Do you remember a time or place when you were completely in awe of something? For me, it would be my fascination with the ocean, for both the calming effect it could deliver when the tides were gentle and the sort of fear it could also instil when the waves were raging. What impressed me equally were the massive and sturdy luxury liners that conquered these waters.
Those sorts of memories and emotions were rekindled when I met the new BMW 740Li Pure Excellence Design in the flesh. Its design and stature were reminiscent of the luxury ships that often left me near speechless when I was a kid.
Since its birth in 1977, the BMW 7 Series has been the poster boy of luxurious living, an icon of motoring excellence. Now in its sixth generation, the 7 Series continues to display all of the brand's top qualities and innovations - such as a Carbon Fibre Reinforced Plastic (CFRP) chassis that reduces the car's overall weight by up to 130kg.Exterior
Size and presence are quite obviously the 7er's first order of business and its majestic proportions are amplified by its tastefully crafted, outward-curving sheet metal surfaces that wrap themselves around its carbon core.
These harmonious external proportions are subtle but create that formalistic yet athletic presence that 7 Series owners will fall for. You'd have to do a double take to appreciate BMW's attention to details - like incorporating all door handles into the car's character line and a powerful horizontal form that accentuates the car's finely balanced appearance and low centre of gravity.
The 740Li is even decorated in elegant chrome accents on the radiator grille slats, rear bumper and front air inlets. These fancy strips - what BMW calls the 'Design Pure Excellence' exterior package - come as a standard feature on the 740Li and are just the sort of visual treat that complements its stance and shape.
Interior
You'd find yourself in seventh heaven whilst revelling in the chambers of the 7 Series if you're a sucker for all things nice, expensive and expansive.
The test unit we drove was gifted with BMW's optional Design Pure Excellence interior package - which really is everything that its name suggests.
Moods are lifted the moment you step into the car. A welcoming message greets you and the cabin surroundings enthusiastically light up according to whichever colour combination you select to instantly make you feel at home.
That is, of course, if your idea of home is a spacious cabin clad in exclusive Nappa leather finishes and fine wood interior trim elements in American Oak.
You'd find yourself in seventh heaven whilst revelling in the chambers of the 7 Series if you're a sucker for all things nice, expensive and expansive.
The test unit we drove was gifted with BMW's optional Design Pure Excellence interior package - which really is everything that its name suggests.
Moods are lifted the moment you step into the car. A welcoming message greets you and the cabin surroundings enthusiastically light up according to whichever colour combination you select to instantly make you feel at home.
That is, of course, if your idea of home is a spacious cabin clad in exclusive Nappa leather finishes and fine wood interior trim elements in American Oak.
As if the well-crafted fit and finish isn't enough to wow even the nit-pickiest of critics - the equipment package on our test car made a sultan out of us as we got our weary backs gently kneaded by the standard massage functions in both the front and rear seats.
This equipment package also included an Android-powered BMW Touch Command multi-functional 7.0-inch removable tablet that connects rear passengers to the vehicle (seat adjustment, interior lighting, air-conditioning) and the world (infotainment, navigation, communication) if they needed to.
Drivers piloting this German masterpiece can enjoy the class-leading iDrive operating system that opens up another world of technological magnificence. It is even equipped with touchscreen ability and a gesture control function that allows you to execute wizard-like wand actions that mute or lower the volume.
The Drive
We're guessing that most buyers of the 740Li won't be doing much of the driving on their own but to miss out on its exceptional driving dynamics would simply be a mortal sin.
At the heart of the 740Li is a 3.0-litre TwinPower Turbocharged motor that dishes out 326bhp (6bhp more than before) and 450Nm of torque, sending the car from stop to 100km/h in a mere 5.6 seconds. Its eight-speed Steptronic tranmission responds well to that power and shifts effortlessly without the slightest hint of quiver as the car punches its way through traffic.
You can also tailor the car's performance and behavior to suit your mood or driving style using BMW's Driving Dynamics Control system, which configures shock firmness, steering heft, transmission shifts, and throttle response according to whichever driving mode you are in - Sport, Comfort or Eco Pro.
In Sport (our favourite mode), suspension is firmed up, steering weight is increased and the throttle response is heightened. Apply pressure on the accelerator and the 740Li surges forward but it does so in a reasonably orderly fashion.
Even in its sportiest setting, ride comfort is reasonable thanks to BMW's highly-sophisticated, precision-honed chassis technology. We just wish that the steering feel wasn't as artificial as it seemed.
We're guessing that most buyers of the 740Li won't be doing much of the driving on their own but to miss out on its exceptional driving dynamics would simply be a mortal sin.
At the heart of the 740Li is a 3.0-litre TwinPower Turbocharged motor that dishes out 326bhp (6bhp more than before) and 450Nm of torque, sending the car from stop to 100km/h in a mere 5.6 seconds. Its eight-speed Steptronic tranmission responds well to that power and shifts effortlessly without the slightest hint of quiver as the car punches its way through traffic.
You can also tailor the car's performance and behavior to suit your mood or driving style using BMW's Driving Dynamics Control system, which configures shock firmness, steering heft, transmission shifts, and throttle response according to whichever driving mode you are in - Sport, Comfort or Eco Pro.
In Sport (our favourite mode), suspension is firmed up, steering weight is increased and the throttle response is heightened. Apply pressure on the accelerator and the 740Li surges forward but it does so in a reasonably orderly fashion.
Even in its sportiest setting, ride comfort is reasonable thanks to BMW's highly-sophisticated, precision-honed chassis technology. We just wish that the steering feel wasn't as artificial as it seemed.
For regular daily usage, the 740Li is best left in Comfort - the driving mode that best behaves in a way that the car was created for. Eco Pro mode, as its name suggests, retards the car a little, making the 1,845kg luxury cruiser feel a tad too sluggish for our liking.
The 740Li doesn't just deliver a smile-worthy drive for the way it handles and behaves. On our busy (and sometimes narrow) streets, BMW's 3D Surround View system shows, in video game like style, the vehicle and its surroundings from various view points - making it easy for the driver to avoid catching any nasty dings or dents on the precious car.
Conclusion
Prolonged time spent in BMW's new 740Li may be a potentially dangerous thing because once you get comfortable with its luxury levels and how fantastically it drives, there leaves little negotiation for wanting anything else.
Cars like these spoil the market for similar vehicles in time to come and not many might be able to match its level of intelligence and technology.Just like the things that left us in awe, this one's going to be hard to forget. We'd all love to have this 7er in our garage - only if we had $456,800 (as of 20th November 2015) lying around.
