Car UK May 2019

5 MILES

here’s just so much of it. It seems

to stretch on forever. To take

it all in you have to recalibrate

your peripheral vision, reset

your sense of scale. Yep, the

desertscape in rural California

is vast beyond comprehension,

and so is the X7’s grille.

BMW’s new flagship SUV wears the largest version of the

company’s trademark kidney grille ever applied to a production

car. There have been semi-sporty BMW SUVs (X5), there have

been coupes (X4/X6), there have been dull-but-worthy ones (X3)

• now there’s a Range Rover-esque luxury one, and it’s certainly
  keen to let you know it’s here.
  Available with the choice of six or seven seats, the 5.1m-long
  X7 starts from around £72k in the UK, but North America
  will be its biggest market. That’s also where it’s built – at the
  Spartanburg plant in South Carolina. This journey begins on
  the opposite coast in Palm Springs, east of LA, and will involve
  heading into the desert.
  When you first see the X7 in the metal its sheer heft and
  comprehensive chroming gel more fluidly than in photos. The
  interior is as agreeable as the exterior is polarising; it’s all about
  soft leather, crisp fit and finish, glossy trim and a full toy box.
  Wireless phone charging is standard, as is onboard Wi-Fi (with
  an excellent connection even in the back of beyond), heated and
  cooled cupholders are an option, there are five climate control
  zones, and just about everything that moves is motorised. No
  wonder it weighs more than 2300kg, when you have electric
  motors for six or seven seats, and for a split tailgate, and for a
  massive three-part sunroof.
  Whether you have two or three seats in the middle row,
  they can’t be folded manually, and nor can the two in the back.
  Instead they fold via switches at their side and in the boot. It’s a
  fiddly process that has us pining for a manual lever or two as we
  load our X7 up. But when the rearmost pair have dropped into
  the boot floor there’s a giant luggage area.
  Palm Springs is a genteel kind of place, where the pace
  of life is slow and the golf courses plentiful. The X7 feels at
  home here. The archetypal Palm Springs car is the classic
  Cadillac sedan; there are plenty of them tucked away among
  the manicured sprinkler-tended lawns and Art Deco houses.
  Grandiose and unashamedly built for comfort, the X7 feels like
  a spiritual successor to the Cadillacs that, prior to the SUV’s rise
  to power, used to symbolise US automotive luxury. Air springs
  on both axles are standard on the BMW, and it’s a cushy way to
  travel – mostly. This car rides on optional 22-inch wheels (20
  and 21s are also available), and although large bumps are ab-

sorbed, there’s an annoying low-level patter on smaller bumps

and surface joins. Gigantic blindspot aside (the standard-fit

warning monitor lamps in the mirrors really earn their keep),

it’s incredibly easy to manoeuvre for a car of this size, and to

park, thanks to the superb 360º camera system. But then this

is America, where the streets are wide, the lanes are many and

tight parking spaces are the exception rather than the rule.

We strike out of the Palm Springs oasis towards the desert

wilderness. This X7 is the 40i, the mainstream petrol option

starting at £74,155. A turbocharged 3.0-litre straight-six with

335bhp and 332lb ft, it’s a stalwart BMW motor, as found in

the 340i and the Z4 M40i (and its Toyota Supra sister car). The

difference is that in the 2320kg X7 the straight-six doesn’t feel

like it’s overflowing with power; no 155mph limiter required

here. The performance is quick enough without being outright ⊲

Plant the throttle and

you’ll hit 124mph in

7.9sec – and be in

jail shortly after

Passengers have

more fun than the

driver on some roads

Off-Road package

brings extra

modes: xSand,

xSnow, xGravel

and xRocks. Really

T

Chunky A-pillars limit

visibility, but the blindspots

over your shoulders are so

meaty you can lose an SUV

in them, let alone a golf cart

crewed by tanned retirees.

PICK-UP: 0 MILES

The X7’s key is as lavish as the car,

capable of raising and lowering the

suspension remotely and checking

how much fuel is left in the tank. It

c h a r g e s w i r e l e s s l y.

First drives 300-mile test

MAY 2019 | CARMAGAZINE.CO.UK 35