BMW 740d xDrive Review

It’s 1977 and BMW wants to prove that a Bavarian Motor also Works fine under the hood of a large premium saloon. Long story short, the 7 series (E23), the carmaker’s flagship vehicle is born. The vehicle was packed with multiple cake icings and was only offered with straight six petrol units.

In 1986, while the Russians were busy with nuclear activity, the Germans were introducing the second generation of their big 7, codenamed E32. This was the first one to bring the vehicle to a status also seen today, introducing two V8 units, as well as a V12 powerplant. Diesel was still not an option. However, the comapny did introduce “L” versions, which represented long wheel base incarnations of the car.

The third incarnation of the 7 Series, the E38, landed in 1994. By the time, the vehicle was already famous for bringing driving dynamics to a whole new level for its segment. This was the first generation to also have a diesel child in its engine family. For some eyes, it remained the last “pure” 7 Series and you’ll see why below.

In 2002, BWM shook the automotive world with the fourth generation of the 7 Series, the E65. The vehicle had its special way of stirring controversy, literally inside and out. This was a car designed by Chris Bangle, bringing an abrupt change to the conservative styling BMW had accustomed people to. As for the “inside” part, the car introduced BMW’s iDrive, a system that used a single controller to play with most of its functions. It was an innovative solution, but its menus were complex, which brought a wave of criticism. The vehicle received an important facelift in 2006.

The fifth episode of the 7 Series (F01) saga was aired in 2009, bringing a modern, but not so controversial design, as well as an infinity of goodies - the trailer had come in 2007 as the CS Concept. By the time, the 7 Series had already achieved some sort of a cult status. The car had already become known as a gateway through which technical novelties have been introduced to the BMW range.

Last year, we got to play with the 740d, the beefiest of the two straight six diesel versions offered for this generation, which was brought to the market in September 2009. Back then, we test drove an example fitted with BMW’s Integral Active Steering, an impressive piece of engineering. However, we wanted to see what happens if you keep the same 306 hp & 600 Nm engine, but trade the four-wheel-steering for four-wheel-drive and add an Individual package. The answer lies in the chapters ahead.

Designing such a large vehicle is always a challenge, as this kind of cars is always predisposed to looking like a... boat, or whale, you name it. However, BMW has managed to perfectly conceal the 7 Series’ size, offering the car an athletic appearance. Take on a glimpse at the vehicle from the distance and you won’t see it as being that much different from a 3 Series.

We have to mention that some of the styling cues have been borrowed from the CS Concept, but, as it happens almost all the time, the end result has a much more reserved attitude.

There have been many voices who have criticized the design of the F01, saying that it looks to much like its predecessor. However, we beg to differ. The flame surfacing used on the E65 did have a certain “wow!” (good “wow!”, that is) potential, but it was all hidden behind an infinity of odd shapes. Fortunately, it looks like someone has carefully hand-picked all the wrong aspects and thrown them away, leaving the car with just the right curves and, of course, adding new elements.

The design is complex, yet simple and, just as important, complete, which means that, regardless of where you’re looking from, the front, the rear or the side, you’ll get the same impression.

The example we tested was the kind of guy that wears tailor-made Individual suits. Thus, the car was dressed in a Individual Citrine Black, a color that tells a thousand stories per sun ray and increases the vehicle’s sobriety even further, fitting it like a driving glove.

Its shoes were top notch too, as it talked to the road via a set of Individual rims, which came in a 20-inch size and used a design that inspired dynamism even when in standstill mode.

The 7 Series is not a car, it’s a promise: you are assured that you’ll receive the comfort of an armchair with the sensations given by strapping a pair of skis to it and taking it down a frozen mountain. So, let’s see, how are things in reality?

The driving position is definitely a good compromise between what someone with a heavy foot and somebody with a light attitude needs. You can easily adjust your seat in such a way that you feel relaxed, but still not disconnected from the car. Our test car used the optional comfort seats and these are the ones we’d recommend

However, things aren’t at “A+” level in the back. The room is enough to make your body feel comfortable, but you probably need the long wheelbase version to receive the impression of having your own palace. As for the seats, again, you will be relaxed, but it seems that it lacks that feeling of diving into a pillow. But wait, there is something you can do: order the individual rear seats.

Speaking of “individual”, we have to mention that the vehicle we tested had been gifted with a set of optional features that dramatically changes the feeling offered by the cabin. We are talking about features such as the Individual Composition (priced at around EUR11,500, in case you were wondering), Individual Alcantara headliner, Individual Satin Walnut Honey trimming, a leather finish for the dashboard, a leather-finished sport steering wheel, a ceramic trimming for the control buttons, a little detail that really impresses.

All these goodies make you feel like you’ve just bought a castle that had been decorated by a society of artist, really giving you special emotions everytime you climb aboard.

What would we throw right out the window? The wood finish on the steering wheel and the headliner handles.

We mustn’t leave the rear end behind, so we’ll also talk about the luggage space. This is generous, as expected, and can be easily accessed - especially in the case of our test car, which was fitted with the optional electric trunk operating system.

The traffic light turns green, but until you reach it, red becomes the new green. This story repeats itself a few times along your journey. In between these traffic lights, you have to change lanes more often that you blink in order to not be late for the event you’re attending. That’s it, the voice in the audio system let’s you know that you’ve reached your destination. But what does it know? for it, the ride ends here, but you can’t just leave the car in the middle of the street, you have to park it. Yes, the sensors help you, but it’s no easy task.

Considering that the aforementioned story is a typical urban one these days, the 7 Series doesn’t quite come with the right assets to make things right. We are talking about a length of 199.7 in (5072 mm) and a width of 74.9 in (1902 mm).

Prior to the marriage, its parents will promise you that it won’t ask for more than 9 liters of diesel for taking you on 100 km of urban roads (26 mpg), but when we put the ring on, with the crowded traffic as a witness, we discovered around 12 liters per 100 km (19.6 mpg). Considering the size and the firepower of the car, this is a good value.

The all-round visibility is decent, but you can’t really play with the car based on your “instinct”, so you’ll have to be a bit careful. The vehicle we tested was fitted with parking sensors, but we would’ve really appreciated if it had also had video help.

However, the car has its own special way of offering you a key to the city. The best part about driving the 7 Series inside a city is that you feel that you’ve never left home but somehow you’re traveling. The car manages to offer you the sensation that you’re in a fortress on wheels.

The colors used for the interior of our test car only made life more pleasant in the cabin, thus allowing us to forget all about the buzz outside. The 8-speed ZF automatic gearbox knows how to handle all kinds of situations and you can even play with the intelligent cruise control system, which knows how to handle stop&go traffic.

The 7 Series is an educated car, so it will try to fulfill any of your wishes, without even trying to give you any advice on where to take it in order to make the most out of its potential. However, do try to step outside the city’s borders and you’ll enter a whole new world. The vehicle manages to raise up to the “flagship BMW vehicle” standard, as using it for traveling between cities gives you the impression that distances are a bit shorter.

Out on the open road is also where you’ll be able to take advantage of the car’s adaptability, playing with its four mods moods.

Like we said in the tech side chapter, you can Choose between “Comfort”, “Normal”, “Sport” and “Sport Plus”. Even though there are differences between all four, most often we found ourselves either in the first or in the last.

Choose “Comfort” and you be able to lie on a magic carpet. Even without the help of pneumatic suspension, you’ll forget that you’re riding on 20-inch rims and all the roads will seem in good shape.

At the other end of the sensations’ scale, we find the “Sport Plus”. You could blindfold yourself, drive the car in this mode and know you’re in a BMW. The way in which the engine responds makes it pretty hard to believe it’s a diesel, but don’t become overconfident when overtaking however, remember that you’re not driving a Power War soldier.

Last time when we played with the 740d, it was fitted with the Integral Active Steering. For this test, we traded that for the xDrive (you can’t have both). On dry roads, the four-wheel version felt a little bit more determined to change direction, but in the wet the xDrive is just as much fun, but safer.

Even with all the electronic aids put off to sleep, it’s difficult to make the rear end step out in the dry. However, if you use the Sport or Sport Plus modes, you’ll be rewarded for everytime when you tackle a corner in “hurray!” style.

We’ve got a diesel under the hood, remember? So, has it fulfilled its efficiency promise? Yes: driving the car in a relaxed manner determined the trip computer to go as low as 7.4 liters per 100 km (31.8 mpg) while a meaner attitude made things climb to around 10 liters per 100 km (23.5 mpg).