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On Wheels by Brooks Peterson Archives | Arts & Entertainment | Audio/Video | Business | Classifieds | Columns | Food | Forums | Health & Fitness | News | Obits | Opinions | People | Politics | Science/Technology | Search | Sports | Subscribe | Travel | Weather Published by the Corpus Christi Caller-Times. CLICK FOR NEWSPAPER DELIVERY Saturday, August 11, 2001 Surrounded by luxuryBMW 740i makes it easy to deal with its controls, all the bells and whistles
When you're a struggling journalist (and show me a journalist who isn't struggling), that stuff tends to prey on your mind - particularly the megabucks the tester represents. You become mildly paranoid, scouting out parking slots like an explorer approaching an alien and hostile land. Being worthy
But with the passing of time, you get over that. (Well, mostly over it: Always in the back of your mind there is the thought of the carnage a sociopath armed with a key could wreak.) Then you find yourself confronting another issue: Am I worthy of this vehicle? Now I know that sounds ridiculous, but, trust me, there are cars that make you feel that way. They project a hauteur that is almost palpable, and no matter how much you enjoy the vehicle, or how beautifully it performs, or how deeply your peers may be impressed at seeing you in such a conveyance, the kind of one-on-one relationship you can achieve with less grandiose but infinitely more welcoming cars just . . . doesn't happen. Top dog
That brings us to this week's BMW 740i tester: This magnificent creation represents for all practical purposes the very tippy-top of the BMW sedan hierarchy. Technically, of course, the V-12-powered 750iL is the King of the Bimmers, but after spending some time with the 740i, I can't imagine why - apart from a burning desire to impress the Vanderbilts, or the Rockefellers, or whomever - you'd feel the need to go that extra kilometer. (Oh, and while those of you who live in 7-Series territory may not worry overmuch about such things, it's a pretty hefty leap, price-wise, to the pinnacle: To gain four more cylinders and a extra dollop of luxe, you go from the $62,900 base price of the 740i to $92,000-plus for the big-kahuna 750iL. Surely there are any number of deserving causes out there on which to spend the almost-30 grand, no? Think of the newspaper subscriptions you could buy . . .) There was much to like, to admire and even to lust after in the 740i, but I think the one thing that impressed me most was the fact that, from the outset, the car accepted me, cheesy wardrobe and all. While there were bells and whistles galore (of which, more later), the business of entering the car, coming to terms with the controls, and setting the show in motion was admirably straightforward. In the world of luxocars, that particular quality may itself be something of a luxury. The 4.4-liter V-8
Favorable Impression No. 2 followed quickly on the heels of No. 1: The big (by European standards) 4.4-liter V-8 instantly communicated authority, but not belligerence. Sort of your iron-fist-in-velvet-glove scenario. Address the throttle - respectfully, of course - and the first half-inch or so of travel will reward you with brisk forward motion. Ah, but continue the downward pressure on the accelerator and . . . well, now. Understand, this is nothing as uncivilized as a rubber-burning peel-out, but it is impressive. Downright exhilaratin', if I may say so. And the whole demeanor of the vehicle gives you to understand that it will effortlessly serve up more of the same - right up into the triple digits, I would confidently expect. Handling is equally virtuous, though you must bear in mind that this is a big, heavy luxury sedan. For an all-out sport sedan, I would refer you to BMW's awesome M5, which as the name implies is based on the 5-Series platform. But even in the 7-Series, you'll detect the classic Bavarian DNA that has over the years gladdened the hearts of Bimmerphiles everywhere (and frustrated the company's competitors). Luxocar features
As far as I'm concerned, the stuff I've mentioned thus far would be more than sufficient to win me over. But, as you'd expect, BMW keeps an eye on the market, and has duly noted the fashion in which the industry continues to load up luxocars with gotta-have-it computerized magic and power widgets and automatic frammises. And so the 7-Series gets its share of such stuff, and then some. There is the by now obligatory On-Board Navigation System, plus the slightly ominous-sounding Mayday feature, which turns out to be an in-car/portable phone system that in addition to doing the usual phone stuff can hook you up with emergency services or roadside assistance. Safety gear? Everywhere, and all of it is state-of-the-art. The dynamite 14-speaker sound system is almost beyond reproach . . . but not quite. Excuse the lese majeste, but it seems to me that a vehicle of this sort should have its 6-disc CD changer in the dash, not the trunk. Park Distance Control
Nor, in fairness, can I wrap this up without noting that the optional Park Distance Control - one of those rigs that notifies you audibly when you're about to plow into a pickup, a tree or some other obstacle - is one option I could, and would, dispense with. At times, you'd have two warnings shrilling at once, projecting an air of impending panic that was completely out of place in a vehicle that otherwise inspires nothing but confidence and profound satisfaction. As for the rest . . . bliss. Bliss, ease, total composure and a sense of fun. Not the easiest parlay to bring off, but the lads in Munich have managed it beautifully. Again. 
© 2000 Corpus Christi Caller Times, a Scripps Howard newspaper. All rights reserved. |
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