First Drive: BMW’s All-Electric 7 Series Is a Tech Spectacular

(CTN News) – BMW: On a driving tour of architectural masterpieces in Palm Springs, Calif., we finally came across the House of Tomorrow.

It’s also known as Elvis and Priscilla’s Honeymoon Hideaway and looks like a spaceship above a cul-de-sac. The BMW i7 xDrive60’s global launch will be based just down the road in Rancho Mirage.

It has the same sober look as its gasoline-powered, BMW 48-volt mild-hybrid siblings. The formal profile has been broken up by a few creases and chisels. It’s like a five-foot Homburg hat with a massive panoramic roof instead of a gutter crown.

Yet the interior lights up like a rave party with umpteen tones of ambient LEDs in dazzling patterns. In addition, the Sky Lounge features multicolor beams that strafe through the glass overhead.

During a recent renovation, the House of Tomorrow was restored to its original white color.

This drive-in theater would be complete if the i7’s quad, narrow LED headlamps could squint even harder and project holographic images from BMW Blue Hawaii against that facade (but they’re probably working on it in Munich).

We could have sat in the Executive Lounge, worked the 5.5-inch control modules in the doors’ armrests, and watched the 1961 movie on the 31.3-inch Theater Screen.

There’s an Amazon Fire TV and 5G compatibility for high-quality streaming. Bowers & Wilkins’ 1,965 watt system features 36 speakers and “exciters” in the backrests.

The i7 also offers BMW Iconic Sounds Electric, an original score just for the car, ranging from spacy Sport Sound to relaxing Relax Sound (for driving through canyons on Mars).

With its top speed of 149 mph, the i7 didn’t sprint from zero to 60 mph in 4.7 seconds. We slid through traffic calmly. I had a hard time adjusting BMW minor functions via the 14.9-inch Curved Display touchscreen.

I need more practice-and automatic doors too.

In the meantime, meet the Interaction Bar on the dashboard: a cool and easy way to control the four-zone climate and more.

There was plenty of range left from the maximum of 388 miles even at a 40 percent charge.

There’s a 101.7 kWh battery with prismatic cells of various heights (up to 110 millimeters) in a discreet bellypan, feeding current to front and rear electric motors that provide 544 horsepower and 549 ft lbs of torque, plus all-wheel drive.

That’s why the BMW i7 can hurtle along despite being a tad heavy.

A pink Cadillac from the House of Tomorrow’s era is usually at least 1,000 pounds lighter, but the i7 has driver aids like Maneuver Assistant (for automated parking).

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