BMW’s 740i: The Ultimate Cosseting Machine

The BMW 7601 as tested was US$149,045, but that’s from a base of US$113,600, meaning there’s a big package of extras on the tester, including luxury front and rear merino leather seating with massage, automatic doors, crystal headlights, parking assistance, an alcantara headliner, and more—US$35,445 of add-ons. 

There’s no question the passengers in this car have a great experience, enough to satisfy any demanding buyer. There are first-world problems, like the rear seat not reclining when the front passenger seat is occupied. But still, many owners will end up driving their cars and the BMW satisfies in that regard as well. It’s powered by a 536-horsepower, 4.4-liter twin-turbo V-8 with a 48-volt mild-hybrid system, coupled to an eight-speed sport automatic transmission. The electric motor (coupled to a one-kilowatt-hour battery) adds 18 horsepower and an impressive 148 pound-feet of torque. The V-8 replaces the 600-horsepower 12-cylinder engine that was in previous generations of this car. 

This is by no means a hybrid along the lines of a Toyota Prius, but the V-8 system does improve fuel economy, from 19 miles per gallon combined on the older model to 21 on this one. The new 760i is 100 pounds heavier than the old one, but is still capable of reaching 60 miles per hour in four seconds.

The whole ambience of the car discourages unseemly displays of power, but overtaking is a dream on the highway. It’s a big car at 17.6 feet long, but it’s easier to maneuver in parking lots than you’d expect thanks to the standard rear-wheel steering. The car rides on air springs with adaptive shock absorbers that sense the road ahead, and it totally ignores rough pavement. Should you select sport mode, the shocks stiffen and the ride height drops.  

The car was equipped with BMW’s highway assistant (part of a US$2,100 package), which permits hand-free freeway travel at up to 80 mph. In line with updated systems from other automakers, it also has an automatic lane-changing feature. 

The BMW is Germanic handsome from every angle but the front, where the onlooker is confronted with a blacked-out version of the huge kidney grille first seen in the 4-Series. Here it’s integrated into air intakes below, giving the impression of an open-mouthed humpback whale feeding on krill. 

Aesthetics aside, the BMW is set up for ease of entry and exit, especially because the executive package includes automatic doors. A button push causes the doors to pop open—carefully. The doors have 12 ultrasound sensors that detect objects in the door’s path, and limit the travel if so.

The sense of luxury extends to the jeweled controls (shifter, iDrive controller, even the power seat knobs), mirrored by a matching lighted bar for the front passenger. The instrument cluster is a 12.3-inch screen that can dial in mood accents. That’s complemented by a 14.9-inch infotainment screen. Of course, there’s Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The cabin is ordinarily hushed, but not when Sonny Rollins is blasting forth through the Bowers & Wilkins. The wireless phone charging is helpful, and accommodates larger phones. The central storage bin is deep, and the trunk quite cavernous. 

The all-wheel-drive BMW proved a non-fatiguing companion on a long road trip. It would be ideal on the autobahns of Europe, racing across Germany and France to Cannes for the film festival, perhaps. On the way, movies can be previewed on the screen, which works in stretched or letterbox format and can tilt toward the passenger if there’s only one.