Photo: BMW / edited
Once again, BMW has been let down by one of its suppliers. Valeo is tasked with producing the windshield wiper system for the 2023 model year 7 Series, yet certain assemblies don't meet the automaker's specs due to an unauthorized change in the material property of the wiper lever.
Because of said material property change, the connection between the wiper lever and knurled wiper motor axle will loosen over time. Ultimately, the windshield wipers will stop working in certain loading conditions due to the loosening connection.
The Munich-based automaker says the system is compromised in heavy loading conditions (think wet snow) due to increased resistance. Dealers have been instructed to inspect and – if necessary – replace the entire assembly. The suspect windshield wiper system bears part number 5A7F143, the same as the replacement system because this is a manufacturing error attributed to Valeo, not a design error on BMW's part.
Owners will be informed via first-class mail no later than November 20. A grand total of 3,820 vehicles produced for the US market are believed to feature iffy windshield wiper levers, beginning with 251 examples of the i7 xDrive60.
The suspect production window ranges between October 13, 2022 and January 26, 2023. In addition to the i7 xDrive60, the 760i xDrive and 740i are called back as well. The latter is the most affordable spec available in the United States market, for it starts at $96,400 with rear-wheel drive and $99,400 with all-wheel drive. The 760i xDrive costs $121,300.
Stepping up to the i7 means $105,700 for the eDrive50 and $124,400 for the xDrive60. Higher still, the M70 kicks off at $168,500 (excluding destination charge). Then again, the i7 M70 is the most powerful and torquiest 7 Series in production today. Its range, however, isn't really impressive.
Slotted between the internal combustion-engined 7er and zero-emission i7, the 750e xDrive is a plug-in hybrid with turbocharged inline-six muscle. Rated at 36 miles (58 kilometers) of electric range, said plug-in hybrid carries a sticker price of $107k.
Advertised with 449 horsepower on deck and 4.6 seconds from zero to 60 miles per hour (97 kilometers per hour), the 750e xDrive isn't as punchy as the V8-powered 760i xDrive (536 horsepower and 4.1 seconds). The i7 eDrive50 also packs 449 ponies, but the real star here is – of course – the M70 version.
650 horsepower on full song and 3.5 seconds to 60 are pretty good numbers, especially when you remember that a full-size luxury sedan with all-electric propulsion is on the heavy side of automobiles. BMW claims 6,191 pounds, meaning 2,808 kilograms in the metric system. Approximately 52 percent of that curb weight hangs over the rear axle.
Codenamed G70, the seventh-generation 7 Series for North America comes from the Dingolfing assembly plant in Germany. The easiest way of telling if your German car was made in Germany is to check the 17-character VIN. If the vehicle identification number begins with W (West Germany), then it's German.
The Munich-based automaker says the system is compromised in heavy loading conditions (think wet snow) due to increased resistance. Dealers have been instructed to inspect and – if necessary – replace the entire assembly. The suspect windshield wiper system bears part number 5A7F143, the same as the replacement system because this is a manufacturing error attributed to Valeo, not a design error on BMW's part.
Owners will be informed via first-class mail no later than November 20. A grand total of 3,820 vehicles produced for the US market are believed to feature iffy windshield wiper levers, beginning with 251 examples of the i7 xDrive60.
The suspect production window ranges between October 13, 2022 and January 26, 2023. In addition to the i7 xDrive60, the 760i xDrive and 740i are called back as well. The latter is the most affordable spec available in the United States market, for it starts at $96,400 with rear-wheel drive and $99,400 with all-wheel drive. The 760i xDrive costs $121,300.
Stepping up to the i7 means $105,700 for the eDrive50 and $124,400 for the xDrive60. Higher still, the M70 kicks off at $168,500 (excluding destination charge). Then again, the i7 M70 is the most powerful and torquiest 7 Series in production today. Its range, however, isn't really impressive.
Slotted between the internal combustion-engined 7er and zero-emission i7, the 750e xDrive is a plug-in hybrid with turbocharged inline-six muscle. Rated at 36 miles (58 kilometers) of electric range, said plug-in hybrid carries a sticker price of $107k.
Advertised with 449 horsepower on deck and 4.6 seconds from zero to 60 miles per hour (97 kilometers per hour), the 750e xDrive isn't as punchy as the V8-powered 760i xDrive (536 horsepower and 4.1 seconds). The i7 eDrive50 also packs 449 ponies, but the real star here is – of course – the M70 version.
650 horsepower on full song and 3.5 seconds to 60 are pretty good numbers, especially when you remember that a full-size luxury sedan with all-electric propulsion is on the heavy side of automobiles. BMW claims 6,191 pounds, meaning 2,808 kilograms in the metric system. Approximately 52 percent of that curb weight hangs over the rear axle.
Codenamed G70, the seventh-generation 7 Series for North America comes from the Dingolfing assembly plant in Germany. The easiest way of telling if your German car was made in Germany is to check the 17-character VIN. If the vehicle identification number begins with W (West Germany), then it's German.
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