Facelifted BMW X7 Gains Overtaking Prestige
Giant BMW SUV gets a mean new look, cleaner power & tech improvements.
BMW has treated its SUV flagship to an extreme renovation that appears to usher in a new design language for the Bavarian carmaker. X7 has come under the knife three years into its lifecycle. The changes go well beyond the usual l headlamp and and grille nip and tuck as the big SUV appears to preview design details of the forthcoming all-new 7 Series while also setting itself apart from kid brother X5.
X7 Brings a Larger Degree of Overtaking Prestige
The new X7 gets “squeezed” daytime running lights separated from the daytime running light and indicator units grouped above in a somber look, perhaps reminiscent of some French, Italian and Koran solutions of late. The adaptive matrix LED main headlights grouped in a separate housing below, are hardly visible during the day. BMW reckons this new face ensures a larger degree of ‘overtaking prestige’.
Those re-imagined headlights come in tandem with sharper edges and smaller bumper grills for a less jagged, perhaps more tech look. The good old BMW kidney grille appears to lose its 3D look for a blackened new seven strut solution that now gets optional ‘Iconic Glow’ LED lighting. Rear end modifications are limited to new taillight treatment and more visual underride protection.
High Tech Cabin Advances Too
The X7 has not escaped the tech scalpel either. The most striking innovation is a new large 14.9-inch curved diagonal central infotainment display. In tandem with fully digital low-glare 12.3-inch instruments in a self-contained unit. All that is run by BMW’s latest OS 8 operating system. The old automatic shifter is also replaced by a small rocker switch flanked by rotary pushbutton iDrive controller. Extended standard features now also stretch to comfort access, heated comfort front seats in and a panoramic glass roof
X7 Driver Assistance systems include front collision warning with a hazard detection system to detect if cyclists and pedestrians approach parallel to the road. When turning left, the system recognizes any oncoming traffic and can also prevent turning if there is a risk of a collision by braking. The optional Driving Assistant Professional has also been expanded with traffic light recognition and a motorway merging assistant.
Electric Shove Adds X7 Performance
All three X7 re-launch engines feature mild hybrid technology thanks to its new new eight-speed Steptronic transmission. It gains an integrated electric motor to boost propulsion by as much as 150 lb.-ft torque and 15 HP. That also give X7 the ability to drive short distances under purely electric power. That is in addition to the car’s regular combustion engines, currently a choice of two three-lie straight sixes in the X7 xDrive40i and xDrive40d. And the 4.4-liter biturbo V8 M60i
The turbo petrol xDrive40i six gains 47 horsepower. To now muster a hearty 380 hp, while twist is up 70 Nm higher at 383 lb.-ft. So, zero-sixty time drops by 0.5 to 5.7 seconds. The 352 HP turbodiesel xDrive40d now rushes to 60 mph in 6 seconds. The 530 HP 553 lb.-ft X7 M60i rushes to 100 in 4.7 seconds. Expect X7 to go on sale in the third quarter of 2022.
Photos: BMW