Car India – August 2019

s itgettingbetter?orDoyouFeel

thesame?Willit makeit easieronyounow?yougota

newoneagain.to borrowfromu2’s“one”seems

appropriate.luxurymustmoveyou,andinmoreways

thanone.andwiththenew 7

series,bMWseemtohavenot

righteda fewwrongs,butactually

betteredandevolvedwhatevercouldbe.

sparklingintheamberlightinginitsbasement

parkingslot,itseyeslitupastheDisplaykeycameinto

play.theall-new 7 seriesplug-inhybridpetrol-electric

luxuryofferingwasrightthereinfrontofme.several

reasons madeit a morethanexcitingpropositionforme

in the firstplace.Istronglybelieve thattheplug-in

hybridistheimmediatesolutiontoavoida bleakfuture

andthe“745” badging,never mindits“Le”suffix,meant

iwasabouttogetbehindthewheelofa badgelong-

awaitedandratheraspirationaltome.

the 745 le xDrive looks like a conventional luxury

saloon.nothingapartfromitsboot-lidbadgingtellsit

apartatstandstillfromitssiblings.it’swellover5.2

metreslong,nearlytwometreswide,andhasa 3.2-metre

wheelbase.the“laserlight”-enabledheadlamps,

activekidneygrilles,leDtail-lampclusters,and20-

inchalloywheelsgivenothingawayintermsof

conventionalevolution.there’smore,too.the“carbon

Core” constructionusescarbon-fibrebitsa lai8,

reducingvisualmasswhileaddingtostrengthand

structuralintegrity.it weighs2,085kg—andthat’swith

long-wheelbasechassis,a straight-sixengine,four-wheel

driveline,anelectricmotor,controlelectronics,anda

considerablylargebatterypack.

insidethecabinandunderneaththosefoldsofleather

andplushcarpetingarewherethebigchangesare—

evenmorethanintheexterior.theequipmentlistis

furtherupgradedand,whilethedriver’sseatisa great

placetobe,therearseat,particularlytheonebehindthe

frontpassengerseat,iswhereyoureallywanttobeon

anytripwhererelaxationandpeaceofmindaretop

I

http://www.carindia.in August 2019 carindia 75

BMW 745Le xDrive | First Drive