After making its debut at the 2018 LA Auto Show, the BMW X7 may have just become America’s favorite Bavarian. It’s everything Americans want in an SUV — it’s massive, it’s incredibly luxurious and it’s utterly superfluous. If it came with a gun rack on the roof, BMW wouldn’t be able to make enough of them. Still, despite its superfluous nature, it’s actually a very interesting SUV that has a few things some enthusiasts should know. So we compiled a short little video about them.
There are only five interesting facts in the video, as we just focused on things that make the BMW X7 stand out and things that some enthusiasts might not know. For instance, the X7’s simply enormous Kindey Grilles certainly make it stand out. It’s not the largest grille setup ever fitted to a car (have you seen the new Toyota Avalon? Woof) but it’s close and it’s certainly the biggest ever fitted to a BMW. It’s also one of the main points of criticism for the X7.
One thing that some enthusiasts might not know is that it actually comes with an off-road package. Why a massive, three-row luxury SUV needs an “off-road” package, I don’t know. Still, it has one. It’s not the most off-roady of off-road packages, though, as it only comes with an electronically-controlled rear diff on top of normal xDrive all-wheel drive and some off-road driving modes, for things like rock, sand and snow. So it doesn’t turn the BMW X7 into a desert-ready Land Cruiser but it should help in climates with rough snow.
We’re actually really excited to get a BMW X7 to ourselves for a week, to see what it’s actually like to live with. While it’s needlessly large, excessive and luxurious, there seems to be a certain charm to its excess and brutishness. We can’t wait to test it out.
Not sure why all the focus on “needlessly large” etc. If you have 2 kids and plan to take the car traveling for more than an overnight, especially if you have multiple car seats, the X3 and X5 just really don’t have the capacity for that. Three kids? Forgeddaboudit.
Before the X7 came out, our options were basically the Mercedes 7-seater, Acura MDX, Audi Q7 or something like a Buick Enclave. BMW lost a lot of traction to Mercedes because they had literally NOTHING to offer. The cargo space of the X3 and X5 were identically and the third row seat was a lame afterthought.
Focus on “performance” among auto writers gets a bit exhausting and pretentious. While 95% of owners of this car are likely going to never take it off road or racing, the same is true of 90% of M Designate cars. Most of them will never do more than rev the motor and see how fast they can merge on the highway, maybe cruise at 90mph.