LISBON, Portugal — I’m not one to pooh-pooh a 650-horsepower luxurious sedan, however in 99% of all conditions, the brand new BMW i7 M70 isn’t any higher than the less-expensive i7 xDrive60. For an additional $44,300, BMW will festoon your i7 with extra energy, extra gear and a extra aggressive suspension. Nicely, not too aggressive; it is a 7 Collection, in spite of everything. BMW’s land yacht is meant to cradle and coddle, M badges be damned.
Certainly, coddling is what the i7 M70 does greatest. Driving throughout Portugal’s Ponte 25 de Abril – which is a lifeless ringer for San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge, by the way in which – the M70 is as bank-vault strong as another i7. Its M-specific dual-axle air suspension is likely to be paired with stiffer electronically managed dampers, however the trip is however silky and serene. The M70 is quiet, its seats are mega-plush and it has the identical Freeway Assistant as different i7s, so on most freeways, you’ll be able to simply maintain your eyes on the street and let the i7 deal with the remainder.
Each the i7 M70 and xDrive60 have a 105.7-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack – of which 101.7 kWh is usable – that may DC fast-charge at a max price of 195 kW. Each have a dual-motor, all-wheel-drive powertrain structure, and so they share a typical entrance e-motor that makes 255 hp and 269 pound-feet of torque.
The M70 will get its added oomph from a extra highly effective rear-drive unit, cranking out 483 hp and 479 lb-ft, versus the xDrive60’s 308 hp and 280 lb-ft. Curiously, the sedan’s driving vary doesn’t take an enormous hit regardless of this bump in output, with the EPA ranking the M70 at 291 miles and the xDrive60 at 317 (choosing larger wheels will decrease the vary of each).
All instructed, the i7 M70 makes 650 hp and 749 lb-ft of torque – or 811 lb-ft for temporary moments while you’re utilizing launch management or should you seize the steering wheel’s enhance paddle. That’s a rise of 114 hp and 200 lb-ft (or 262 lb-ft) over the i7 xDrive60, which is sufficient to shave a second off the sedan’s 0-to-60-mph time: 3.5 seconds vs. 4.5 and enhance its prime velocity from 149 mph to 155 mph. Contemplating on the spot torque makes all electrical automobiles really feel a lot fast off the road, is a 1-second enchancment actually value $44,300 to you? And in a 7 Collection?
That upcharge will get you extra than simply energy, after all. The M70 comes customary with 21-inch wheels wrapped in 255/40 entrance and 285/35 rear Pirelli P Zero tires, however in contrast to the xDrive60, 20-inch wheels wrapped in high-performance summer season tires will likely be out there. It’s additionally fitted with BMW’s 48-volt energetic anti-roll expertise and a couple of.5-degree rear-axle steering (for context, the EQS rotates 10 levels). Blacked-out exterior components give the hideous i7 a barely, um, higher(?) look, although I’ll say, I dig the virtually Alpina B7-like look of this Aurora Diamond Inexperienced take a look at automotive. The M70 additionally has a extra pronounced rear diffuser, drawing your consideration to the place tailpipes would usually be. As a result of that’s a design development now. Neat.
Inside, the M70 is basically an i7 with all of the trimmings. There are two-tone upholstery designs, glass controls that feel and appear beautiful, backlit panels that’ll change to any colour your coronary heart needs and never a single ill-fitting piece of plastic in sight. For as polarizing because the 7’s exterior is, the cabin is downright lovely. And cozy. And so, so, so quiet – until you crank the bangin’ Bowers & Wilkins stereo.
The M70 arrives with a brand new little bit of cabin tech that’ll make its option to different BMW fashions by an over-the-air replace: iDrive 8.5. Additionally launching within the 2024 5 Collection and i5, iDrive 8.5 makes use of the identical fundamental software program as iDrive 8.0, however a number of little UX tweaks make the system extra intuitive to make use of – particularly for the primary time. The house display screen overlays often used widgets over an enormous map, and a row of controls alongside the underside of the show will take you to main pages like navigation, media, local weather controls, and so on. Is the primary iDrive menu nonetheless a haphazard mess of small icons? Sure. Do Apple CarPlay and Android Auto join wirelessly so you’ll be able to neglect your iDrive troubles? Additionally sure. Thank goodness.
One giant, curved show homes the 12.3-inch gauge cluster and 14.9-inch multimedia touchscreen, and it’s stuffed with trick options like augmented actuality navigation overlays and reconfigurable themes primarily based on totally different “moods” (sure, that’s what they’re referred to as). BMW’s ever-helpful AI assistant is at your beck and name, too. Simply say “Hey, BMW,” and it’ll get up to deal with your laziest of requests, as a result of why merely press the one-touch, auto-down window button when you’ll be able to say, “Hey, BMW, roll down the driving force’s window?” Assuming the AI understands you the primary time, natch.
Sure, the i7 M70’s story is similar because the i7 xDrive60’s. “However, grasp on, buddy,” you may assume. “You stated 99% of all conditions. What concerning the remaining 1%?”
OK, positive, on a winding street – say, alongside the Portuguese coast – the i7 M70 is a extra vigorous dance companion than the xDrive60. The steering is a bit heavier, the energetic anti-roll tech quells physique motions and the additional enhance in energy offers you extra authority when hustling out of corners. The Hans Zimmer-orchestrated soundtrack provides up sportier, extra M-like sounds, too. It’s sufficient to make this 5,929-pound porker genuinely entertaining, however hardly thrilling. You may flip up the wick on a 7 Collection solely a lot earlier than it goes towards this flagship’s core mission.
Is that this the kind of situation a automotive just like the i7 will discover itself in on the common? Not going. And even when it does, is the delta between the M70 and xDrive60 so nice that it radically modifications the expertise? No. The i7 M70 prices $169,495 (together with $995 for vacation spot). The i7 xDrive60 is $125,195. For those who merely should have the very best quantity and the letter “M” to impress the neighbors, the M70 received’t disappoint. However 99% of the time, I’m keen to wager the i7 xDrive60 will do exactly superb.