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"I am the great Potholio! I need TPMS for my pothole!" -- Mike Schmidt
(Photo illustration by yours truly.)
Another week, another BMW leaves out fleet. We're completely out now. They're going to make us give back the embroidered jacket soon. Over 12 months, we put nearly 29,000 miles on our Long Term 2009 BMW 750. Read the wrap up and then head back here to read our Parting Shots and to, of course, add your own.
Another exercise in distance driving and found myself again with the BMW 750i in my driveway with about 1000 miles over the weekend in front of me. You can't help but look at the thing and wonder if there's too much car here to have much fun, all 199.8 inches of it from tip to tail and 4,599 pounds.
Tromping around L.A. this weekend in the 2009 BMW 750i (flat-free), it's hard to deny that BMW has managed to resurrect the once maligned iDrive multimedia interface. Much of the credit goes to the standard display, a high-resolution widescreen monitor that shames nearly any other in-dash piece on the market today. And it's not just the acreage or near Cinemascope aspect ratio of the screen that makes it so effective. The crisp resolution paints sharp graphics with such authority, you can't help but have faith in such precision.
You don't usually think of a BMW 750i as some kind of an mpg solution, but a trip to Phoenix and back reminded me that it's brilliant for long distance cruising. You just sail right by gas stations, laughing all the way.
This is what happens when you're driving a car with a fuel tank that holds 21.7 gallons. You might not have mpg, but a least you've got cruising range. Of course, there were times when I felt like the wacky Dennis Hopper character in the post-apocalyptic Waterworld, hoarding fuel oil in the Exxon Valdez, the world's last supertanker. (It's since renamed many times in the wake of its notorious oil spill in 1989 and is now doing business as the Dong Fang Ocean).
Would you look at the size of that trunk? I mean, that sucker is huge. Maybe it's just the petite size of the girls clothes that News Editor Toepke left in the trunk, but still there's clearly room to spare in there.
Now, there are still some problems. I mean, there are small cargo nets on the sides, but what about stuff that's loose in the middle? Where the net for that?
And the liftover height isn't all that low. The lid doesn't close on its own either. Petty quibbles maybe, but this is a $90K car, shouldn't have to ask for anything at that price.
Ed Hellwig, Senior Editor, Inside Line @ 27,579 miles
I have big sunglasses.
They come in a ridiculously big, white case.
But should the ridiculously big, white case not be able to find a safe storage spot in a big car like the BMW 7 Series?
Won't fit in the center console. Won't fit in the door pocket. Will fit in the glovebox, but still nudges the case when I close the lid.
Kelly Toepke, News Editor @ 27,566 miles
Two days out of service (Thanks, Bryn.) and one, $297.72 (shipped) 245/45R19 Goodyear Excellence run flat from Tirerack, we're back in business.
Stokes, as well as four local BMW dealerships, were out of stock on this tire and wanted a week to get one. Tirerack had just a few left and we had it in hand the next day. Our guys at Stokes charged us $27.25 for install and disposal.
Total: $324.97
Mike Magrath, Vehicle Testing Assistant @ 27,248 miles
These days I feel the need to preface all BMW 750i posts with a "No, I didn't get a flat tire" disclaimer. With that out of the way I can talk about a possibly related issue: poor steering feel/response.
I haven't been a fan of BMW's variable steering since I first experienced it on the current-generation 5 Series five years ago. The idea of trading in consistent steering response just so you don't have to turn the wheel as far at low speeds seems like a bad investment, though I suppose one could argue the average 7 Series buyer would happily make that trade.
But there's more to my issue with the 7 Series' steering than just its variable component.
Somewhere in between buying new tires for our 2009 BMW 750i, the check engine light clicked on. We tried the simplest fix first. Run the onboard diagnostic check through iDrive. Everything checked out fine there, but the light was still on. So we tried the second simplest fix. Unscrew the fuel cap, screw it back on and drive 10-15 miles. No dice. So we drove to Santa Monica BMW.
DME fault code 190302 was to blame for the light. And the fix was documented in service information bulletin B12 28 09. Per the bulletin, the tech tested for a DMTL system (emissions) leak. When he found no leak, the code was cleared and order restored. It sounds like the fuel cap was the problem after all. Our adjustment fixed the fault but just didn't clear the code.
While we were there the dealer performed campaign B11 09 09, which involved removing the drive belt guard bracket. Now we're back on the road and back to hunting potholes.
Total Cost: $0
Days out of service: 1
Mike Schmidt, Vehicle Testing Manager @ 26,968 miles
It had already been 9 whole days since our last flat in the 7 Series, so we were due, I guess. It had rained a bit since then, too, so fresh potholes were just waiting to ruin yet another run-flat tire.
This is in the front driver side tire. It measures about 3.25 inches, but it isn't nearly as spectacular as some of our other recent blowouts in this car. Time to limp it back to Stokes. I'm sure they've been missing us.
Bryn MacKinnon, Senior Editor, Edmunds.com, @ 27,238 miles
Last night I parked next to an older BMW 7 Series, and couldn't resist taking this quick shot of the two big Bimmers side-by-side.
Personally, I love the styling of our 2009 750i. Although I think the other car is still handsome as well.
Do you prefer the old or new?
Kelly Toepke, News Editor @ 27,036 miles
Below are the fuel economy numbers for February 2010. We've listed the best, worst and overall average tanks.
As usual, a couple of cars are out on the road or unavailable at the time of this writing. I'll continue to add them as they come in and let you know in the comments.
| Car |
Best
|
Worst
|
Average
|
|
| 2009 Audi A4 Avant |
28.3
|
14.2
|
20.9
|
|
| 2009 Audi S5 |
22.3
|
10.8
|
16.4
|
|
| 2008 BMW 750i |
24.7
|
12.3
|
17.3
|
|
| 2009 BMW M3 |
21.6
|
10.8
|
15.9
|
|
| 2010 Chevrolet Camaro SS |
23.1
|
9.4
|
16.8
|
|
| 2009 Dodge Challenger R/T |
26.4
|
10.3
|
17.2
|
|
| 2009 Dodge Ram 1500 |
19.4
|
10.5
|
13.9
|
|
| 2009 Ford Flex Limited |
26.7
|
13.3
|
19.4
|
|
| 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid |
36.6
|
18.3
|
31.3
|
|
| 2010 GMC Terrain |
28.0
|
16.0
|
20.5
|
|
| 2010 Honda Accord Crosstour |
24.2
|
15.8
|
20.0
|
|
| 2010 Honda Insight EX |
45.8
|
27.9
|
38.9
|
|
| 2010 Mazdaspeed 3 |
28.1
|
18.0
|
21.7
|
|
| 2004 Toyota Prius |
59.3
|
26.7
|
40.9
|
After the jump you can see the list sorted by best average MPG.
Less than two miles passed after having replaced a rear tire before ^this^ happened. It wasn't a big pothole, in fact I barely noticed it, but it was big enough and placed perfectly enough to cause the bubble/tear/mouth shown above. Sigh.
A new Goodyear Excellence, size 245/45R19 took a full day and a half for Stokes here in Santa Monica to procure, and cost $367.22 installed.
Mike Magrath, Vehicle Testing Assistant @ 26,816 miles
We ordered up a replacement tire for our 2009 BMW 750i after Josh broke it yesterday. Our local Santa Monica shop, Stokes Tire Pros, needed a day to secure the 275/40R19 Goodyear Excellence runflat.
This morning we drove over, swapped our corded mess for an inflatable tire and were on our way in about an hour. After tire disposal and installation we spent under 400 bucks, which was cheaper than the dealership wanted for rubber alone.
Total Cost: $395.74
Days Out of Service: 1
Mike Schmidt, Vehicle Testing Manager @ 26,808 miles
I noticed last weekend during my time with the 750i that its exhaust finisher is part of the bodywork and that the actual exhaust tips don't make contact with the fascia which houses the finisher. Not a big deal, but certainly a detail which seems contradictory to the car's otherwise purposeful demeanor, not to mention a little cheesy. It's also something we've noticed in other performance sedans.
Also, if you look carefully, you can see the valve in the left exhaust tip which opens at full honk to, well, let the honk out -- which does seem purposeful. Heavy, sure, but purposeful.
Josh Jacquot, Senior road test editor
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