2016 BMW 7 Series Is Gimmicky, Says Consumer Reports

Right off the bat, we'll admit that some of the things being said aren't fair. The 7 Series is a flagship for BMW, so the company crammed in every feature it could think of, including ones that don't make sense yet.

A decade from now, gesture controls will be available from every regular car company. But in 2015, the fact that you can wave at the 7er's screen seems stupid when there are physical buttons on the steering wheel. It's just like when people criticized cruise control or attention assist, saying that it was only for people who didn't know how to drive.

Consumer Reports admits that the carbon bodyshell used by the 2016 BMW 7 Series makes it feel lighter and nimbler on the road. The 750i model's twin-turbo V8 isn't something to write home about, but it delivers excellent performance.

Is it expensive? Yes, but we could argue that it's competitively priced as well. The 750i sedan starts at €94,400 while its Mercedes-Benz S550 competitor stickers for $96,600. In this market, that difference is negligible.

You have to remember that this is a quick drive, not a detailed analysis from Consumer Reports. The independent reviewers have become more subjective over the past two years. Nevertheless, they remain consistent when it comes to the price of optional features and how the dashboard works. A rise in popularity for Lexus models suggests car buyers are on the same page.

BMW is on a losing streak with Consumer Reports, after the all-new X1 took a pounding a week ago. The cheapest and smallest car sold by the company in America apparently doesn't ride as well as a Mercedes-Benz and lacks the features that come with the GLA-Class. So the 7 Series review is kind of the same thing happening at the top of the range.