Green-minded politicians and celebrities won't have to change their conservation values any time soon as BMW has announced plans to offer an armored i7.
The model will be presented next year and promises "a new and innovative concept of protection" as well as "an unrivaled combination of protection, balance and safety as well as spaciousness and sustainability". BMW President Oliver Zipse said that the company "will present a fully electric vehicle with high safety for the first time - without compromise when it comes to the standard of protection for our customers". He added that the model will show that "sustainability and safety can go hand in hand".
Although many questions remain open, it is known that the i7 xDrive60 uses an all-wheel drive system with two electric motors producing a combined output of 543 hp (400 kW) and 744 Nm. This allows it to accelerate from 0 to 96 km/h in about 4.5 seconds and a range of an estimated 483 km with one charge in the EPA test cycle, reminds Jutarnji.hr.
It will be interesting to see how much the reinforcement process will affect the car's range, but BMW has decades of experience with these types of vehicles. Their first armored car was introduced in 1978 and was based on the 7 Series. Subsequent generations of flagship sedans offered armour, while the X5 Security was added to the range in 2004.
It remains unclear what level of protection the i7 will have, but BMW has previously offered the VR6 and VR7 vehicles. The X5 Protection VR6 was equipped with cast armor, an armored trunk compartment and bullet-resistant glass approximately 33 millimeters thick.
