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By
EWAN KENNEDY
29 June 2009
Having
learnt the lessons of jumping too far ahead in the fashion stakes,
BMW has taken a more mainstream stance with its latest 7 Series
for 2009. This is a shame in some ways, because we like to see
stylists in any arena, not just the automotive one, having a real
go at pushing boldly into the future.
The problem with brave automotive styling, though, is that if you
get offside with the public and critics it can take years before
there's the opportunity to head off in another direction. That's
due to typical life cycles of five to eight years that are the
norm in this tough industry.
BMW likes to point out that the just superseded 7 Series outsold
any of its predecessors, so the much maligned shape was perhaps
more liked than critics give it credit. The arguments about the
Chris Bangle designed BMW 7 Series will go on for years, but let's
forget about that model for the time being, and concentrate on the
all-new one that we have just road tested.
It may have taken a more mainstream/elegant stance, but the new
BMW 7 Series looks just right to our eyes, whether it's stationary
or on the road.
The new ‘7 has a big and bold iteration of the famed
kidney-grille treatment, larger than ever before. The long bonnet
and short tail are joined by a sweeping rear roofline gives the
car an almost coupe-like appearance. The single crease-line
running along the car’s shoulder joining the front and rear
lights, dissects all four door handles and ties in the complete
shape of the car very nicely.
The new BMW 7 Series comes to Australia with a choice of three
engines. The 740i and 740Li, are powered by a 3.0-litre
straight-six twin-turbo petrol; the BMW 750i and 750Li have a
4.4-litre V8 twin-turbo petrol; and the 730d uses a 3.0-litre
straight-six turbo-diesel. The ‘L’ in the two petrol-powered
models indicates they are long wheelbase models to provide added
legroom in the back seats.
Our test car for the last week has been the 750Li, arguably the
most desirable of the group to our eyes. Its combination of sheer
interior space and petrol V8 power is something that has to be
experienced to be appreciated to the full. Interestingly, it uses
what BMW calls its Comfort Pack, this uses two large individual
rear seats with a centre console. You can opt for a three-seat
bench. We loved the sheer size and comfort offered by this pair of
seats. It certainly gives an air of refinement and sereneness to
your travel.
Some amazing technology is now featured in the BMW flagship 7
Series. This includes no fewer than five cameras: a reversing
camera, one to warn if the driver is drifting out of the lane, a
thermal imaging camera to identify pedestrians, animals and other
objects at night, and one each on the front wheel arches to assist
in tight areas such as narrow streets or car parks by monitoring
crosswise traffic that the driver is unable to see.
Also new is a Head-Up display which projects selected information
onto the windscreen, allowing the driver to view it without taking
their attention away from the road. The information can include
the car’s speed, satellite navigation instructions and lane
departure warning and can be moved around the windscreen to suit
each individual driver.
However, the old problem of not being able to see the Head-Up
display while wearing polarising sunglasses remains. It's not as
bad as before, but BMW's engineers really should try to work a way
to let us minimise glare in hot countries like Australia.
For those looking for extra driving enjoyment the driving
characteristics of the new 7 Series can be adjusted using BMW’s
Dynamic Driving Control system which allows adjustments to the
car’s steering, throttle, transmission and suspension ranging
from the smoothness of the ‘Comfort’ setting to the firmer
feel of ‘Sport-Plus’.
Even on the Comfort setting we found the ride to be on the firm
side, something that came as a surprise to us as BMW normally gets
the sports/comfort compromise nicely sorted.
Handling is impeccable, but this is a big heavy car so you could
never call it nimble. It hangs on like grim death on corners, even
when bumped by rough surfaces, but isn't all that pleased if you
ask it to make a big change of direction.
On the road the big Bimmer has a huge amount of engine power and
near instant throttle response, the latter chiefly due to the use
of two small turbos in place of one large unit.
Easy motorway driving saw fuel consumption of under nine litres
per hundred kilometres. Undulating country roads lift this to the
nine to ten litre range, which is excellent. Make full use of the
power and consumption still isn't likely to go much over 13 to 14
litres per hundred kilometres. The economy offered for a vehicle
of this size with this performance is really impressive.
BMW’s iDrive system, used to control the various navigation,
entertainment, information and telecommunications within the car
is now simpler to use than in its earlier generations. But we
still found ourselves struggling at times amongst the huge range
of adjustments offered.
The all-new BMW 750Li is an excellent machine and anyone with
around $300,000 in their motoring budget will simply love the
effortless cruising and serene ride it provides.
AT
A GLANCE
MODEL RANGE
730d 3.0-litre turbo-diesel four-door sedan: $198,800
740i 3.0-litre petrol four-door sedan: $203,000
740Li 3.0-litre petrol four-door sedan: $218,000
750i 4.4-litre petrol four-door sedan: $274,200
750Li 4.4-litre petrol four-door sedan: $291,200
Note: All prices are
recommended retail and do not included statutory and dealer
charges.
FEATURES
ABS Brakes: Standard in all models
Air Conditioning: Standard in all models
Automatic Transmission: Standard in all models
Central Locking: Standard in all models
Cruise Control: Standard in all models
Dual Front Airbags: Standard in all models
Front Side Airbags: Standard in all models
Stability Control: Standard in all models
Traction Control: Standard in all models
SPECIFICATIONS (BMW 750Li 4.4-litre four-door sedan)
ENGINE:
Capacity:
4.395 litres
Configuration: V8
Head Design: DOHC, four valves per cylinder
Compression Ratio: 10.0:1
Bore/Stroke: 88.3 mm x 89.0 mm
Maximum Power: 300 kW @ 5500 rpm
Maximum Torque: 600 Nm @ 1750-4500 rpm
DRIVELINE:
Driven Wheels: Rear
Manual
Transmission: Not offered
Automatic Transmission: Six-speed
Final Drive Ratio: 3.46:1
DIMENSIONS, WEIGHT AND CAPACITIES:
Length: 5212 mm
Wheelbase: 3210 mm
Width: 1902 mm
Height: 1478 mm
Turning Circle: 12.7 metres
Kerb Mass: 1980 kg
Fuel Tank Capacity: 82 litres
Towing Ability: N/A
SUSPENSION AND BRAKES:
Front Suspension: Aluminium two-joint spring strut axle, anti-dive
Rear Suspension: Integral IV muulti-arm axle, air self-levelling
Front Brakes: Ventilated disc
Rear Brakes: Ventilated disc
PERFORMANCE:
0-100 km/h Acceleration: 5.3 seconds
FUEL CONSUMPTION:
Type:
Petrol 98RON
Combined
Cycle (ADR 81/01): 11.4 L/100km
GREEN VEHICLE GUIDE RATINGS:
Greenhouse Rating: 4.5/10
Air Pollution Rating: 6/10
STANDARD WARRANTY:
Three
years/unlimited km
© Copyright
Marque Publishing Company
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