BHPian utkarshmohan86 recently shared this with other enthusiasts:THE CAR YOU WANT VS. THE CAR YOU THINK YOU WANTTo understand why I sold my F10 M5 for a G11 740i, we need to take a sojourn to Victorian Literature, Specifically to Oscar Wilde’s masterpiece, ” The Picture of Dorian Grey” No, the 7 Series is not the secret to eternal youth, perhaps rather an indicator of the contrary. However Oscar Wilde’s commentary on his book has stuck with me since childhood. He said the three protagonists of the novel represented ” Who people thought he was, who he thought he was, and who he actually was”. This thought has since been memefied by the internet’s ” What my friends think I do, what my parents think I do, What I think I do, What I actually do” memes. Beyond reflecting on the state of popular discourse, I think this line of thought is very relevant to the petrolhead. Because as petrolhead we spend a lot of time in fantasy land, the cars of our dreams. Bolstered by motoring journalist bluster and more recently car YouTubers, we all have an image in our heads of our dream car. The Car we think we like. For me, that car had always been the BMW M5. And then I owned one. And I realised reality did not entirely match up. Let’s be clear. It was nothing to do with how exciting the car was. Project Zeus, the Moonstone Metallic F10 M5 that I documented on this forum and on my Youtube channel, was as “Super” as I expected the Super-sedan to be. But to be a Supercar is one half of the Super-sedan promise. It also promises to be a Luxury car, a 5 Series, a German Taxi. And that was part of the dream, of having my cake and eating it too. The M5 is a comfortable enough car, but that is just it. It is borderline comfortable, definitely less comfortable than a normal 5 series and way less comfortable than a real Luxury car. Acceptable, but a compromise vs. a normal car. And that compromise was something I just couldn’t live with in a daily driver. In my head, Clarkson pressed the M button and nothing mattered other than the sound of the engine, but in real life, my wife complained why the M5 wasn’t as comfortable as a bog standard ordinary car. As did my pampered backside. So as it turned out the Car I thought I wanted, wasn’t really the car I really wanted. So what is the car I really want? My hypothesis is that it is something like this.THE HYPOTHESISIntroducing Project Obsidian, my Apr 2017 BMW 740i G11. G11 means Short wheelbase. And 40i means exactly what you think. B58. There are three reasons I think this is the car I really want. 1) B58, B58, B58: Having owned a BMW V8 (S63TU) and BMW 6 cylinder (B58) concurrently, let’s just say BMW’s speciality is the six cylinder. With a mild Stage 1 tune, it is everything you want or 400+ hp and close to 600NM. 2) Carbon Core: Thanks to Carbon Fibre reinforced plastic technology learnings from the BMW i8 and i3 programs, the G11 7 Series Short Wheelbase weighs in a solid 200 kg LIGHTER than the F10 M5. In fact it is about the same as the hybridised M340i today (1700ish kg) 3) Integral Active Steering: Basically 4 wheel steer combined with a variable steering ratio. It is not hyperbole to say it shaves off another 200 kg in apparent weight and also gives the 7 the turning circle of the 3. The 7 Series’s Luxury and Ride Quality is not in doubt but the above 3 reasons gave me the assurance that this was the car where I could really have my cake and eat it too. Have the luxury of a 7 series or S class, yet the agility and fun to drive of a much smaller and lighter car. A Bit more on the Car Itself. (i) The Colour is BMW Individual Azurite Black, which is different from Black Sapphire, as it has Blue flakes in the paint instead of Silver (ii) The Interior is Cognac Nappa Leather (an expensive cost option) with the Rear Seat Package (read fully electric and touchscreen, another expensive cost option) (iii) In terms of driving tech, it has everything I want (Integral Active Steering, Adaptive Drive Air Suspension) and missing what I don’t want (Early rudimentary ADAS given its a 2017 car) (iv) You may have noticed those 21 inch wheels. Yes that was the largest size BMW offered straight from the factory. I am not a big wheel guy but they look amazing on the large 7 and as we will see later, Ride Quality is still incredible (v) The M Bodykit, Alcantara roof lining and Black Wood Trim is all specific to M Sport. Small things but really elevate the interior to make it the car to drive, not to be driven in. Youtube Video The main attraction of the car to me is that it is specced exactly as I would have done if I was buying it new (M-Sport, perfect Exterior and Interior colour) and a full BMW Authorised Service History. The Mileage was 90K but with all cosseted Singapore cars (great roads, expensive items hence careful ownership), the car feels like 20-30K cars in most other countries I did need to get a couple of things done (Some preventative work on the engine like the Oil Filter Housing), the Driver mirror adjustment was temperamental and a couple of filters. And of course the Stage 1 Tune from a B58 specialist shop here in Singapore. HOW’S IT GOINGOne month on, I would say I know a fair bit. So I will go with the Good, The Bad and the Ugly VideoTHE GOOD:Agility: This hypothesis turned out to be perfectly correct. The 740i belies that it is a 7 Series in terms of how it drives. Whether it is the turning circle or turn in, it is incredible and better than the equivalent 540i without 4 wheel steer. Perfect Ride Handling Balance: Only a car with Air Suspension can pull off 21 inch wheels and be cosseting. Having owned a 7 series with smaller wheels earlier, I will say that 21 inch is the Enthusiasts choice as 18s and 19s on this car are ultra-comfortable but only required if your job description says chauffeur. Luxury and Feel Good Factor: In my opinion, the mid 2010s were when German interiors peaked as they still had physical buttons, material quality was getting better and they still hadn’t been Tesla-ised and forced to start cost cutting to invest in electric tech. The G30 5 series is already better than its successor and the G11-12 7 Series is in another dimension Engine: You were wondering when the B58 would come in. Well, even in a 7 series albeit a light one, it feels like a Tsunami. To my Butt dyno, this feels like a 4.5s to 100 car which is enough in any dimension. Combined with the 8 Speed ZF, you always feel like you are riding a tidal wave. The Stereo: Harman Kardon in a 3 series or 5 Series is ok. In a 7 Series, it is at a different level. In a 7 Series with Rear entertainment package, it adds speakers just behind the Rear Headrests and that elevates the speaker system to something else, even for the discerning listener (In a parallel life, I am a Guitar collector and musician and also run a channel called ‘Ministry of Guitar’). This system is best experienced playing Han Zimmer’s ” Cornfield Chase” or Lamb of Gods “Laid to Rest” (Pick your poison). Just don’t pick Bruno MarsTHE BAD:Speed Mask: I am not sure if this belongs in the Bad category but one consequence of 7 Series refinement is Speed mask. Which is to say the incredible refinement and sound insulation results in you having very little sensation of speed. Accelerating in a traffic light grand-prix is a surreal experience as you find the rest of the traffic miles behind you but you have no idea how you got there. No need to Rev: Another back-handed criticism and it is frankly of the B58 engine. It is so torquey (almost diesel like) that there is no point in revving it . Not that it is unpleasant to rev , it is butter smooth and loves it, but there is no point. All the torque arrives at lower rpm and it is more than enough. I have gone full throttle a couple of times on the car but it is rather unnecessary as what you need for most situations is just a firm prod which makes the ZF kick down and the car surge forwardTHE UGLY:Minimal Exhaust Sound: The B58 engine can sound amazing with the right exhaust. But the sound insulation of the B58 muffles it. Worse still, exhaust options for the 740i was rather limited as who in their right mind wants to put a loud exhaust on a 7 series. In Singapore, there are no options (zero). So there is no way I can fix this hence this is in the Ugly category.MONTH 1 CONCLUSIONSo is the 740i the perfect daily driver for me, everything the M5 wasn’t. Frankly with a louder exhaust note, it probably would be, but everything that makes the 740i so amazing and luxurious (sound insulation, ride quality) makes it less involving. In the end, perhaps I want is a contradiction that doesn’t exist. Limo ride yet clawing the road handling. Isolation from the world yet involving engine sound. That said, I do think this car is a proper keeper. A perfect family car for the Petrolhead, for perhaps the wife to drive daily, while the Petrolhead finds themselves something a lot less comfortable but involving (say a 911). But then I am perhaps back to where I started, where the M5 was too uncomfortable for me. I can hardly imagine how the 911 would be. Not that I can afford one in Singapore. In any case, if you want to see more of the car and follow it, you can see the two videos. And we will see where this journey goes. Check outBHPian commentsfor more insights and information.
