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High, mighty and opulent: Behold the new BMW X7

LifestyleHigh, mighty and opulent: Behold the new BMW X7

The X range of SUVs from BMW has a new flagship. The first ever X7 saw its world premiere last year and now the Sports activity vehicle, as its maker likes to call it, has made its way to the Indian market. Till now the X range began with the X1 and ended with the X6. But the X7 beats them all when it comes to dimensions and the German car maker is targeting the bestselling GLS from its traditional rival Mercedes-Benz with this new car.

Looks & Design

The BMW X7 is so big that even the exceptionally large kidney grille that looks a little out of proportion on the 7 series facelift looks absolutely perfect here. The car is bigger when compared to the Mercedes GLS and the Audi Q7. It gets really long doors, large windows and elongated roofline, all contributing to an imposing silhouette. Along with all that opulence is a lot of style which includes BMW laser light technology with blue X-shaped elements. The slim LED lights, horizontal lines and a two-section split tailgate along with many chrome elements add to the luxurious elegance. If you’re looking for distinctive visual proclamation it will be very difficult to look beyond the new X7.

The car is being offered in 6- and 7-seat options, with the middle row available with captain seats on the former.

Interior

All the big dimensions result in a cabin that is very spacious. The driver orientation on the cockpit is there for everyone to see, probably the most obvious in the X7 owing to extent of angle. The car is being offered in 6 and 7 seat options with the middle row coming with captain seats on the former. And we bet you haven’t really heard of five-zone control in passenger cars; well the X7 can boast of that. Just like the new 7 series, even the X7 gets the large sky lounge panoramic glass sunroof that extends all the way till the third row. ‘Crafted Clarity’ is a highlight which is a host of operational features crafted in exquisite glass that embellish the insert of the gear selector, the iDrive control wheel, the audio control button and the start/stop button.

As we’ve seen in recent higher segment cars from BMW, even this flagship gets gesture control, display key, wireless charging and wireless Apple CarPlay. The rear-seat entertainment professional allows users to access the entertainment, navigation from the rear seats. Along with two 10.2 inch full-HD displays screen with touch functionality integrated with a Blu-ray player the cabin gets a Harman Kardon surround sound system with 16 speakers. Folding down the second and third row seats can increase storage capacity from 326 litre up to 2,120 litres. That gives you an idea of overall space in the X7.

Engines

The X7 comes in both petrol & diesel engine options. The 3.0 litre 6-cylinder petrol engine of the xDrive40i produces an output of 340 hp and maximum torque of 450 Nm at 1,500-5,200 rpm. The car accelerates from 0-100 kmph in just 6.1 seconds. The 3.0 litre 6-cylinder diesel of the xDrive30d produces 265 hp and 620 Nm at 1,500 – 2,500 rpm. This one does a 0-100 kmph slightly slower 7 seconds. The engines are mated to an 8-speed automatic transmission and the car also gets auto start-stop, ECO PRO mode, brake-energy regeneration amongst other technologies. In the xDrive system electronically controlled automatic differential brakes/locks, extended dynamic traction control, hill start assist and hill descent control add great deal of adventure. A touch of button automatically adjusts the height of the car to suit any given driving situation owing to the Adaptive 2-Axle Air Suspension.

Safety

A car of this size can do with driver assistance systems and that is what the X7 gets. While this one misses out on remote control parking like the 7 series, the parking assistant plus with surround view camera makes parking in tight spots easier by taking over acceleration, braking as well as steering. The reversing assistant keeps a record of the last 50 metres driven and assists by taking over the steering. The SUV also gets 6 airbags, attentiveness assistance, dynamic stability control including cornering brake control, side-impact protection and electronic vehicle immobiliser and crash sensor.

Prices

The first-ever BMW X7 is available in X7 xDrive30d Design Pure Excellence Signature variant (diesel) which is locally produced. The X7 xDrive40i (petrol) is available as a completely built-up unit (CBU). The ex-showroom prices for both are the same at Rs 98.9 lakh.

Shams Naqvi is an anchor/producer for the News X motor show Living Cars

 

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