2023 BMW I7 xDrive60 First Drive: Finally, Some Electric Attitude

The i7 possesses a pair of synchronous induction motors at the front and rear; together, they pump out 544 horsepower and 553 pound-feet of torque. Admittedly, this trails most of the high-end market, with Tesla’s Model S and Lucid’s Air base models both possessing nearly 100 more horsepower for significantly less cash; the i7’s 0-60 time of 4.7 seconds won’t be putting it in any YouTube compilations for breakneck speed, either.

Victoria Scott/SlashGear

It has a significant 101.7 kWh of battery capacity; together with some advanced wind-tunnel tricks to help streamline the brick-like front profile down to a svelte .24 coefficient of drag, that battery translates into 310 EPA-rated miles of range. This is good to put it roughly mid-pack among its similarly-priced competitors, although unfortunately for a flagship model, this range trails BMW’s own iX crossover, which boasts 324 miles of range from a larger battery pack. It does, however, offer excellent regenerative braking (with deceleration as strong as .22 G) and rapid DC fast charging at up to 195 kW, which will likely keep the 310 mile range from ever feeling too short.

Victoria Scott/SlashGear

But, even more importantly than EPA numbers, it’s worth saying right now: the i7 is not optimized for paper. It is, at its core, not an EV for nerds. No offense to nerds—I, too, deeply appreciated the discussion of how BMW managed to squeeze 93% efficiency from the magnetless induction motors in the i7, or how the batteries now precondition themselves automatically when a charging station is input to the navigation system—but to focus solely on the nitty-gritty of the drivetrain is to miss the entire point of this car.