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Tire Trailblazer
2016 BMW 7-series
The sixth-generation 7-series will arrive around Thanksgiving, but it's no turkey.
- Apr 2015
- By DON SHERMAN
- PROTOTYPE DRIVE
The 7-series has traditionally been the BMW for those who can barely recall their stick-shift, tail-sliding days. Available in a choice of long or really long wheelbases, with up to 12 twin-turbocharged cylinders, and with rear- or four-wheel drive, the 7 is a four-door limo blessed with comfort, speed, and a suitably aloof demeanor.
Yet the world has changed since the current 7 arrived in 2009. Fisker came and went, Tesla emerged as the green-chip luxury brand, Mercedes is as strong as ever, and Cadillac is showing signs of intelligent life. The luxury-car business is flourishing so nicely that even the Korean brands are nibbling a thin slice of the pie.
BMW has made decisive moves to secure its future. Last year, the company’s engineering commander announced that electrification will spread beyond the i3 and i8 fashion statements and the current 3, 5, and 7 ActiveHybrids to include a plug-in hybrid option for every core model. BMW is the uncontested leader among automakers in weight-saving composite plastics with its own plant in Washington state producing affordable carbon fiber in partnership with the SGL Group.
Five years ago, fresh out of its shipping container, a 2010 BMW 750Li thumped a Mercedes S550 in a two-car comparison test, but the big Bimmer quickly lost steam. A 750i lost to Porsche’s new Panamera S while beating a Maserati Quattroporte Sport GT S. Then in 2011, a 750Li suffered the indignity of a distant third-place result versus Audi’s A8L and Jaguar’s supercharged XJL. The new 7 arrives late this year to make amends.
While we can’t announce mission accomplished after only eight paced laps around BMW’s Miramas, France, test tracks in early production cars, we’re encouraged by what we’ve learned about the 7 thus far:
• Project head Walter Schindlbeck acknowledges the need to restore the flagship’s neglected ride and handling strengths.
• Weight-saving technologies have been applied in earnest. BMW engineers have created an astute mix of high-strength steel, aluminum, magnesium, plastic, and carbon fiber materials to trim a claimed 285 pounds in base weight—a third of that from the body—while lowering the 7’s center of gravity and improving both bending and torsional stiffness. Several suspension and brake components have been switched from iron and steel to aluminum and sound deadening is used more sparingly. Unsprung weight drops by 15 percent.
• BMW is so proud of its innovative ‘carbon core’ unibody construction that a badge touting that technology is discretely affixed to each of the 7’s B-pillars. While stamped steel remains as the major constituent, there’s less of it thanks to the use of 15 molded carbon-fiber (CF) reinforcements added at strategic locations. The largest molding is a long CF tube that sweeps majestically from the base of each A-pillar, along the top of the door openings, and down to the base of the C-pillars. The upper half of each B-pillar is reinforced with a CF layer that’s pressed and cured in place with a single-sided die. A large patch is also secured with rivets and adhesives at the base of each C-pillar. The windshield header and two bows reinforce the roof structure. The 7’s center tunnel has a CF doubler to augment the body’s bending stiffness and to help manage forward collision loads. Add to that two CF door-sill inserts per side and a horizontal shelf beneath the backlight made of the black magic material. How exactly the CF and steel parts are joined with adhesives and fasteners and painting methods are proprietary information, as BMW naturally prefers to keep its learnings away from competitors as long as possible.
• The front longitudinal members are complex aluminum extrusions, all four suspension spring seats are die castings, and there are two more aluminum castings running longitudinally ahead of the rear axle. A die-cast magnesium space frame spanning the front hinge pillars supports the instrument panel and steering column. The hood and doors are aluminum and the front fenders are made of molded plastic.
• While basic dimensions won’t be revealed until its Frankfurt show debut, the new 7 possesses true sports-sedan spunk for reasons beyond its actual size and lighter construction. Building on an existing tech suite that included four-wheel steering, available four-wheel drive, variable dampers, and adaptive anti-roll bar technologies, BMW added electric-assisted power steering and air springs providing adjustable ride height as standard equipment. Engineers exploited both the new technology and their best tuning acumen to move the 7 to the head of the luxury-car class by eliminating any hint of ride/handling compromise. Bumps and pavement flaws sweep underfoot unnoticed. Body motion is judiciously restrained even when the driver engages attack mode. There’s less steering feedback than we prefer, but in every other sense this light and lively 7 appears as if it may vault BMW back to its glory days as the world leader in driving dynamics. (Concerning steering feel, we learned at Miramas that tuning the electric assist to provide more is not that much of a challenge. Unfortunately, luxury buyers whine when too much sense of the road tickles their fingers, so BMW engineers are forced into numb steering by customer demand.)
• To expand on the previous Eco, Comfort+, Comfort, Sport, and Sport+ driving modes, there’s a new adaptive alternative that uses two forward-looking cameras watching the road, GPS information, and the driver’s throttle-foot pressure and steering inputs to adjust suspension, steering, transmission, and throttle actions. Instead of the hydraulically controlled anti-roll bar adjusters used previously, the new approach is electromechanical to save weight while speeding response. Variable-ratio steering is available as an option.
• Responding to the perpetual demand for innovative forms of cockpit entertainment, the new 7 brings the next step in iDrive functionality. Supplementing the familiar console knob and voice control, the permanently erect TFT center screen now responds to both a finger’s touch and the sweep of a hand in space. An overhead infrared camera converts a rotary-motion gesture to a louder or softer audio level. A wave of the hand brushes off incoming phone calls; pointing one finger answers the call. Two fingers in a V shape tells the nav system to guide you home. Middle-finger salutes are ignored, but the new gesture-control system can otherwise be custom-programmed to suit individual tastes.
• One of the most satisfying—if minor—pieces of news gleaned at Miramas was that iDrive no longer abbreviates miles as ‘mls’. Two years ago, the Germans realized the error of their ways and changed distance labels to say ‘mi’.
• To aid those wealthy customers who break into a cold sweat at the prospect of docking their yachts at the curb, the new 7 offers full parallel and perpendicular automatic parking capability. In addition, a smart key fob provides remote starting, cabin climate conditioning, and driving into or out of tight garage confines with the operator standing outside the car.
• No fan of the movement toward autonomous driving, BMW has augmented its collision-avoidance and radar cruise-control aids with a new lane-keeping system. Unlike the approach used by other makers, such as Mercedes-Benz, where the car waits some number of seconds, this one flashes a prominent warning the moment both hands leave the steering wheel. The nudges that keep you between lane markers, while also helping avoid collisions with cars hiding in your blind spot, are intentionally never intrusive.
• Compared to the dynamics and driving assistance strides made in the new 7, the powertrain story is less enthralling. As before, there are turbocharged six-, eight-, and twelve-cylinder engines. A ZF eight-speed automatic transmission with a wider gear-ratio spread is standard and all-wheel drive is still optional. To enhance mileage, the previous N55 turbocharged inline-six has been supplanted by a new 3.0-liter engine of the same basic direct-injection, 24-valve DOHC configuration. Coded B58, the new six is essentially a double-length version of the Mini’s three-cylinder. BMW’s modular family of three-, four-, and six-inline engines are constructed with a common bore-center dimension and combustion chamber design to provide low emissions, maximum power, and minimal consumption with cost savings attributable to sharing most of their moving internal parts (pistons, rods, and valvetrain gear). At Miramas, the new slightly more powerful six provided the lighter 7 all the verve most customers will ever use.
• BMW most likely will import only the long-wheelbase version of the 7 for two reasons: Most of the tuning and development effort was focused on that car with the shorter-wheelbase edition added mainly for tight-quarters markets. While BMW has thus far refrained from official confirmation, a new 5-series will inevitably share this platform.
For years we’ve been saddened by BMW’s fading interest in building genuinely fun-to-drive sport sedans. The new 7 is the most uplifting proof we’ve seen in ages that the roundel is again spinning our way.
http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/2016-bmw-7-series-detailed-driven-review
