BMW 7 Series

BMW has launched the flagship 7 Series facelift in India. The 7 series have been launched in India in six variants- 730Ld (diesel) trim and 740Li (petrol) trim, 745Le (plug-in Hybrid) and M760Li while the X7 will be sold in the xDrive M30d (diesel) trim and xDrive 40i (petrol) trim. Having said that, the difference is just in the nomenclature and both models source their power from the same petrol and diesel engines. The 3.0-litre, in-line six-cylinder, twin-turbo diesel engine churns out 260 bhp and 620 Nm of peak torque in the 7 Series. Surprisingly, the 7 Series also comes with a plug-in hybrid variant which develops a combined output of 380 bhp and 600 Nm and boasts of fuel efficiency figures of 39.2 kmpl. The 7 Series 760 Li will be sold in India as a completely built unit (CBU) and gets a massive 6.5-litre, twin-turbo, V12 petrol motor that puts out 609 bhp at 6500 rpm and a whopping peak torque of 850 Nm at 1500 - 5000 rpm and can clock triple digit speed in just 3.8 seconds.

Visually, the sedan is grander than ever with its massive chrome kidney grille, sharper and slimmer LED headlamps and muscular bumper with wheel arches. The kidney grille of the BMW 7 series facelift is now 47% larger than before and the logo is 12mm larger in diameter. The window glass is now 5.1 mm thicker than before and there is extra insulation inside the rear wheel arches, for a quieter cabin.

On the inside, the silhouette of the cabin hasn't changed a bit and retains the same lines, but there have been technological advancements. The new flagship sedan gets the latest digital instrument cluster which we have seen in the new models like the 8 Series and X7. There will be bespoke options and BMW is also giving new leather trims and is claiming even better insulation of the cabin. Moreover, features such as wireless charging, in-built perfume, lane monitoring are standard across the range.

The 7 Series rivals the likes of the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, Jaguar XJ and the upcoming Audi A8L.