BMW 730d SE (2009) CAR review

Barely 25 years ago, Mercedes and Jaguar had this market – then the sub-Rolls market – sewn up. BMW was knocking on the door but only got its foot in with the second-gen 7-series of 1986. Audi came along with the A8 a few years later and today there are still only those four key players, with some upstart rivals in the shape of the Lexus LS and others. So a new 7-series is a big deal, especially when it follows a car as controversially styled as the outgoing Seven, the car which kickstarted the Bangle design revolution.

And, as a further reminder of how the limo market has evolved, today it’s dominated by diesels. So say hello to the 730d, the biggest-selling version of BMW’s biggest car, now in its fifth generation.

BMW’s new range-topper. I bet there’s a lot of tech in this 730d…

You’d be right. There’s a new, improved iDrive (with internet access for the European market, coming to the UK once negotiations with wireless firms are sewn up), four-wheel steering, a speed limit display, a head-up display, lane departure warning, night vision and side-view cameras. And yes, if you want all that lot, you’re looking at a hefty bill on top of the asking price.

Our 730d test car was specced with the optional head-up display and speed limit display, but was otherwise mainly standard. The former projects your speedo reading onto the windscreen, as well as the speed limit of the road you’re travelling on. It’s meant to be failsafe, because a forward-facing camera reads the roadsigns to cross-check with info on the sat-nav system. Fine in theory, but it assured me that the limit was 60mph in my village, despite a huge, illuminated sign warning me to slow down to 30mph… Honestly, officer.

And while we’re moaning, the front parking sensors failed to warn of an imminent (then suddenly inevitable) numberplate/brick wall interface scenario, and the windscreen washers didn’t work. That’s irksome in December on a long trip up a salty motorway, and the smeary windscreen meant I had to turn off the head-up display too. And before you ask, I had checked the washer reservoir…

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