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Strange BMW 7 Series Prototype Gets Caught on The Streets of Munich

BMW recently took the wraps of its first ever M-version of the 7 Series, in the shape of the 2016 BMW M760Li. While only an M-Performance variant and not a true M7, the sportiest 7 Series ever was likely built as a not-so-enthusiastic answer to the thousands of requests made by potential customers over the years.
2016 BMW 7 Series Prototype 17 photos
Photo: Stefan Burchila
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With 610 hp and 800 Nm (590 lb-ft) of torque on tap from a twin-turbocharged, 6.6-liter V12 mill, you could say that the M760Li packs more than a punch. It does that even though it's a bit down on power and torque compared to its main competitor, the 630 hp and 1,000 Nm (738 lb-ft) Mercedes-AMG S65.

The sportiest 7 Series does have the edge on its Stuttgart rival when it comes to performance, though. In fact, the xDrive all-wheel-drive system helps it disperse with the 0-62 mph (0-100 km/h) in just 3.7 seconds, over half a second faster than the rear-wheel-drive AMG model.

That makes the M760Li even faster than its other rival, the V8-powered Audi S8 Plus, so why would BMW need a fully fledged M7 since an M-Performance gets the job done with no issues? We don't have an answer to that question, but we do know that the Bavarians are currently testing a camouflaged 7 Series with an M body kit, large wheels and beefed up brakes. Thanks to one our readers, we managed to check out the car in traffic, on the streets of Munich.

If the M760Li was already shown moths ago, why would BMW still cover pre-production prototypes of the model? Could this be a genuine BMW M7 version? Too many questions and too little info available, but we have to keep in mind that even the M-Performance version appeared out of the blue, so an M7 isn't entirely out of the question.

That said, this prototype could also be an older-spec version, and BMW engineers simply couldn't be bothered to take off the camo. Maybe they haven't yet decided on the actual horsepower rating and are still running real-world tests to see if it's really as fast as the Alpina B7.
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About the author: Alex Oagana
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Alex handled his first real steering wheel at the age of five (on a field) and started practicing "Scandinavian Flicks" at 14 (on non-public gravel roads). Following his time at the University of Journalism, he landed his first real job at the local franchise of Top Gear magazine a few years before Mircea (Panait). Not long after, Alex entered the New Media realm with the autoevolution.com project.
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