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      06-28-2015, 01:24 PM   #1
TheBry
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2016 G12 7-Series Unveiling Event - San Francisco

I was recently invited by BMW to attend an unveiling event here in the San Francisco Bay Area for the all-new 2016 7 Series (G12). Although, by the time I attended the event, the car had already been publicly unveiled (on the web), I was still excited to actually be able to see, touch and interact with the car at the exclusive event. My thoughts on the experience follow...

First, I was massively impressed by the invitation. I'm surprised others who were invited to various unveiling events haven't elaborated on exactly how cool an experience the unboxing of the invitation was.

The invitation arrived via FedEx in a very nice box (see images below). The box was adorned with a simple "7" which gave me a hint about its contents. Removing the lid from the box felt like I was unboxing an Apple product (Apple fans will know exactly what I'm talking about -- attention to detail, anticipation, etc.). The actual invitation sat under a sheet of tissue paper, and was in a nice black sleeve. To my surprise, when I lifted up the sleeve, there was a video screen beneath -- it immediately started playing a video where none other than Ludwig Willisch, President and CEO of BMW North America, personally invited me to participate in this exclusive event. I was totally blown away by this, and it simply added to the anticipation of being able to go to the event. Very cool. Under the video screen, there was a really nice lucite / magnetic photo frame.

I've included a video link and the unboxing photos below.

Now... the event itself took place at a really cool venue called "AutoVino - A Preserve for Fine Cars and Wine". Collectors of cars and wine use this venue to co-mingle. This day, however, BMW had taken it over, and it was completely decked out in 7 Series marketing imagery / branding.

They collected my iPhone and Apple Watch at the door, and even performed a pat-down and ran a metal detection wand all over my body to ensure I didn't have any recording devices on my person. I asked why all the fuss -- the car had already been publicly unveiled at that point. Their response made sense. They said the only publicly available photos and videos of the finished car have been carefully managed by BMW marketing, and that they'd like to keep it that way until the car has been officially unveiled at Frankfurt in September.

When I walked in, I was thrilled to see they had two different versions of the car (still draped). The atmosphere was really cozy -- there were maybe a maximum of 20 invited guests. Much smaller audience than I thought it'd be (which was fine by me since it meant we wouldn't be fighting to get into the cars!). I won't go into the food, the wine, or even the speeches by various BMW execs... most of that has been covered in other threads. What I do want to talk about are the cars. Again, I'd already consumed every possible photo and video of the car online since the worldwide unveiling, but nothing compares to actually walking around one and sitting inside. I was skeptical at first (especially after those leaked shots of the first fully uncovered G11 version in December 2014) but have to say this car is STUNNING in person. Full stop. They had a Luxury version and the M Sport version on display, and my tastes had me gravitating toward the M Sport car, where I spent the majority of my time. You've all seen the videos, so I won't talk about the exterior styling -- just know that it's a knock-out. It definitely feels evolutionary vs. the current F02, but as a current F02 owner, I was drooling. I did notice they've re-worked the trunk area a bit. There's slightly more room. Gone, however, is the nifty under-the-trunk-floor storage I've come to use for road-side stuff (a blanket, a spare jacket, etc.) That space is now occupied by batteries. There's one battery under the front hood, and two batteries in the rear. BMW claims all the new electronic systems require a lot more power, hence this three-battery setup. The trunk-mounted drop-down tool kit is gone too. No longer a feature.

Other observations:

- they've completely re-worked the soft-close mechanism for the doors. It's a two-stage process now and is much quieter than what I have in my current 7.

- the switchgear feels really premium. the aluminum with laser etched iconography is such a nice touch, and looks amazing when illuminated.

- the HUD is AWESOME! I have the full-color HUD in my 2012 740Li, but after seeing the new HUD in the G12, I'm feeling like I've been living in a tiny box. The new HUD is much wider (presenting much more information) than the existing one. It's somehow crisper as well.

- the gesture controls for iDrive, although seemingly gimmicky on the surface, are actually quite useful. I had a blast turning the stereo volume up and down by twirling my index finger in the air. also loved programming the unit to recognize the one programmable gesture (two-finger poke). I set it to turn the head-unit of the iDrive system on and off. I loved being able to simply poke my two fingers toward the screen to have it turn off and on. I don't often turn off the display in my current car, but have done so when driving long distances at night and have no need for the nav system. it completely changes the ambiance in the car when there isn't a massive LCD screen illuminating the front seat occupants. anyway... gesture control is sweet!

- 360 View is WAY more refined / improved than the existing Top and Side view options we have on the existing 7 Series. The "rabbit eye" side-view is gone, replaced by full 360 view of the car. They've placed cameras in the nose of the car, the outboard positions of the side-view mirrors, and in the trunk lid (above the license plate) to create a seamless 360 view of your surroundings. There is even a gesture you can use with the iDrive display to spin your car around in real-time to see objects surrounding you. This feature was other-worldly to me and I can't wait to try it out on the road. It'll make parking and situational awareness even better than Top / Side view does today.

- touch sensitive buttons for the hvac are really cool too. when you tap one of the targets, the buttons glow orange as they enable whatever it is you were switching on or off. so cool to see that glow under my finger as I was tapping.

- front seats FINALLY get full massage. I have the butt-massage in my current 7 (which was the only massage option for the front seat) and have full massage in the rear seats. Now, all passengers receive equal treatment in terms of massage functions. I tried it out, and it's a little better than what I currently have -- more programs, and the programs themselves felt a little more forceful.

- door pulls have been more thoughtfully positioned in this version of the car. In my current generation 7 Series, I'm always having to tell passengers where to pull to close the doors (they're concealed in the name of design, but frustrating to people not familiar with the car).

- really cool two-stage storage opening in the center console (in front of the gear selector). One press reveals the two cup holders. Another press extends the opening even larger to reveal a storage area in front of the cup holders that also has a USB port. a similar double-tap will close both the storage area and cup holder area simultaneously. Really clever.

- the tablet in the armrest between the two rear seats is actually way more useful than I thought it would be. it enables rear seat passengers to control absolutely everything available to them in the back seat. there are, of course, redundant switches in the doors, on the sides of the arm rest, etc, but why use those when you have a cool tablet featuring skeuomorphic icons with hot-spots for controlling all features of the back seat area. so cool. no other car has this. recline rear seats; control air conditioning; control rear lighting; control rear and side-window sun shades; control internal shade for moon roof. all from this tablet.

- speaking of the moon roof -- WOW! When I first heard about the etchings in the glass, and the ambient lighting, I thought it'd look sortof tacky (think vegas). however, having seen it and played with it extensively, I think it's quite cool. it really opens up the car, and the ambient lighting that borders the glass roof is very subtle. true to BMW's marketing claims, the lighting does cause the etchings to very subtly "dazzle" in darkness, creating the effect of stars. it's quite cool. I also learned that it'll be a standard feature on ALL 7 Series coming to North America -- you can't delete it.

- and, finally, the materials throughout the interior are several notches above what they've used in the past. the leather is more supple, the carpeting feels more plush -- every surface feels so much more refined than previous 7 Series cars. Indeed, when the event was over, and I climbed into my F02 7 Series for the drive home, I felt like I'd just sat behind the wheel of a stock 228i with no options. I'm obviously exaggerating, but the two interiors (F02 vs G12) are VERY different in terms of cohesiveness, texture, and ambiance. I sooooooo want a G12 now, and know it's going to be the M Sport version.

As has been discussed in this thread, there are several options we're not going to be getting here in the good old USA -- among them are the Laser Lights, and the remote controlled parking. Big bummer, because those are two of the features I'm most excited about.

Anyway, that's my take. If you guys have any questions, please do ask -- happy to answer while this experience is still fresh in my mind.

Video and photos of the Unboxing experience follow...

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      07-01-2015, 05:58 AM   #2
jwestfield
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I got my invite yesterday for the upcoming Dallas G12 event and I was surprised and amazed.

I am rarely amazed by an invite (or most things, for that matter) but this one is spectacular!!!!

Bravo BMW.

Can't wait to see the car in two weeks.
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      07-02-2015, 11:19 PM   #3
Stunnaz
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I just received my invitation for the Chicago event. However, my invitation card was in a simple envelope, not like the fancy box that you received.
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