrid 740i slashes that to just 49g/km thanks in part to a 25-mile electric-only range.
Mixed carbon/steel/aluminium platform
Since when did PH talk about CO2 figures before looking at horsepower though? Sorry. Normal service to be resumed immediately! Diesels predictably dominate the UK line-up, the 265hp and 457lb ft 730d available additionally in xDrive four-wheel drive or +140mm long-wheelbase form as required with prices ranging from £64,530 to £68,480. Petrol die-hards have just one option - the long-wheelbase 740Li with a 326hp ... A half-second improvement in 0-62mph is your prize, albeit with reduced torque of 'just' 332lb ft. There is a 450hp V8 twin-turbo 750i too, just not for the UK. Boo. All engines drive through an updated version of the familiar eight-speed automatic gearbox, able to 'talk' to the navigation and pre-empt inclines and the like to maximise efficiency. A coasting function also features.
140mm stretch for long-wheelbase versions
Air suspension is standard, able to jack the car up by 20mm at speeds of up to 'around' 22mph before reverting to its default. When travelling at 'high speed' (unspecified) it drops 10mm, variable dampers keeping things plush at all times and configurable via the 'Driver Experience Control' switch. Tick the box for the optional Executive Drive Pro and you get active anti-roll control too.
As you'd expect the interior is laden with luxury and technology, to the extent we'd advise heading over to BMW's homepage where this can be presented to you in suitably whizzy fashion. Highlights? An 'Executive Lounge Seating' option coming next year will enable you to recline the rear seat to 42.5 degrees and, if you're seated on the left, force the passenger seat forward by an extra 90mm and fold it flat for an unobstructed view forwards. Just check your PA isn't riding shotgun beside the chauffeur before you hit the button.
Enough to take on the S-Class? BMW will hope so, even if 7s have never quite - no matter how talented - completely usurped the flagship Benz in this sector. It'll probably be a while before we see one on Shed Of The Week though.