Test drive BMW X7
The Germans will present a new large crossover only six months later, and we already know everything about it. The BMW X7 has three rows of seats, the most advanced safety systems, and is also as comfortable as the 7-Series sedan.
“You can't take pictures of the salon,” a BMW representative shook his head and asked me to remove the camera. Apparently, the Bavarians before the release of the X7 have not yet fully decided how the interior will look. The fluctuations are quite justified: this giant crossover looks too unusual in the model range of the Bavarian company. AvtoTachki became one of the first publications in the world to appear at a secret event in the vicinity of American Spartanburg.
BMW and Mercedes-Benz got a kind of exchange. In Stuttgart, the GLE Coupe was developed - its own version of the coupe-like X6. In Munich, they created the flagship X7 with an eye on the GLS.
“Our X-range has a lot of models, but lacked a luxury one, like the 7-Series sedan,” explained X7 project manager Dr. Jörg Bunda. And it was not supposed to be a lengthened X5, but a completely different car, with a different design and more comfortable.
The X7 concept impressed with the size of the nostrils: the production car will also have huge nostrils, no matter how they hide with camouflage. Big nostrils for a big car. From bow to stern, the X7 stretches 5105mm: slightly larger than the long version of the 7-Series sedan. Thus, it is longer than, for example, the Lexus LX and Mercedes-Benz GLS. The X7 is 1990 mm wide and is exactly 22 meters wide with 2-inch rims. Body height - 1796 mm.
The wheelbase of 3105 mm made it possible to easily accommodate three rows of seats. Trunk seats are also available for the X5, but they are cramped and therefore optional. For the X7, the third row is available as standard, and the high status of the rear passengers is indicated by a separate sunroof and a climate control panel. If you move the middle row sofa forward, then adults can stand in the gallery for a very long time. And if you fold the third row, the trunk volume grows from a modest 326 liters to 722 liters.
The seats in the second row are like in a limousine - it's not for nothing that BMW says that they have created an off-road version of the “seven”. Rear passengers have a separate climate unit, curtains and removable displays for the entertainment system. In addition to a solid sofa, you can order two separate armchairs, but there are electrical adjustments in both.
The interior is covered with camouflage, shooting inside is not allowed, but we managed to see something through rags. First, the new, even more angular BMW styling. Secondly, the redesigned center console: now the climate unit is at the top and united by a thick chrome frame with the center air ducts. The multimedia keys are below. The important buttons are now highlighted in chrome. By the way, the light control is also push-button. The display of the multimedia system has become larger and is now visually integrated with the virtual instrument cluster, almost like in a Mercedes. The instrument graphics are very unusual, angular, while the BMW dials are traditionally round.
Some cars are equipped with transparent levers made of Swarowski crystal and a faceted washer of the multimedia system and a start button for the motor. This option looks strange in a solid SUV. There are more buttons on the central tunnel, one button changes the height of the air suspension, the other switches off-road modes. With them, not only the nature of the engine, transmission and all-wheel drive changes, but also the ground clearance.
Air suspension is offered for the X7 in the basic version, and it is installed both at the rear and at the front. Together with adaptive dampers, it provides an impressive ride. But even in comfort mode and on 22 discs, the X7 drives like a real BMW. And all because active stabilizers are installed here. And on top of that, there is a fully steerable chassis that makes the car more agile.
Rear steer wheels reduce turning radius and reduce lateral loads on passengers when changing lanes at speed. This makes the X7 feel like a more compact car, although there is some synthetics in its character.
Without active anti-roll bars and a fully steerable chassis, the X7 heels and reluctantly takes corners - more American styling, but also more natural.
Initially, four engines will be offered for the X7: two in-line six-cylinder, a 3,0-liter inline gasoline "six" and a gasoline V8. Power - from 262 to 462 hp Meanwhile, the Germans are not yet talking about a car with a V12 engine and a hybrid.
The top diesel engine pleases with excellent traction, the gasoline "six" - instant responses to the "gas".
Of course, the pre-production prototypes are slightly different from each other, but already now we can say that the car has turned out. As for the feedback, we proposed to soundproof the wheel arches even better - for Russia, where they drive on spikes on asphalt, this is important. BMW promised to listen.
The new X7 is scheduled to be shown at the end of the year, possibly at the Los Angeles Auto Show. The American market, given the size of the new model, will be the main one for it, but Russia is also in the top five countries with a high demand for such cars. Our sales will start in 2019, that is, simultaneously with the world ones.
