BMW was regularly encouraged by its fans to manufacture an M-powered 7 Series, but the Bavarian car maker argued that as long as its associate Alpina was in charge of building a performance variant, an M-bred full-size luxury sedan wasn’t justified.
Truth be told, BMW’s M division – which solely concentrates on squeezing every last drop of power and dynamism from a vehicle – doesn’t go hand in hand with the 7 Series’ luxurious panache. Still, with its now-iconic recipe, Alpina always managed (somehow) to pull it off, spawning a gentleman’s performer in the process.
In fact, the new B7 – based on the new 7 Series – appears ready to hit the streets very soon, as Alpina teased a video of the automobile doing its thing on a test track, accompanied by Puccini Vissi D’arte soprano, sung by Maria Callas.
So, the B7 appears to be ready to take on the competition, and we think the car will see the light of day at the Geneva Motor Show, in March. Moreover, judging by the exhaust note, the upgraded automobile appears to be powered by the 4.4-litre, twin-turbocharged V8, mated to an 8 speed automatic transmission, although power won’t stick to the 443 hp and 650 Nm (lb-ft) stock power output, but instead produce beyond 550-horses.