2009 BMW 750Li and 750i Technology

The press kit for the 2009 BMW 7 Series thuds on the table like a telephone directory: It's an astonishing 281-page tome. BMW has a lot to say about the new 7 Series, and for once it's not all marketing BS. This is one of the most technically advanced automobiles ever built.

First, a few updates to our first-drive story (click here to read the story):

The new 7 Series will make its U.S. debut at the Los Angeles Show next month and is expected in American BMW dealers by spring 2009. Only one powertrain, the 400-hp, 450-lb-ft, twin-turbo 4.4L V-8, will be available, in short wheelbase 750i form and the 5.5-in.-longer 750Li, which is expected to comprise the bulk of U.S. sales. This engine not only outpowers the 4.8L V-8 in the outgoing 750Li, it also has more torque than the 6.0L V-12 fitted to the 760Li.

There are no plans to offer the 326-hp, 332-lb-ft, twin-turbo 3.0L straight-six version (badged, somewhat confusingly, 740i in Europe), nor the sensational 245-hp, 398-lb-ft, single-turbo 3.0L straight-six diesel (730d), which with a 0-to-60-mph time of about 7.0 sec is just two seconds slower to 60 mph than the big V-8, yet uses almost 40% less gas on the European combined fuel-consumption test (BMW claims 32.6 mpg). However, BMW officials admit they will monitor the impact of high gas prices and the looming CAFE regulations to assess whether a smaller-engine 7 Series might make sense at some point in the future.

No official word on pricing yet, but the new 7 Series will be more expensive than the outgoing model. Loud hints dropped at the international launch program in Dresden, Germany, suggest prices will start in the low- to mid-$80,000 range.

That's no surprise, perhaps, given the staggering amount of technology crammed into this car. Here's some of it:

Integral Active Steering: Part of the optional Sport Package, this is BMW's own four-wheel-steering system. Like the systems that were all the rage among Japanese manufacturers during the late '80s/early '90s, BMW's four-wheel steer allows the rear wheels to countersteer the fronts at low speeds and turn in the same direction at high speeds. The result is a tighter turning circle at low speeds (by up to 27.6 in.) -- great for parking maneuvers -- and greater stability through high-speed turns, plus increased comfort for rear-seat passengers during fast driving, as the system effectively reduces the car's yaw rate. And here's the 21st-century wrinkle to what was a 20th-century novelty: The Integral Active Steering System will work with the stability-control system when braking on slippery surfaces, automatically intervening to steer the rear wheels to keep the big BMW on the straight and narrow.