BMW i7 review: Luxury electric saloon with class-leading range

BMW’s bold and commanding i7 introduces electric power to the 7 Series saloon with supreme comfort, class-leading refinement and performance to perfectly match the bold and dynamic styling.

With a range of up to 388 miles, the i7 is a genuine long-distance cruiser. The acceleration is super smooth and super-fast, thanks to its twin electric motors that serve up a combined 536bhp.

And that’s what makes us question just how much owners will actually use. Yes, we like powered, heated seats and voice assist to help us get through the day, but a digital art mode that changes all the visual displays, while a ‘relax’ setting closes the sunroof and starts the seat massaging function?

However, this is billed as a limousine and some back-seat dignitaries may demand all the luxurious touches imaginable. This car has them in spades.

I covered more than 375 miles in the BMW i7 xDrive60 M Sport on a range of roads and, despite feeling a little oversized on narrower lanes, it coped beautifully with anything in its path. In addition, topping up from a home charger kept the day-to-day running costs down.

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Independent rating: 9/10

The BMW i7 xDrive features a 102kWh battery with two motors, one on each axle, for all-wheel drive. With 536bhp and 745Nm of torque, it can reach 62mph from a standing start in 4.7 seconds and can power on to an electronically-limited 150mph. The driving range of 388 miles between charges impresses, although there is little chance you will see anything close to that figure unless driving with immense restraint.

The acceleration through the two-stage single-speed automatic transmission is super smooth and super-fast with a number of drive modes to add extra driver engagement. And just in case you need added excitement, a Boost button primes the i7 for a burst of full-on power.

Despite its bulk, it is both grounded and confident through tight bends and a very comfortable motorway cruiser with outstanding levels of refinement. We did find ourselves breathing in quite sharply on narrower roads as the i7 is a wide car at 1.95 metres across.

Charging the BMW i7 takes 34 minutes to achieve a 10 to 80 per cent boost via a 195kW fast-charger, but using a standard home charger is fine too and more economical. For example, a 10 to 100 per cent charge takes 9.5 hours via an 11kW wallbox. It’s worth checking with your electricity supplier too as many offer cheaper tariffs for overnight usage.

It’s difficult to know where to start with the i7’s interior because the back of the car is as sumptuous and lavish as the front. If you’re a high-end executive that needs to be chauffeured around, this could be an ideal vehicle with large lounge seats that can be reclined. The one behind the front passenger can even fold down to a bed and they have cushion-like headrests. There are individual infotainment screens and there is an optional 31.0-inch screen that folds down from the sunroof for a mobile movie experience.

Up front, the comfort levels are just as impressive with woven textiles, leather or vegan upholstery, top quality wooden fixtures, plus decorative chrome and carbon-effect trimmings. It all looks absolutely gorgeous.

The boot can accommodate 500 litres of luggage and there is additional space beneath the floor to store charging cables. But this is a saloon so the boot opening is not as large or practical as a hatchback. Elsewhere there is a well-sized glovebox, deep door bins, a central cubby, seat back pockets, front and rear cup holders and numerous charging ports.

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The main focal point as soon as you enter the BMW i7 is a large curved digital display screen stretching two-thirds of the dashboard, which runs on BMW’s latest eighth generation iDrive software.

This houses the 14.9-inch infotainment system and the 12.3-inch driver information display. The graphics are pin-sharp and it’s very fast and intuitive to operate. It’s nice to see a manufacturer retaining some physical controls too. For instance, the many infotainment icons can be navigated via a rotary controller or even the voice-activated assistant.

Creature comforts, as you would expect, are numerous with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone mirroring, sat nav, a superb Bowers & Wilkins surround sound system and plenty more besides.

Initially it can be a little overwhelming and quite of a sensory overload, but you soon discover what functions are useful and which areas to avoid. For example, there are mood-themed modes with music piped into the cabin that was developed by Hans Zimmer. These are a step too far in our opinion and a novelty that quickly wears thin.

The BMW i7 is not cheap with the entry-level model costing £101,735. Move up to the range-topping i7 M70 xDrive and you are looking at second mortgage-like costs equivalent to £168,730. And that is before any optional extras are factored in.

Our test car, the i7 xDrive60 M Sport, was priced at £118,470 but the options topped the scales at £34,000. The biggest of these was a £28k Ultimate Pack that added active steering, a sky lounge panoramic roof, a Bowers & Wilkins diamond surround sound system and lots more besides.

Day-to-day running costs can be kept low if the majority of charging is completed at home just in case any owners are watching their pennies.

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On a 195kW fast charger, you can top up from 10 to 80 per cent in 34 minutes.

With a starting price that tops the £100k mark, the BMW i7 is a premium car with a premium price-tag. You do get an incredible amount of tech with the car, but we are not sure just how much of it will ever be used.

The BMW i7 comes with a standard three-year, unlimited mileage warranty, which extends to eight years for the battery.

Ever since BMW designers decided to give the front end of their vehicles a make-over with the largest grille imaginable, it has divided opinion. If you can get beyond that, and we can, then the i7 is a powerful limousine-styled car that is packed to bursting with technology. It is so good to drive, it could prompt a career change to chauffeuring.