BMW is updating its flagship 7-Series limousine with a mid-life facelift for the 2013 model year, four years after its market debut. At a glance, the big limo’s upgrades include updated styling, revised, as well as new petrol and diesel engines, a new eight-speed automatic transmission, together with new comfort, convenience and driving assistance features.
On the outside, the most evident change concerns the new LED headlamps with corona rings, which are accompanied by the modified grille with nine slats instead of the previous 12, a revised front bumper, new indicators under the mirrors and a thin chrome strip connecting the two slim reflectors in the rear apron.
Inside, the 2013 BMW 7 Series brings newly designed leather front seats, a new 1 200-watt Bang & Olufsen surround-sound system and an optional rear seat entertainment package, with a new 9.2-inch monitor. Among the new technologies featured in the 2013 7 Series is a new Driving Dynamics Control system, allowing the personalisation of a number of driving systems that include throttle and engine response, power steering characteristics, stability control thresholds, transmission and damper settings and more.
This system also offers five presets, controlling not only driving factors but also, in the case of the Eco Pro option, a number of interior features. With Eco Pro mode selected, the system will optimise heating and air-conditioning, heated seats and exterior mirror heating with a focus on efficiency and fuel savings. BMW reckons that, when paired with efficient driving, fuel savings of around 20 percent can be achieved. The Eco Pro setting also offers a coasting feature, decoupling the engine and transmission when coasting at speeds between 100 and 160 km/h. In the ActiveHybrid 7, that mode also disconnects petrol supply.
A new electronically-controlled Dynamic Damper System is also featured across the range, delivering individual adjustment of each shock absorber, depending on the road conditions and driving style.
The navigation system has also been upgraded, offering sharper graphics and 3D elements, along with an enhanced voice recognition system with email and SMS dictation.
The revised international BMW 7-Series line-up includes four petrol engines, three diesels and a second-generation hybrid model, the ActiveHybrid 7, which is available in right-hand-drive for the first time. All models are now teamed with an eight-speed automatic transmission, enhancing fuel efficiency and smoothness.
The entry-level 190 kW /310 Nm 3.0-litre, inline-six, BMW 730i is 13 percent more fuel efficient than before, using 8.6 L/100km and emitting 199 g/km of CO2. Despite being more powerful, the 235 kW / 450 Nm turbocharged version of the same 3.0-litre, sees the BMW 740i be even more efficient, using just 7.9 L/100km on the combined cycle, down from 9.9 L/100km.
The new BMW 750i benefits from an upgraded engine that now produces 330 kW of power and 650 Nm of torque (up 30 kW / 50 Nm). The twin-turbocharged 4.4-litre V8 now sprints from 0 – 100 km/h in 4.8 seconds – four-tenths quicker than before – yet matches the fuel consumption of the 730i at 8.6 L/100km.
The range-topping BMW 760i carries over its 400 kW / 750 Nm twin-turbocharged, aluminium, V12 engine and its 4.6-second 0 – 100 km/h sprint time, while fuel consumption falls marginally to 12.8 L/100km.
The engineers have squeezed an extra 10 kW / 20 Nm from the entry-level BMW 730d’s 3.0-litre diesel powerplant, which now produces 190 kW and 560 Nm, yet uses just 5.6 L/100km on average, down from 7.2 L/100km. Likewise, the BMW 740d now generates 230 kW / 630 Nm and uses 5.7 L/100km, representing a 17 percent economy gain.
The new BMW 7 Series goes on sale in South Africa from September 2012 and will be available in the following derivatives: 730d, 740i, 750i, 750Li, 760Li and ActiveHybrid 7.
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