A Paradigm Shift for the 1%, Courtesy of the New BMW 7 Series

A paradigm shift is the best way to describe the new 7 Series. This fact is made all the more poignant by putting BMW’s flagship head-to-head with the benchmark of luxury, elegance and go-anywhere ability – the Range Rover. Now it’s clear that the BMW can’t compete with the Range Rover on off-road ability, but, at today’s astronomical prices, I don’t see anyone using a Range Rover for cross-country adventures or even picnics on the farm for that matter. So, if this is purely a luxury comparison, the i7 catapults itself into the future not just with an electric drivetrain, but also with a 31-inch screen that theatrically folds down from the roof for the viewing pleasure of its rear seat passengers.

I’ve been extremely impressed with how BMW has managed to adapt its CLAR architecture to accommodate both internal combustion and pure electric drivetrains – the i7 & 7 Series or the i4 & 3 Series are cases in point. This gives BMW the flexibility to cater to both segments (internal combustion & EV) off the same platform.

But, going forward for their next-gen EVs – to provide better packaging, weight, efficiency, etc. –  BMW has no choice but to adopt a dedicated (modular) EV platform, the Neue Klasse. The first models off this platform are expected to arrive sometime in late 2025. But the implication of such a strategy is that it seems likely that the next-gen 3 Series, for instance, will have an EV version off one platform, while its ICE-powered siblings will be based on another platform altogether.

So, it’ll be interesting to see how these product lines are rationalised in future. One thing is clear, however, we’ll be seeing a lot more very large and very crisp screens in each of these models going forward. And if the i7 is anything to go by, the future is now – and it’s in high-def…