BMW M760Li brings V12 engine to rival Merc S65

Let’s not use the word ‘complaint’ but after driving the new BMW 7 Series in South Africa, we could imagine how some owners would come away thinking that the six-cylinder turbo engines in the 730d and 740i lacked the gravitas of say a V12 in the Mercedes S65 or the W12 used by Bentley.

BMW has answered our plea for a larger motor with the M760Li which will make its debut at Geneva next month. Behind the kidney grilles is a silky 6.6-litre V12 turbo which transmits 441kW and 800Nm to the road through BMW’s xDrive all-wheel system.  To put that into perspective the BMW M5 Competition Package produces 423kW and 680Nm.

By recording a 3.9 second time, the flagship BMW 7 Series accelerates to 100km/h quicker than the M5. The car’s all-wheel drive plays a big part in shooting it off the line but so does the carbon core technology which has lightened the 7 Series’ range by more than 100 kilograms.

Visually the BMW M760Li wears 20-inch wheels, a scalloped front bumper to assist engine cooling, extended sills and a tweaked rear bumper to accommodate the quad pipes. An optional rear spoiler is available but hardly warranted.

In standard trim BMW has added V12 logos to the door sills, fitted the M steering wheel and dials now read upwards of 300km/h – possible were it not for the governed speed limiter conservatively set to 250km/h. The Excellence Package includes thicker carpets, replaces the sporty bumpers for a subtle look and mutes the exhaust noise.

While at Geneva BMW will unveil the 740e plug-in hybrid. The frugal Seven uses a 2.0-litre turbo petrol with e-motors for a combined output of 240kW. This model is coming to South Africa later in the year.