New BMW F01 F02 7-Series with Videos

[JoshCalkins]

BMW F01 7-Series

The newly redesigned F01 platform (F02 for longer wheelbase model) 7 Series is going to be hitting dealer showrooms on March 6th of this year, and BMW wants to make sure that people have an opportunity to learn about the new features on their flagship model. One of the major stops on that tour was San Diego, and while there, BMW put on a live news conference over the internet. For those that missed it, there are videos below. The conference was a mix of introductions from people within the BMW organization, particularly Jack Pitney, a marketing VP, and prepared videos featuring the people who created the new 7-Series, like new lead designer Adrian van Hooydonk, who took over following controversial designer Chris Bangle's exit earlier this month. Check out the videos below:

1) Introduction by Jack Pitney. Here he talks about the impact that the 7 Series has had on the automotive world and also lists off a few technologies that first debuted on a 7-Series model:

YouTube - 1 2009 Jack Pitney introduction

YouTube - 1 2009 Jack Pitney introduction

2) The unveiling of the 7-Series. Includes a quick overview of the new features found on the car, including the updated iDrive system, collision detection and blind-spot alert systems, and the Integral Active Steering, which will have the car's rear wheels turn in the opposite direction of the fronts at low speeds to make the car feel more maneuverable and turn with the front wheels at high speeds to increase stability:

YouTube - 2 2009 7 Series Unveil

YouTube - 2 2009 7 Series Unveil

3) The designers talking about how the new 7-Series came about. There's some great stuff here showing how the designers create the concept sketches, the full-size clay models, and just how much thought goes into small stuff, like choosing between different shifter knobs that look virtually identical to the naked eye:

YouTube - 004 Design

YouTube - 004 Design

4) A discussion with Tom Stephan about all of the new technologies that are present in the F01 7-Series, focusing on the iDrive:

YouTube - 007 TOM STEPHAN

YouTube - 007 TOM STEPHAN

5) Last but not least is a long question and answer section between members of the press and online community with the BMW team. There's talk about pricing, some more about technologies, and more:

YouTube - 008 QA

YouTube - 008 QA

You can check out more 7-Series pictures in our BMW Picture Gallery.


-Josh

[crunk3]

that was gay i wanted to see a video of the car

[Shocka]

There ya go. Not just people talking about it, you can see it moving.

You Tube

You Tube

[Cacciatore08]

There's two of these at Parkshore BMW, they arrived last week.

This is old news

Interesting car though...

[motoyen]

What amazes me is that they have that many people working on the car and they still can't get it right. The ergonomics on the BMW's are crap! Absolute crap! My guess is every one of these "artists" are not car enthusiasts. It's funny how they talk about quality when it's painfully obvious that their quality control has gone downhill in recent years due to cost cutting. What they never show in these videos is the bean counters vetoing all their design choices.

Given a choice between the 7 series and a S class I would take the Mercedes in a second, and this is coming from a BMW fan. The 7 is a car that is trying too hard to be too many things. It's trying to be sporty, elegant, technological, stylish, hip, etc. If the S-class is a tuxedo then the 7 series is the popped collar of cars.

[Cacciatore08]

Originally Posted by motoyen What amazes me is that they have that many people working on the car and they still can't get it right. The ergonomics on the BMW's are crap! Absolute crap! My guess is every one of these "artists" are not car enthusiasts. It's funny how they talk about quality when it's painfully obvious that their quality control has gone downhill in recent years due to cost cutting. What they never show in these videos is the bean counters vetoing all their design choices. Given a choice between the 7 series and a S class I would take the Mercedes in a second, and this is coming from a BMW fan. The 7 is a car that is trying too hard to be too many things. It's trying to be sporty, elegant, technological, stylish, hip, etc. If the S-class is a tuxedo then the 7 series is the popped collar of cars.

What are basing this on?

Pesonal experience or just your opinion?

Have you driven both? The new 7 series is pretty damn nice car. Once you get behind the wheel...

I wouldn't be so quick to judge...

[motoyen]

Just my "pesonal" experience in driving thousands of cars for the past 10 years. Why wouldn't I be quick to judge? I see a car, I experience it, I compare it to my experience in driving the past models and I make a judgement. What part of that process is hard for you to understand?