Consumer Reports has made no secret of the fact that it often prefers Mercedes-Benz when it comes to large luxury sedans. In fact, CR’s exact words are, “the BMW 7 Series has always played second fiddle to the Mercedes-Benz S-Class,” mainly because of sales, prestige, and ride comfort. While prestige and ride comfort are important in a luxury car, many of us think that performance, braking, handling, and driving fun are also important.
Be that as it may, Consumer Reports now admits that with the all-new BMW 7 Series, the Bavarians at least are making a run at what CR believes is Mercedes-Benz’s luxury class supremacy.
The 7 Series’ chassis, which contains more than a little carbon fiber and aluminum, is stronger and lighter and as a result, the car handles better and gets better fuel mileage, something CR would pick up on rather than the car being quicker.
The cockpit is loaded with advanced technology galore, including gesture control, which seems to be the feature that most caught CR’s attention.
The 7 Series that Consumer Reports purchased for its evaluation—CR always buys its test cars to avoid even the perception of favoritism—was the BMW 750Li. As equipped, it listed for $110,645. CR didn’t say so, but we would guess that figure is toward the high end of what the magazine pays for its test cars.
Even at that price, the CR evaluators were impressed, citing the car’s acceleration, its “triple-digit speeds without breaking a sweat,” and the “super-smooth” eight-speed automatic transmission. They also liked the quiet cabin and the very nice air-suspended ride, even at high speeds and on less-than perfect roads. They couldn’t give it all to the BMW, however, saying that the ride in the Benz was still superior at low speeds.
Do that many 7 Series owners have chauffeurs? CR thinks that BMW must think so, and that’s why the 7 Series has been turned from a big, great-handling sport sedan into a decent-handling car with ride characteristics and luxury features that make it more like, well, more like a Mercedes.
CR definitely likes the 750iL’s fuel consumption, saying that 21 mpg in a car this large and powerful was “commendable.”
The BMW 7 Series’ technology, extraordinarily quiet ride, luxuriously appointed cabin, and quality ride comfort led Consumer Reports to declare the BMW 7 Series a “first-class travel experience.” They don’t say it’s as good or better than the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, but at least they admit that it’s now up to Mercedes-Benz to prove it still belongs on top.—Scott Blazey
[Photos courtesy of BMW AG.]
