The Car Connection Expert Review
Likes
- So powerful
- Gas versions handle great, too
- Rides wonderfully
- Lots of tech
Dislikes
- Egregious styling
- i7’s heft burdens its handling
- Some of the best features cost extra
- Not a great value, even for a flagship
Buying tip
features & specs
The 2025 BMW 7-Series is a delight to drive or to ride in—with the added benefit that you don’t have to see its exterior when you’re inside.
What kind of vehicle is the 2025 BMW 7-Series? What does it compare to?
The 7-Series is the largest BMW sedan, a flagship four-door that squares off against the Mercedes-Benz S-Class and Audi A8. It’s also available in an all-electric version called i7 that compares well with the Tesla Model S and Mercedes-Benz EQS.
Is the 2025 BMW 7-Series a good car?
The 7-Series is a fine vehicle overall, once you get past its styling. Its myriad configurations each have their own personality, ranging from the fleet-of-foot 740i to the commanding i7 M70. Overall, the range works out to a TCC Rating of 7.0 out of 10. (Read more about how we rate cars.)
What's new for the 2025 BMW 7-Series?
The 7-Series gains updated infotainment software and some mild tweaks to its available hands-free driving assistance tech.
Certainly not the most subtle sedan, the 7-Series wears a blunt front end and slab sides. It’s a love it or hate it affair, though we lean more toward the latter. It is striking, though, and unlike anything else on the road for the most part. The 7 is more elegant inside with its limited buttons and big screens, but the real dazzle here is the materials BMW offers. Pick wisely, however, as the 7-Series can go from urbane to uncouth with a quickness.
BMW offers its 3.0-liter turbocharged inline-6 with or without a plug-in hybrid setup, or the top-dog 760i with its twin-turbo V-8. All benefit from at least 48-volt mild-hybrid tech to save a bit of fuel and reduce any hint of turbo lag as they scoot to 60 mph in five seconds or less. Gas-fueled 7-Series cars have a spectacular ride and handling that belies their size curb weight that can top 5,000 pounds.
The BMW i7 has similar power on paper to the 760i, though it’s a bit slower due to a staggering 1,000 pounds of batteries on board. Those batteries lower its center of gravity but do little to help it in the handling department even with rear-wheel steering.
The massive cabin boasts spectacular seats and luxurious materials, even though BMW charges extra for real leather. Then again, the synthetic stuff is nearly as nice as actual leather seats, so we can’t really blame them. Rear-seat riders will find stretch-out space, and they’ll never want to leave if they find themselves in one with the Executive Lounge package that has first class-style seats with plentiful adjustment. If there’s a downside here, it’s that the 7-Series trunk seems cramped for a sedan this large.
BMW’s top-shelf car comes with the safety basics we expect, but the automaker does charge extra for its best hands-off tech.
How much does the 2025 BMW 7-Series cost?
The lineup starts at $97,575 for the base 740i, plus another $3,000 for all-wheel drive. Standard fare impresses, including big screens for the instrument cluster and infotainment system, navigation, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and power-adjustable front seats, though leather costs extra.
The i7 range starts about $25,000 more.
Where is the 2025 BMW 7-Series made?
In Germany.
2025 BMW 7-Series Styling
The 2025 BMW 7-Series is not an elegant sedan.
Is the BMW 7-Series a good-looking car?
Not especially. The latest version of the 7-Series is dramatic and unusual, but far from stylish. Its interior is nice enough, though, so we wind up at a 6 out of 10 for styling.
The 7’s front end starts off with massive kidney grilles, which are linked by a panel housing various sensors in the center. Those grilles are flanked by two strips of headlights (which can be emblazoned with Swarovski crystals) and big intakes. From the side, a Rolls-Royce-grade slab-sidedness gives the 7 a blocky, chunky appearance, though the look works well enough with the available two-tone paint. High-set taillights at the rear look like an afterthought.
The cabin is simple enough at first glance, with a pair of screens housed in a single panel and precious few physical buttons and knobs. Be careful, though, as the myriad interior hues, trims, and patterns can go from tasteful to tacky with the wrong selection on BMW’s configurator.
2025 BMW 7-Series Performance
BMW’s biggest sedan is fast and zippy.
The biggest sedan in BMW’s lineup offers up prodigious power. Combined with its supple ride and small car-grade handling, it’s an 8 out of 10. It’s arguably the most fun of any full-size luxury sedan.
Is the BMW 7-Series 4WD?
While there are rear-drive versions of the 740i and the i7, most 7-Series models are now all-wheel drive.
How fast is the BMW 7-Series?
The base 3.0-liter inline-6 in the 740i serves up 375 hp, for a 5.1-second run to 60 mph. That’s plenty quick, though the 760i’s boosted 4.4-liter V-6 ups the ante to 536 hp and slices a full second from the run to 60 mph. We have yet to drive the 750e xDrive plug-in hybrid, which puts out 483 hp by pairing the inline-6 with an electric motor.
All models have an 8-speed automatic transmission that fires of quick, smooth shifts.
These cars ride on a standard air suspension with adaptive dampers, which results in a supple, comfortable ride and little in the way of lean into corners. Quick-reacting electric power steering and rear-axle steering endow the 7-Series with quick moves. It’s far more agile than you might expect, but the steering is so light that it requires too many corrections at highway speeds.
The i7 is a similar but different beast. The base xDrive60 version has two motors that put out 536 hp. That may sound like the 760i, but the i7 is burdened with nearly 1,000 pounds of batteries, so it needs about half a second more to run to 60 mph. The gas-fueled version has stronger response at highway speeds, though the i7’s one-pedal mode makes it quite easy to drive. We’ve yet to drive the i7 M70, which has 650 hp and is said to scoot to 60 mph in a mere 3.5 seconds.
The i7 has a lower center of gravity than the regular 7-Series, but it’s also much heavier. It lacks some of the gas version’s verve and natural athleticism, though BMW employs brake regeneration from the front motor to shift power forward for a more natural feel in cornering. Brake feel is good for an EV, too.
2025 BMW 7-Series Comfort & Quality
The 2025 7-Series boasts a flagship-grade cabin.
BMW’s 7-Series is at its best inside. Nary a cheap bit can be found. We rate it at 9 out of 10 thanks to its great seats front and rear as well as its upscale finishes throughout.
The front seats have a wide range of adjustment even in their most basic form, though you’ll pay extra for real leather seats. (That said, BMW’s Veganza synthetic leather feels nearly as good as the real McCoy.)
The latest 7 comes in just a single configuration with prodigious rear-seat legroom and headroom. Three abreast is a tight fit, so instead consider opting for the Executive Lounge package with its individual thrones that offer individual adjustment.
The 13.7 cubic-foot trunk is on the small side, while i7 models have just 11.4 cubic feet.
The 7-Series’ cabin is outfitted in top-notch materials throughout. What looks like real aluminum, steel, or wood is, and BMW offers myriad colors and trim options.
2025 BMW 7-Series Safety
The 2025 BMW 7-Series offers hands-off tech, for a price.
How safe is the BMW 7-Series?
The 7-Series offers lots of crash-avoidance tech, though the best stuff is optional.
The 2025 BMW 7-Series has not been crash-tested by either the NHTSA or the IIHS, so we can’t rate it here.
It comes standard with automatic emergency braking, pedestrian and cyclist detection, blind-spot monitors with steering assist, rear parking sensors, automatic high-beam LED headlights, and lane-departure warnings. Active lane control and automatic lane changes executed at the tap of the turn signal (when conditions allow) are optional, as is a system that can handle steering, braking, and acceleration at highway speeds up to 85 mph.
Another feature we strongly recommend is the particularly sharp surround-view camera system since over-the-shoulder vision is somewhat obstructed by the high trunklid.
2025 BMW 7-Series Features
The 2025 BMW 7-Series is beautifully equipped.
BMW packs a lot of features into its costliest sedan. Still, it nets a 9 out of 10 here thanks to its good standard equipment, its numerous options and configurations, its impressive tech, and its 4-year/50,000-mile warranty that includes the first three years of recommended maintenance.
The lineup starts at $97,575 for the base 740i, which has synthetic leather upholstery, power-adjustable and heated front seats, a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, a 14.9-inch touchscreen for infotainment, wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, navigation, a head-up display, a big panoramic sunroof, and Bowers & Wilkins audio.
Which BMW 7-Series should I buy?
The 740i is likely good enough, though we would probably spend $3,000 more for all-wheel drive. From there, you’ll want to budget a bit more for leather seats, the Driving Assistance Professional Package with its hands-off tech, massaging/cooled front seats, and perhaps laminated glass. All in, you’ll need around $105,000. Incidentally, that’s close to the starting point of the 750e xDrive.
The entry point to the i7 lineup is about $126,000 for the xDrive60.
How much is a fully loaded BMW 7-Series?
The i7 M70 runs $170,000 to start.
2025 BMW 7-Series Fuel Economy
BMW offers low-guilt versions of its 7-Series.
Is the BMW 7-Series good on gas?
It’s not bad. The 740i is estimated at 25 mpg city, 31 highway, 28 combined, or 24/31/27 mpg with all-wheel drive. Those are good figures, which earn a 3 on the TCC scale.
The 760i isn’t so frugal. Figure 18/25/20 mpg.
Estimates for the i7 vary a bit based on wheel sizes, but most configurations offer north of 300 miles of range on a full charge. The M70, however, checks in as low as 268 miles of range. Those aren’t particularly impressive estimates, all things considered. The 101.7-kwh battery pack can charge at up to 195 kw, which lets it go from 10-80% charge in a bit over half an hour at a Level 3 charger under ideal circumstances. Using a household-style Level 2 outlet, you can recharge a nearly depleted i7 in about 10.5 hours.