A 2011 BMW ActiveHybrid 7 Is Nothing Like The Toyota Prius
A 2011 BMW ActiveHybrid 7 is a hybrid that will never remind you of a Prius in every shape or form. Gas efficiency is exactly what you think of when you think hybrid however the BMW hybrid is not that fuel efficient. Even though the 2011 ActiveHybrid 7 is going to save on fuel in comparison to its other 7-series siblings, its ride in stop and go traffic is iffy and the power steering gets turned off in idle stop. It will do a good job of integrating raw car power with the fuel efficiency of hybrid technology but there are some quirks that get in the way.
Most hybrids employ a smaller gas engine since the car is also being powered by the electric motor but this is not true for the BMW ActiveHybrid 7. Most hybrids reduce gasoline costs even while maintaining power, but BMW saw the extra power, and decided to make their cars go faster. The 2011 BMW ActiveHybrid 7 features a dual turbo direct-injection 4.4-liter V-8 engine which is the same as the basic BMW 750i The only difference is the electric motor that’s powered by the 120-volt lithium ion battery pack. It features more horsepower than a 750i and provides better fuel economy.
The ActiveHybrid 7 should basically be considered as a mild hybrid system since the car is not able to drive completely under electric power. It is similar to the Integrated Motor Assist System of the Honda, where it offers boost when it is accelerating, and when it stops it lets the engine shut down. As a driver, you would not believe the ActiveHybrid 7 is a hybrid up until you see a blue area on the fuel gauge indicating that electricity is being regenerated. When you arrive at a stoplight, you will know it’s a hybrid because the engine will go quiet and the tachometer drops to zero. Taking into consideration the size of the engine, it is surprising how smooth the engine returns to life, when you take your foot off of the brake.
Even though the idle stop system works well at a long stoplight, it won’t do so well in stop-and-go traffic. For unkown reasons, the vehicle will power down for 5 seconds at a time even in stop-and-go traffic. The amount of performance is impressive but it does take some getting used to because the car will lunge forward even with a light touch on the accelerator. How the car is designed, it is not a green car but rather a car that uses the hybrid system to add more power while improving fuel efficiency somewhat.
The 2011 BMW ActiveHybrid 7 comes with the greatest gas mileage in the BMW 7 series family but it only gets 20 miles per gallon. Not bad for the deluxe vehicle it is, but nothing breathtaking for a hybrid.
February 21, 2012 at 1:35 pm Comments (0)