It is no secret that BMW is working on an all-electric flagship sedan, which is dubbed i7. Some refer to it as the electric 7 Series, but names are not that important right now. What is significant and interesting is the fact that a prototype has been spotted during a comparison with three other EVs.
The prototype that was spotted by our spy photographers was driving outside BMW's technical center in Munich, Germany. While this may appear to be an odd coincidence, we will have you know that all four vehicles have passed through the same place twice. These tests are often done in the automotive industry, so nobody should be surprised that they happen.
It is critical to note that usually, comparison tests like these are performed far from the eyes of the public. There are several types of tests like these that vehicle manufacturers employ, and they repeat them or even change the benchmarks over the course of a vehicle's development process.
However, it is fascinating to observe the fleet of test vehicles, out of which the Mercedes EQS is the only comparable vehicle to the 2023 BMW i7. The Tesla Model Y is shorter and smaller overall, and it is significantly cheaper than we expect the i7 to be.
As for the fourth vehicle in the group, the Xpeng P7, it is also not a competitor for the upcoming BMW i7. On the other hand, it does come with an 80.9 kWh battery that promises a range that can go up to 706 kilometers in the NEDC cycle, which is no longer used in Europe.
The Chinese company also announced an SAE Level 3 autonomous driving system for the Xpeng P7, which could be one of the elements that the German marque is comparing to its in-house systems. The P7's size is comparable to the Tesla Model 3's, so nobody in the real world would consider this to be a competitor for the 2023 BMW i7.
It is critical to note that usually, comparison tests like these are performed far from the eyes of the public. There are several types of tests like these that vehicle manufacturers employ, and they repeat them or even change the benchmarks over the course of a vehicle's development process.
However, it is fascinating to observe the fleet of test vehicles, out of which the Mercedes EQS is the only comparable vehicle to the 2023 BMW i7. The Tesla Model Y is shorter and smaller overall, and it is significantly cheaper than we expect the i7 to be.
As for the fourth vehicle in the group, the Xpeng P7, it is also not a competitor for the upcoming BMW i7. On the other hand, it does come with an 80.9 kWh battery that promises a range that can go up to 706 kilometers in the NEDC cycle, which is no longer used in Europe.
The Chinese company also announced an SAE Level 3 autonomous driving system for the Xpeng P7, which could be one of the elements that the German marque is comparing to its in-house systems. The P7's size is comparable to the Tesla Model 3's, so nobody in the real world would consider this to be a competitor for the 2023 BMW i7.