The BMW i7 is the technological spearhead of the upcoming Mk7 (G70) 7 Series and BMW’s largest and most luxurious electric car to date.
Related models are in the pipeline, including mild-hybrid diesels and petrol-electric plug-in hybrids. However, it is the advanced i7, with a 500bhp-plus dual-motor electric drivetrain in the initial four-wheel-drive model, that will kick off sales of BMW’s new flagship four-door in November, promising a range, we’re told, of close to 400 miles on the WLTP test cycle.
To learn more about the upcoming Mercedes-Benz EQS rival, Autocar joined a round of i7 shakedown tests with a team of BMW engineers in Germany before the car’s unveiling later this month.
As the photographs here show, the prototype we drove on public roads was fully camouflaged, so there is not a lot we can tell you about the detailing within the exterior, other than at around 5400mm in length, it is the largest BMW model to date. It is over 100mm longer than today’s sixth-generation BMW 7 Series.
The interior was also covered up but it’s clear certain elements are taken directly from the BMW BMW iX, the electric SUV with which the i7 also shares its drivelines and lithium ion battery, among other key components.
This is a big car, more presidential limousine than your typical European luxury saloon in terms of visual boldness, with an upright silhouette, traditional three-box proportions, large framed doors that open and close automatically and, thanks to a wheelbase stretching to over 3000mm, luxurious and accommodating rear quarters.
Unlike the EQS, which is based on a dedicated EV platform, the i7 builds off the same CLAR structure used by ICE-powered 7 Series models.
As a result, the interior floor is not completely flat, with a transmission tunnel running backwards through the cabin. BMW has also modified the floorpan to house the 111.5kWh battery, which operates at 400V and can be charged at up to 195kW.
The i7 still needs some development work before a final sign-off and a start to production. The drivetrain of the prototype driven here mirrors the iX’s, with one electric motor up front and a larger, more powerful motor at the rear.
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Very much doubt you would get 3.8 m/kWh out of something that big and heavy.
This looks like a real step backwards for BMW's EV design. Mercs have done a far better job with their new, big EV saloons.