Head of design Maximilian Missoni speaks right after the reveal in New York's Grand Central Station on April 22.Kunal D'souza/The Globe and Mail
BMW’s flagship 7 Series has received a facelift for 2027 and it’s as extensive as a model update gets.
Revealed on April 22 at Grand Central Terminal’s majestic Vanderbilt Hall, the German automaker’s full-size luxury sedan has undergone a mid-cycle makeover – what the company calls a Life Cycle Impulse (LCI) – consisting of updates to the exterior, interior and technology. This is the most substantial refresh the company has undertaken and aligns it with its Neue Klasse (New Class) design language.
“Internally, for us it’s a new generation,” said Maximilian Huber, project manager for the 7 Series, shortly after the reveal.
The 7 Series refresh is part of a massive 40-model product blitz by 2028 using BMW’s Neue Klasse technology. The iX3 SUV and i3 sedan were the first to be revealed in September 2025 and March 2026, respectively, and now the company has turned its attention to its flagship.
The new front fascia on the 7 Series incorporates redesigned daytime running lights that use 24 individual crystal glass facets, new headlights that are inset into the bumper and a sharpened, slightly smaller kidney grille that has been separated into individual segments.
There is a slightly smaller kidney grille that’s been separated into individual segments.Kunal D'souza/The Globe and Mail
New headlights that are inset into the bumper and a sharpened. The daytime running lights are the horizontal lights that are on in this picture. They are above the headlights.Kunal D'souza/The Globe and Mail
The rear is where the Neue Klasse design really shines with slim canted taillights that Huber said are meant to resemble an elegant boat tail.
By far the biggest change is to the interior where the new panoramic iDrive display and 17.9-inch centre screen are lifted directly from the iX3. The 7 Series also incorporates a new standard 14.6-inch touchscreen in which the front passenger can stream, play video games and tap into various apps. It is specifically angled toward the passenger to prevent driver distraction.
The 7 Series, Huber said, can almost be considered a new car under its skin because of all the Neue Klasse technology it uses, including a handful of super computers instead of dozens of electrical modules. In total, BMW says it has saved about 600 metres of wiring with the new system that is the basis for the company’s “software defined vehicle.”
The rear end is designed to resemble an elegant boat tail.Kunal D'souza/The Globe and Mail
The panoramic screen has all the relevant information for driving and is more in a driver's line of sight while looking at the road.Kunal D'souza/The Globe and Mail
The new dash comes with a new centre screen, standard passenger screen, a panoramic screen that replaces the gear cluster and a steering wheel that is from the i3.Kunal D'souza/The Globe and Mail
The 2027 electric i7 gets a new battery pack that uses sixth-generation cylindrical cells and has a capacity of 115.5 kilowatt-hours, an increase of about 10 per cent. Range is up to an estimated 560 kilometres, according to BMW, which is a result of the new battery but also new silicon carbide inverters for the updated electric motors.
A Tesla-style NACS port is now standard and charging speeds have increased significantly to 240 kilowatts from 195, which the company says is good for a 10-to-80-per-cent charge in 29 minutes.
In this class of vehicle, the ability to customize it is a requirement, Huber said. In addition to a vast array of colour choices, including two-tone finishes, there’s a new paint option the company calls “dual finish.”
Instead of two colours, the top and bottom half of the vehicle are painted in the same colour but the roof and pillars have a glossy finish and the body is matte, separated by a hand-drawn coach line in another colour.
When this dual finish option is selected, the car is pulled off the production line and sent to a special area to be painted.
“The process takes 20 trained people at the plant and an additional three days or 75 hours,” said Huber. “It’s an industry first.”
Such a big change for a mid-cycle refresh isn’t typical, but the 7 Series has long been the company’s technological showcase – which is why the leap in technology with Neue Klasse was prioritized for the 7 Series before being rolled out to other models.
“Next year will be 50 years [of the 7 series], so it really has to be at the top of technology and design,” said Huber. “With the Neue Klasse we saw a lot of good stuff that needs to be transferred to the whole portfolio, starting with the 7 Series.”
Meant to be bold and polarizing, the new design exudes an undeniable presence with its extra-long and wide body. Similar to the i3 and iX3 reveals – both radical departures in design from previous BMWs – social media has quickly condemned the i7’s new look. But online commenters aren’t, for the most part, the people buying these expensive luxury cars. BMW has gone on the record saying it isn’t trying to please everyone; it is specifically catering to buyers who want to stand out.
Globally, the 7 Series has made significant sales gains against the Mercedes S-Class, outperforming it in many regions since 2022. The S-Class has long dominated the full-size luxury segment, but now it’s seeing a decline while BMW continues to gain market share.
With BMW’s extensive update, the pressure on Mercedes has ramped up even further. However, Mercedes has unveiled a refreshed S-Class it is confident will turn the sales tide in its favour.
Pricing for the 2027 BMW 7 Series hasn’t been announced but the 2026 model starts at $153,900. Given how much has been changed, expect an increase.
Production begins in Dingolfing, Germany, in the summer with deliveries expected by September. A plug-in hybrid version (750e) will arrive in the first quarter of 2027 and a V8 powered 760 M performance model will follow.
The massive screen for rear-seat passengers.Kunal D'souza/The Globe and Mail
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