“Using our heavy Ram for light-
duty long-distance runs might seem
silly, but its 19-plus-mpg economy
assuages our guilt.” Frank MarkusService life: 4 mo/10,158 miles
Average Fuel Econ: 17.5 mpgAvg CO2 1.27 lb/mi Energy cons 210 kWh/100 mi
Unresolved problems None Maintenance cost $0
Normal wear cost $0 Base price $54,045 As tested $76,130
EPA City/Hwy/Comb2020 Ram 2500
THE X7 CARRIES AN ASSURED CONFIDENCE.
G
uffman has been stretching his
legs as staffers reluctant to fly
take to the highways. Chicagoan
Greg Fink made a run to visit his parents in
Florida, and I made a brother-in-law run
to Greenville, South Carolina. It’s fun to
watch the predicted range soar early in a
road trip. On that Greenville jaunt, an initial
prediction of 425 miles grew to 437 over
the first 60 miles before finally beginning
to count down what ended up being more
than 500 total tank miles.
Repeatedly accelerating four tons
means in-town tankfuls average less than
15 mpg. But simply maintaining momentum
at 80 mph brings the average up to the
mid-19s. It’s safe to assume this 32-gallon
tank can outlast most bladders.There’s also something uniquely luxu-
rious about traveling with a 74.7-cubic-
foot “trunk.” Travelers need never triage
their luggage. Might you like to have it
where we’re going? Then bring it along.
That said, this bed does no tricks. It’s
not composite, there’s no clever bed
extender, no cargo divider like you can get
with the RamBox, no hidden storage, no
12- or 110-volt power outlets, and it has
a conventional one-piece flop-down tail-
gate—albeit with remote release/locking
and a spring assist to raise it.
You do get four typical tie-down rings
low in the bed and four cleats up high, plus
the same stake pockets and indentations
for boards to bridge the wheelwells that
every pickup has had for decades.And the more mass, the merrier. Our
heavy Ram smothers most freeway expan-
sion joints and small bumps. But with rear
springs rated to support three tons, our
lightly loaded Ram’s ride became a bit
jarring over some battered urban freeways.
On my most recent trip, connecting two
iPhones to the Uconnect system proved
vexing, as the second kept trying to usurp
CarPlay control when we just wanted it to
play audio. Using A- and C-type cables
and plugging them both into either the
“1” or “2” jack sockets assigned CarPlay to
the first one plugged in and restricted the
second to charging and audio only.
I’m scheduled to drive some other Rams
soon, so next time I’ll weigh in on the bigger
screen, Ram’s “other” diesel, and more.MT GARAGE
L
et’s cut to the chase. Is the X7 good to drive? Of course, we’re
not expecting a seven-seat SUV that tips the scales on the
wrong side of 5,000 pounds to drive like an E30 M3. However,
it needs to be a cut above rivals from a dynamic point of view.
For me, at least. It might be the biggest BMW ever, but anything
wearing the kidney grilles (have you noticed them?) should feel as
rewarding for the driver as it does for the passengers.
The engine is small and efficient. It features a single twin-scroll
turbocharger and has many classic BMW attributes, but you’d think
the 3.0-liter straight-six could be easily overwhelmed by the X7’s
scale. Not entirely. It has an engineered precision that’s every bitAvg CO2 1.18 lb/mi Energy cons 211 kWh/100 mi
Unresolved problems None Maintenance cost $0
Normal wear $0 Base price $74,895 As tested $96,895
EPA Fuel Econ 20/25/22 mpg“An important question with any
BMW: Does the Ultimate Driving
Machine DNA shine through?”
Jethro BovingdonService life:
2 mo/2,806 mi • Avg Fuel Econ: 16.4 mpg2021 BMW X7
as characterful as a booming but slightly
lazy V-8 that you might otherwise find in an
entry-level SUV of this class.
OK, there isn’t the feel-good theater of a
V-8 on startup, nor does it have the deep,
cosseting noise of eight cylinders burbling
away in the background at highway speeds. However, with 330
lb-ft available from 1,500 rpm, it picks up the X7 relatively well. The
straight-six’s smooth, high-rev energy feels uniquely BMW.
It’s a trickier task to transpose the chassis feel, balance, and
natural agility of the BMWs we’ve driven and loved over the years
to a car built to this scale. Put simply, if you try to drive the X7 with
real enthusiasm, it starts to unravel. There’s understeer and plenty
of body roll, the brakes start to protest and get noisy, and you feel
every one of its 5,530 pounds. Its behavior is very much what you’d
expect of a hulking SUV. It just feels out of its comfort zone.
So you’re not going to head to the canyons in the X7 ... not
exactly a revelation. More important is how the X7 feels during
more representative driving. Here there’s much more to appreciate.
The ride is a little tough on the 22-inch wheels, but the payback is
a chassis that feels keen to change direction; good body control
and natural responses create an intuitive driving experience. It’s an
exaggeration to say the X7 “shrinks,” but it certainly carries its size
and weight with an assured confidence.
Overall, BMW’s biggest-ever model clearly focuses more on
opulence, convenience, and space than driving dynamics. And it
does those things brilliantly. We’ll have more about those topics
in our next update. My only wish: that it would do a little more
to identify itself as a BMW, which might
imbue it with more character and a sense of
occasion, too. No wonder BMW stuck such
a massive grille on the X7—wouldn’t want
customers to forget what they’re driving.
80 MOTORTREND.COM APRIL 2021