the self-driving accidents of its car.
Sedans may become obsolete, replaced by crossovers, but there is one relatively niche segment of sedans that will remain: full-size luxury limousines. Mercedes-Benz S-Class. Or the Audi A8. And yes, the BMW 7 Series will remain. These are the flagship models packed with the automakers’ latest technology. And although it is still in the prototype stage, I can already say that the new BMW 7 Series will be something to be reckoned with.
130 miles per hour. The automated system was good and reliable, detecting vehicles in front of the car, while the automatic braking was reassuringly firm but not harsh enough to feel surprising.
As a practical system, taking your hands off the steering wheel for an extended period means the car will prompt you to reset at least one hand. Unlike other similar systems, BMW’s approach uses sensors in the steering wheel rim to detect hand contact with the steering wheel, rather than forcing a steering wheel shake, which might not be ideal when the car is moving at over 100mph.
And when driving at speeds below 85 mph, Level 2 Assisted Driving Plus can engage, providing hands-off on semi-autonomous highways, similar to technologies from Ford’s Super Cruise and Blue Cruze driving systems, and Tesla’s AutoPilot. But they’re systems that still need you to keep your eyes on the road, and the car will beep audibly and visually if it detects you’re looking away or closing your eyes for too long.
But in terms of the actual steering, acceleration and braking, the car was able to do all the work very efficiently, naturally and with complete independence. It was making turn-signal-triggered lane changes that Ford’s system could not yet make, with little hesitation. The movement of the BMW i7 Series from one lane to another was very steady and quick, something BMW says was optimized for the American market, but it was clear that on German streets the car could change lanes more gently.
Once it was time to exit the motorway as planned with the car’s built-in navigation, the BMW i7 Series prompted me to start moving on the far right via the slightly changed lane icon on the dashboard. It indicated right once and the BMW i7 Series started moving automatically one lane at a time before returning to practical Level 2 driving as it entered the actual ramp. This job was really impressive.
If the car deems that maneuvering at the last moment is too much or the traffic is too heavy, it will do the sensible thing and slow down.
Restoration of manual driving for the electric BMW i7 Series
I felt it would be presumptuous to reclaim manual control from the BMW i7 Series on the highway, and I decided to enter the fast lane. I pressed the accelerator pedal, and the electric BMW was surprised at what I was doing and seemed shocked when I reached the electronically limited top speed of around 134 mph. And I got there in no time, and I couldn’t reach the usual German top speed of 155 miles.
BMW tried to maintain the speed set for the yet-to-be-announced M Performance model: when decelerating to 112 or 85 mph it reverts to the semi-autonomous driving mode it was doing automatically, and manages the sudden impulses of manual driving that you’d I perform on highways more smoothly.
BMW declares its legal liability for the BMW 7 Series autonomous driving accidents
BMW says Level 3 autonomous driving at speeds of up to 37 mph does not require the driver to pay attention or follow the wheel, but must remain in the driver’s seat. . The company says it will use what appears to be the most powerful radar in the auto industry. It’s a full-range radar with vertical separation, and is paired with an 8-megapixel windshield camera.
The Bavarian company finally said it would also take legal responsibility in the event of a collision, which Mercedes did earlier this year. The company hasn’t provided more details on the matter, but it’s definitely something to keep an eye on. Yes, I have no doubt that BMW is capable of developing a system that can do this from a technical point of view.
Self-parking of the electric BMW i7
BMW also wants to complement the autonomous driving operations with the automated driver doing the parking process. Automatic parking systems are nothing new, but in my experience, the process was actually quite whimsical. After a demonstration of the new BMW i7 Series, I was worried, but the car was more accurate at professional parking, reversing and distance maneuvering, and it looks like BMW is really on to something new.
All you have to do is take the car to a place where you parked, whether perpendicular or parallel, and just turn on the function, and the car will be able to detect the parking place. And it will ask you to confirm the selection of this position on the central touch screen, and when you confirm your desire to do so, you will park, and when you try to adjust the movement by using the brakes, the car will continue to steer itself.
New to this system is the addition of augmented reality in the real-time camera view which shows you exactly where the car is going, which certainly increased my confidence as the i7 maneuvered around several parked cars.
Did you know that the new BMW i7 can also recognize when you arrive home, and will navigate to your driveway, or where you are, and take over and park itself inside your garage. Just set the location of the starting point, program the route to your place, by driving manually just once, and the car will save this entire routine and ask you if you would like to do it semi-autonomously each time you reach that starting point.
The car can be controlled via BMW’s smartphone app while parked outside, just like Hyundai’s SmartPark system, but instead of simply moving forward and backward, the car can memorize up to 200 meters of pre-programmed routes. And when you try to adjust its movement, the car does not automatically cancel the self-driving function.
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