Hello, everyone!
Two days ago, Chen Ge experienced a new generation of BMW 7 series and recorded a small video for everyone. After the post, the comments section summed it up: the look needs a little time to accept.
But my ideas are not the same as everyone else's, and after seeing the new 7 Series, I really ignited some yearning: the subversive concept from the outside in, which gave it a lot of freshness.
It was a subversion, but such controversial subversion was no stranger to the 7 Series. In fact, as early as 20 years ago, the BMW 7 Series also experienced a huge controversial self-innovation. Subsequent history also proved that the result of the controversy was the birth of a generation of great 7 series, which opened up the glory of more than 20 years.
HISTORICAL REVIEW OF THE BMW 7 SERIES
The first three generations of the 7 series
Driver's car
In 1977, the BMW 7 Series was born. Compared to the huge and bloated competitors at the time, it was a large flagship sedan with a sporty tendency. The three generations of BMW 7 Series models starting from the original 7 Series all reflect a strong sporty temperament through flat, sharp lines.
The original BMW 7 Series
Even if it is built on the basis of the third generation of the 7 series, the standard Rolls-Royce, Bentley, and the extended flagship L7 for the super-rich, its exterior design is still full of performance.
BMW L7
This tendency to sportiness is also reflected in the interior, and since the original 7 series, the center console has adopted a design that is biased towards the driver.
The original BMW 7 Series
The second generation BMW 7 Series
The third generation BMW 7 Series
Although in terms of size and luxurious texture, these 7 Series are difficult to match the Mercedes-Benz S-Class at that time. However, starting from the second generation of the 7 series, the V12 version was pushed first, allowing BMW to occupy a leading position in performance. The flat, concise third-generation 7 series can be said to be the first stage of the history of the 7 series, and it is also in the 007 movie, through a classic chase scene, the excellent control is vividly reflected.
《007: Empire Tomorrow》
By the 1990s, however, the new Mercedes-Benz S-Class, code-named W140, had changed the standard for large sedans. Especially in the Asian market and the US market, consumers prefer large, luxurious luxury cars. Compared with control and movement, the market needs a luxurious BMW, and the BMW 7 series is at a disadvantage in such competition and needs to be changed.
The fourth generation BMW 7 Series
The first time to renovate
In 2001, the fourth generation of the 7 series was born. The genius designer Chris Bangor completely changed the face of the 7 Series. But at the time, public opinion thought it was a bloated, bulky, soulless 7 Series. In particular, the rear of the car, known as the "Bango Butt" (Bango Fat Buttocks), has become the object of verbal criticism.
The fourth generation BMW 7 Series
“Bango Butt”
In order to reflect luxury and comfort, this generation of 7 Series has significantly weakened the emphasis on the driver, the center console has been changed to a left-right symmetrical layout, while the iDrive system to enhance the sense of technology, large area of solid wood panels and other materials to enhance the luxurious atmosphere.
The fourth generation BMW 7 Series
Although there were many critics at the time, this generation of 7 Series became a classic model of a generation. It just so happened that the Mercedes-Benz S-Class at that time was also innovative and bold, and there were many complaints, and this generation of 7 Series changed the pattern of the previous S-Class with a substantial improvement. Since then, whether it is the fifth generation or the sixth generation of the BMW 7 Series. There are obvious shadows of the fourth generation 7 series. In the Chinese market, the sales of the 7 Series and the S-Class are on an equal footing, and in the past few years, they have even maintained a state of suppression of the S-class.
Fifth generation BMW 7 Series
Sixth generation BMW 7 Series
However, with the successful launch of mercedes-benz S-class W222 and Maybach S-class, the discourse power of the large luxury car market has returned to Mercedes-Benz. Another 20 years, and after the replacement of the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, it is facing great controversy, and the 7 Series has ushered in another subversion of itself. Will today's new 7 series also repeat the drama of nirvana in the controversy?
What kind of car is the new 7 Series?
Subversive appearance changes
The new 7 Series has undergone a subversive change in attitude. It adopts a towering front, a strong front face, and a very solemn and powerful side posture as a whole. The previous 7 series was too much emphasis on dynamics, less solemn. Because of this, whether you like the appearance or not, from the spy stage everyone recognizes that this generation of 7 series is very atmospheric.
In addition to the change of lines, this change also comes from the overall increase in appearance size. The new generation of the 7 Series will eliminate the standard axle version, and the length, wheelbase and width are much larger than the current long-axis models. The sense of volume is more reflected in the height, reaching 1548mm. Higher than mercedes-benz S-class, Audi A8, and more close to Rolls-Royce Gust.
Such a huge volume, in addition to design considerations, also has functional considerations. Functionality here is not for the sake of space, but for the sake of electricity. The new 7 Series, the focus is actually on the pure electric i7. Electrification requires more space to store batteries, especially for huge flagship cars, and more than enough to require battery packs with huge capacity.
The design controversy is mainly reflected in the details, especially the design of the split headlights. The split headlights are embedded in crystals, and the two daytime lights are equipped with a total of 8 Swarovski crystals. The design that creates a brilliant flow of light can be regarded as bmw's first.
There is also a door "hole", which adopts a concave hidden type and is equipped with an electric opening and closing function. However, unlike the widely complained about Krypton 001, the doors of the new 7 Series can freely choose electric and manual opening and closing, and the manual mode is very smooth, and there will be no blocking feeling of the Krypton 001.
For the controversy over appearance, of course, it can be said that "each has its own good", but for brands such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz, it is more important to be innovative than to cater to the public. Breaking through the mainstream aesthetic is also the value of this type of luxury brand that is different from other brands. Perhaps the exterior design of the new generation of the 7 Series is not mature enough, but it will also be a milestone in BMW's history, leading the development of future generations of models.
The interior is equally subversive
In fact, compared with the appearance, the change of the interior is the most subversive place. In the past, the large-area curves and curved surfaces used by luxury cars to reflect the complexity of the process have disappeared. In its place is a very simple and straight design. Such a design, we retain our view, compared to the past is too easy to be imitated, and even has collided with the low-end Mondeo. Of course, the sense of value of this new interior is reflected in the details and in the innovation of functions.
If the crystal effect of the daytime lights outside the car is only embellishment, then the new 7 series cockpit is almost completely dominated by crystal elements, and under the central control screen, there is an atmosphere light strip that runs through the center console and continues to the door interior panels on both sides, presenting a dazzling crystal cutting effect.
As for the crystal element, it can be seen everywhere in the control knob, start-stop button, seat adjustment key and so on. At the level of luxury and technology, the new 7 Series is very well taken care of for the front row drivers and passengers, but as a D-class large luxury car, it does not favor the rear row.
The 31-inch 8K display on the roof of the car, everyone must have seen the effect. It is worth mentioning that this super large screen can not only be cast from mobile phones, but cooperates with video platforms such as iQiyi and Tencent, and integrates Huawei's interactive system, which can also be seen from this that BMW has indeed made a lot of efforts for the Chinese market in the new generation of 7 series.
In terms of comfort, the new 7 series adopts the innovative Merino leather + cashmere combination, and the rear row adopts the design of seat cushion and leg rest integration, the visual effect is very good, and the rear seat can also be switched through a one-button mode to enter a very comfortable state of angle.
In terms of function and infotainment operation, the new 7 series is integrated on the screen similar to a smart phone on the left and right doors, and the position is exactly where the passenger's arm is naturally touched when it is placed on the armrest, and the sense of technology and the convenience of human-computer interaction are another good innovation.
Abolish V12 and transition to electric
In terms of power performance, the biggest change of the new 7 series should be to abandon the version of the V12 engine, retain the 3.0T inline 6 cylinder, and the 4.4T V8 two power versions, of which the 760Li version equipped with the V8 engine, the performance and the 750Li version of the current 7 series are basically the same, but there is still a more obvious gap with the performance of the current M760Li xDrive.
As for the pure electric version of the i7, the acceleration performance is not very violent, the maximum 544 horsepower, peak torque of 745 Nm parameters, 0-100km/h acceleration of 4.7 seconds. Compared with pure electric vehicles such as The Extreme Kr 001, Weilai ET7, and Zhiji L7 that have entered the 3-second range, the performance of the new i7 is somewhat backward. But considering the positioning of its large luxury sedan, such performance is more than enough.
Although the power of both the fuel version and the electric version is strong enough for daily use, it is a little regrettable that there is no significant improvement over the previous generation. In fact, in addition to the power, in the chassis, mechanical quality, we also did not see enough surprises on the new 7 series. The same thing actually happened on the new S-class.
Only V8's 760
Perhaps under the tide of electrification transformation, the hard-core technology of these fuel vehicle era is no longer the focus of research and development of car companies. This generation of fuel version of the 7 Series, S Class may become the peak of the mechanical quality of the D-class sedan. Therefore, the 7 series and i7 of this generation, one may represent the peak and end of the previous era, and the other indicates the exploration and innovation of the new era.
For car fans, although they are full of expectations for the future, they still feel a little regret...
Write to the end
Compared with mercedes-Benz S-class and Audi A8, the BMW 7 Series has a strong athletic temperament, and the overall owner group is younger than the two opponents, which is an important feature of the 7 Series for nearly half a century. However, due to the relative disadvantage of luxury and comfort, it has been somewhat difficult to compete with the Mercedes-Benz S-Class.
The new BMW 7 series has indeed undergone subversive changes, and many people may give up on it, but at this moment when new energy brands continue to impact the high-end market, if they do not actively seek changes, it is possible to catch up with traditional competitors while being overtaken or even replaced by new opponents.
Regardless of the public opinion, it can be seen from the changes in the new 7 Series that BMW no longer regards the Mercedes-Benz S-Class as the only opponent, but turns to face the challenger of the broader market. For such a 7 series, when you have enough budget, will it be included in the candidate list?