i7 xDrive60: BMW’s First Completely Electric 7 Series

German carmaker, BMW has unveiled its first completely electric 7 series, the 'i7 xDrive60, a version of its full-size luxury sedan with a focus on creature comfort and designed as much for chauffeured executives as it is for drivers.

The long-wheelbase luxury sedan offers solid performance, with a dual-motor setup providing 536 horsepower and 549 lb-ft of torque that will get you from zero to 60 in 4.5 seconds and a preliminary EPA range of up to 300 miles.

The i7 xDrive60 also features the introduction of BMW’s 31.3-inch 8K Theater Screen with built-in Amazon Fire TV and touch screen remotes in the door panels as displayed at CES 2020. Each rear door has its own 5.5-inch touchscreen for climate, media and seating controls, while a standard panoramic LED roof can produce a light show in addition to showing the sky above.

BMW’s 31.3-inch 8K Theater Screen with built-in Amazon Fire TV and touch screen remotes in the door panels

Owners will get a 31-inch, 32:9 ratio 8K rear display with a Fire TV interface.

Rear window shades that close when the system is switched on.

There is access to 5G, including a "Personal eSIM" that can migrate between cars.

The executive automakers note that the i7 xDrive60 is propelled by its fifth-generation eDrive technology with integrated drive units at the front and rear axles.

Other tech upgrades include the i7, BMW refined the existing adaptive recuperation feature from the iX and i4 to automatically optimise the brake energy regeneration based on upcoming downhill sections or the state of the traffic lights ahead of you (thanks to its built-in traffic light recognition function).

Drivers can also manually choose the brake regeneration settings, and there is a mode that’s akin to one-pedal driving, too.

BMW said that the i7 xDrive60 is expected to AC power at up to 11 kW and DC power up to 195 kW.

Drivers should be able to charge to 80% in about 34 minutes at a DC fast charger and 10 minutes of DC fast charging to give about 80 miles of range.

Going from 0 to 100% on the battery will take about 10.5 hours on AC power.

The i7 xDrive60 is expected to sell for $119,300 (N49,569,150.00) plus the destination fee.

Preorders has started, with a $1,500 (N623,250.00) deposit and the U.S. launch is currently planned for Q4 2022.