2021 BMW X7

BMW was late to the three-row SUV game, allowing generations of the Mercedes-Benz GLS and Audi Q7 to gobble up sales before releasing the X7 in 2018. The vehicle is now midway through its life cycle, but remains fiercely competitive with, or even outshining of, its competition with a handsome design, thoughtful features and (especially) a range of potent and delightful engines.

The Benz is roomier and has fielded a competitor to BMW’s Alpina XB7 with its new Maybach GLS600, but the BMW is still preferable in this category. The Audi doesn’t feel like a real competitor, proffering significantly less visual and dynamical excitement. The new Genesis GV80 promises to make waves with its generous features and lower price, but it doesn’t have the power or panache to match BMW’s higher-end X7 derivatives.

What is exciting about the X7 is what’s exciting about many contemporary BMWs: great powertrains, high-quality interior appointments with thoughtful touches that offer delight and comfort-leaning ride quality. The X7 is not the ultimate driving machine BMWs once were. It is a cruiser, capable of devouring highway miles and keeping occupants isolated, particularly useful if some of these are children (or pets).

Nowhere is BMWs sense of delight more active than in the layers of optional LEDs integrated into the X7’s panoramic glass roof—lights that change color at the touch of a button. The optional, multi-faceted Glass Control shift knob is also smile-inducing, if equally absurd. Something that’s less delightful is BMW’s gesture control system, which is supposed to read and interpret certain hand movements. But in practice simple commands like adjusting the stereo volume or music track are about twenty times more cumbersome than the buttons on the steering wheel or dashboard. 

Is it even worth mentioning infotainment at a time when these functions can, and should, be abdicated to a smart phone via Apple CarPlay or Android Auto. For those who insist on using the BMW system (or forgot their device), its 12.3-inch screen is as functional and legible as any other, meaning, it’s needlessly complicated with buried menus and sub-categories that make acts like evoking Bluetooth more complex than needed. At least there are hard buttons for the climate control and stereo volume, and a rotary controller for scrolling through the infinite strata without needing to poke the screen, whilst driving.

Despite hosting a rather inflamed exterior scale, the X7 somehow does an excellent job of looking like a BMW, a claim that cannot be made for the Audi Q7, which looks like a Volkswagen. And the GLS makes attempts to look striking, but mostly presents as a jellybean. BMW also offers a range of exterior paints in shades of greens and blues that offer joyous relief from seas of blacks, silvers, and whites. 

Finding a full-size, three-row BMW SUV stylish is not something that could have been anticipated a decade ago, but preferences adjust to market realities. If BMW made a 7-Series station wagon, that would be superior. 

The base version of the X7 may be the best. Starting at $75,895, the Xdrive40i includes BMW’s famed twin-turbocharged inline-six cylinder engine with 335 horsepower and 330 pound-feet of torque, enough to hustle the 5337 pound behemoth from zero-to-60 in 5.5 seconds. Stepping up from there is the $95,395 Xdrive50i, with a twin-turbo V8 that makes a 456 horsepower and 479 pound-feet, and emits a lusty snarl. It adds weight, pushing the SUV to 5650 pounds, but still rockets zero-to-60 in 4.5 seconds. 

Peaking the X7 food chain is the $142,295 XB7 from BMW tuner Alpina, which adds more performance and more luxury (and more weight, at nearly 6,000 pounds), along with special suspension tuning, for a creamy ride. With 612 horsepower and 590 pound-feet available, it’s a beast, always able to put power where it’s needed and can clip off sub-four-second zero-to-60 blasts, on its way to an incomprehensible top speed of 180 mph. And with (optional) 23-inch thin-spoke Alpina wheels, it will definitely stand out against its (standard) 21-inch-wheeled, or even (optional) 22-inch cousins. A range of dark and light woods as well as plasticky “piano black” are available trim options. 

In the safety department, every X7 comes equipped with standard Active Driving Assistant, which includes front collision warning with automatic emergency braking (called City Collision Mitigation), lane departure warnings and blind spot monitoring. To level up, Driving Assistance Professional Package ($1,700) will layer on adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go capability, active collision avoidance for the blind spot warning system, front cross-traffic warning and Active Driving Assistant Pro (adds lane centering and self-steering below 40 mph to the adaptive cruise control system.

Plenty other standard amenities are offer, including a cabin-spanning sunroof, a power-opening (and closing) tailgate and quad-zone climate controls. All models also have BMW’s Xdrive all-wheel-drive system. Upgrading to the $2,250 Premium Package brings niceties like a fancy Harmon-Kardon stereo, a head-up display and soft close doors with power sunshades. The $4350 M-Sport package, available on the base model, is mostly cosmetic, and skippable. The $3450 Dynamic Handling package, however, is more sincere, with rear-wheel steering and a camera that looks up the road for imperfections. The $1,600 Luxury Seating package offers an upgraded range of power adjustment, ventilation and massage to the front seats. 

A $2,200 rear-seat entertainment package could be rendered overpriced and useless if passengers have smartphones, but may be a worthy investment for road-tripping parents with small kids. Parents also can opt for a fifth climate zone in the third row for $850, though it’s bundled in the $1,100 Cold Weather package, which also includes three rows of seat heaters.  

Three-row crossovers and SUVs are a growing chunk of the market, and, for many buyers, specs—especially passenger and cargo space—matter. The BMW is bigger inside than the Audi Q7, but smaller inside than the Mercedes GLS. BMW’s third-row legroom is a top-of-class 33.7 inches; the Audi Q7 only offers a snug 29.2 inches. The Mercedes GLS bests the X7 with 34.6 inches of legroom in row three. Cargo space behind the third row is a disappointing 12.8 cubic-feet. The Q7 offers 14.2 cubic-feet and the GLS offers 22.4—another class-topping figure among all three-row rivals, both premium and mainstream. But for the driver, the seating position of the BMW feels more intuitive than either of the other Germans, and with superior headroom, something to consider for taller buyers.

As referenced previously, however, the second-row captains chairs are a misstep. Their power-folding system is inadequate and takes what feels like hours to whir forward. But on occasion the system would push them toward the back of the front row seat. It was difficult to figure out how or why these seats behaved the way they did, but if it were possible to option the car without them—and with some simple one touch analog release lever like on the Kia Telluride—that would be superior. Drivers with eager kids need with easy-folding second-row seat not matter the approach otherwise even the quickest school drop off can infuriate.