Electric BMW i7 teased hot weather testing

BMW has released pictures of the 2022 BMW i7 undergoing hot weather testing and confirmed the battery-powered limousine is in the final phase of development ahead of its global launch next year.

The BMW 7 Series-based EV is claimed to be currently undergoing tens of thousands of kilometres of testing including long-distance and high-speed driving, as well as stop-and-start traffic in scorching temperatures in the hot regions of "various countries".

Extreme temperature testing (both hot and cold) is necessary to thoroughly asses the durability of the EV's electric motors, battery pack, drive control units, cooling system, charging technology and energy management software, as well as its traditional air-conditioning system.

Driven hard in mountainous conditions while towing a trailer to put extra stress on the powertrain, the i7 prototypes were also punished on dirt and gravel roads.

We've already seen the BMW i7 cold-weather testing in Sweden in a similar level of camouflage.

When it lands next year the battery-electric BMW limo, which will be dressed in a traditional three-box sedan body, the advanced i7 will battle it out with rival like the Mercedes-Benz EQS and the most expensive versions of the Tesla Model S.

Beneath the skin, instead of sitting on a dedicated pure-electric architecture, the i7 will be based on BMW's flexible CLAR platform already employed by both the smaller i4 sedan, the iX large SUV and combustion-powered models like the G11-generation BMW 7 Series and the G07-series X7 flagship SUV.

When it goes on sale, the BMW i7 will almost certainly share its EV powertrains with the BMW iX.
That means that when it eventually lands in Australia, the entry-level version is set to come with an all-wheel drive xDrive40 powertrain equipped with a 77kWh lithium-ion battery and two motors that produce 240kW/630Nm combined.

That should be enough for a 0-100km/h acceleration time of around 5.5 seconds and a range of 500km.

The most powerful variant of the i7 should get the xDrive50 powertrain that has a long-range 112kWh battery providing up to 700km between top-ups.

Also driven by two motors, the i7 electric BMW limo with the biggest battery should pump out at least 385kW/765Nm and be capable of dispatching the 0-100km/h sprint in less than four seconds.

To cope with that level of performance (and weight), the i7 will come with BMW's latest chassis technologies which, in the German car-maker's own words, are "designed to raise the balance between sportiness and ride comfort that’s typical of the brand’s luxury sedans to the next level".

"For the first time, it is possible to experience a luxury sedan that is characterised by elegance, ride comfort and supremacy without restriction and in conjunction with a purely electric drive system," claims BMW

Due to arrive in Australia towards the end of 2022, the BMW i7 is likely to be priced well above the iX SUV (from $137,100) but below the Mercedes-Benz EQS, which is expected to start at around $290,000.

Related: Electric BMW i7 hits the snow