BMW introduces ultra high-performance saloon

Jun 29 2009 Steve Hughes

BMW is taking the unusual step of inviting customers to order a new high-powered diesel version of its flagship 7 Series saloon for delivery this autumn before the company has decided how much to charge.

The German car maker says it is so confident that the ultra high-performance oil-burner will be a sell-out that it has opened the order book now but does not intend to announce prices until just before the on-sale date in September.

Likely to cost in excess of £55,000, the BMW 740d will be so powerful that the top speed has to be electronically limited to 155mph.

It will be able to accelerate to 60mph in just 6.3 seconds courtesy of its twin turbocharged 3.0-litre engine that generates more than 300bhp.

The engine is the most powerful diesel that BMW has developed yet thanks to its EfficientDynamics technology it is still able to average 40mpg economy with a CO2 emissions figure of 181g/km.

When it arrives here in September it will sell alongside the revised 730d range, which goes on sale at the same time.

Accounting for 85 per cent of all BMW 7 Series sales in the UK, the new 730d and the stretched version 730Ld will have economy improved by six per cent at 41mpg and emissions down by 7.3 per cent at 178g/km.

This sees the 730d drop into the band I vehicle excise duty tier with a corresponding improvement in company car tax liability.

In addition to the use of EfficientDynamics, which incorporates brake energy regeneration, the roof, doors, bonnet and front side panels are all made from aluminium to reduce weight.