Since BMW's 100th anniversary comes only once per century, we can't fault the company for making the most of it. Case in point: BMW just announced that it will release a special-edition 7 Series to commemorate the occasion.
The vehicle will indeed be special, starting with its epic model designation; officially, the car that will be available in the U.S. will be the—take a deep breath—BMW Individual M760i xDrive Model V12 Excellence The Next 100 Years. Forgive us if from here on we refer to it as the M760i Next 100 or something equally brief.
Other variations of this special edition include rear-wheel drive and xDrive versions of the BMW Individual 740Le iPerformance The Next 100 Years, and rear-wheel drive and xDrive versions of the BMW Individual 750Li The Next 100 Years.
The car’s lengthy name lets us know, among other things, that the special-edition 7 Series will be prepared by BMW Individual, so we should expect special paint and interior colors and materials. The “L” tells us that these will be G12 long-wheelbase models. Two of the variants will be plug-in hybrids, and two will be propelled by very powerful gasoline engines, one of which is a V12; but you knew that already—from the name.
In keeping with the car’s name, only 100 of the BMW Individual 7 Series The Next 100 Years will be built, all at the company’s Dingolfing factory. The good news is that we will get some of them here in the U.S. The bad news is, we will get a whopping five, so if you don’t already have your name on one, there’s a good chance the secondary market will be your only hope but it will be a very tiny secondary market.
All of the special editions will be painted in the BMW Individual Centennial Blue metallic color made just for this model. BMW Individual 20-inch light-alloy V-spoke wheels are two-toned Silver and Ferric Grey. A handcrafted signet identifying these as “THE NEXT 100 YEARS” special editions will be on each car’s B pillar, above the glove compartment, and on the front and rear seat headrests. The cup holder cover in the center console will bear the inscription, “1 of 100.” The interior will be in Individual Merino Smoke White leather with black accents and black piano trim. Carpets, floor mats, seat belts, and the BMW Individual Alcantara headliner also are Smoke White.
All of the technology available in normal G11/G12 7 Series will be in The Next 100 Years models. Features that have made the new 7 distinctive in comfort and performance include its Carbon Core body structure, anti-dazzle BMW Laserlight, chassis control system Executive Drive Pro, BMW gesture control, remote controlled parking, Executive Lounge, and panorama glass roof Sky Lounge.
Earlier this year BMW announced a higher-performance 7 Series that would be available in the U.S.: the BMW M760i xDrive, which would come with a 591-horsepower V12. The BMW Individual M760Li xDrive Model V12 Excellence The Next 100 Years will have the same BMW TwinPower Turbo, 6.6-liter V12 engine, but bumped up to 610 horsepower. Zero-to-62 mph time will be 3.7 seconds.
Underneath, the car will feature an automatic self-leveling, two-axle air suspension system and Dynamic Damper Control, Integral Active Steering, and Executive Drive Pro system with active roll stabilization.
Up to this point, if you thought the new special 100th anniversary edition of the BMW 7 Series was special, you haven’t seen what puts it over the top: a pen.
But not just any pen. This is a really cool pen and just as exclusive as the 7 Series Next 100 Years cars. It is the “Montblanc for BMW” Centennial Fountain Pen. You can only get it if you buy the car. That’s pretty exclusive.
Montblanc’s flagship Meisterstück pen receives the BMW Next 100 Years design treatment. The surface of this Meisterstück Skeleton Fountain Pen evokes the quilted seats of the centennial 7 Series. Transparent elements of the pen are finished in BMW Individual Centennial Blue metallic. The rhodium-plated, gold Montblanc nib engraving mimics the backstitching on the BMW Individual Merino leather seats of the car.
Buy a one-of-a-kind car and get a one-of-a-kind pen, or the other way around if you prefer. Either way, only five owners in this country will experience the thrill of a very exclusive BMW centennial car and matching Montblanc pen.
The obvious question now is, since the year is only four months old, what other centennial models might BMW release before its 100th birthday celebration is complete?—Scott Blazey
[Photos courtesy of BMW AG.]
Just in case the photos aren’t enough, BMW produced a five-minute video that takes a longer look at the lines of the new BMW Individual 7 Series The Next 100 Years.
[Video courtesy of BMW via Bimmerpost.]
