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2016 BMW 7 Series Tech Includes Air Suspension, Gesture Recognition and Self Parking

As we said in the past, the focus when developing the new 7 Series has been on the technology it will bring forwards. That has been the case for all of the car’s predecessors and BMW definitely wasn’t going to change its ways for the G11 iteration.
BMW presents an initial wave of selected technology innovations spawned by the development of the next-generation BMW 7 Series model range 78 photos
Photo: bmw
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Before we get to learn all the details about it though, the Germans decided to offer us a glimpse into the tech that is going to be offered on it. Therefore, they hosted an event in Miramas that showcased the main pieces of tech that will be blowing us away once the car reaches our fingertips.

As a matter of fact, one of the biggest innovations that will be included here, doesn’t require that part of our body. We’re talking about the gesture control feature. Using a 3D sensor located in the roof, close to the rearview mirror, the car can recognize gestures made with our hands within a designated area.

Using those gestures allows you to keep your eyes on the road while also performing various tasks such as adjusting the sound system volume or answering a phone. Sure, the steering wheel mounted buttons can help out in this regard as well, but this makes things a lot easier. On top of that, iDrive will now also offer touch-sensitive displays. That’s not the best of news considering that bumpy roads can easily rain on your parade but, BMW is also keeping the good old fashion means of using iDrive via buttons.

Another big tech breakthrough is the BMW Display Key. As the name suggests, it will resemble the i8 key fob and it will have valuable info displayed on it. That’s just the tip of the iceberg though. Using it, the car can park itself and get itself out of the parking lot without a human behind the wheel.

According to BMW, this will be the first production car to offer such a system and it’s supposed to help out when parking spaces are tight. Of course, more advanced parking assistant features will also be included.

The chassis and driving experience were carefully thought out as well. BMW is now bringing out self-leveling two-axle air suspension that can be adjusted according to your needs with the standard Dynamic Damper Control feature. On top of that, electromechanical stabilizers will be used as well for less body roll.

The gearbox was revised and now has parts that have less friction than ever. What’s more, the transmission now uses GPS data and uses the optimum gear when driving around town or out of it for the lowest fuel consumption ever.

CFRP will be used throughout the car, as we told you more than once before. Borrowing knowledge from the i sub-brand, the 7 Series will have a cockpit made out of a combination of lightweight materials including carbon fiber. The weight difference compared to previous models will go up to 130 kg (286 lbs) and unsprung masses will be reduced by 15 percent.

Other neat new tricks include the new 6-cylinder 3-liter engine part of the B family, the Adaptive driving mode (adjusts the car’s setup automatically) and the new Driving Assistant that can drive the car autonomously at speeds up to 210 km/h (130 mph).

Unfortunately, the pics offered by BMW show the car wearing a lot of camo, but we can still appreciate the underpinnings and the effort engineers put into making the new flagship lighter. With this reveal, we can expect the Germans to tell us all about their new car in a matter of weeks.
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