2001 BMW 740 Reviews

Great performance machine.  Its fast, handles well, so perfectly balanced,  It is as solid as the day it was new.  All the interior materials and exterior body and trim has held up extremely well.  Its just a comfortable great driving safe solid car.  I am hoping that the new 2009 7 series will be such a car.  The '02 generation while a great driving car, was an electronic mess.

Always wanted one fro the looks. Love the smooth and strong engine and the transmission. The fit and finish is good. Too many things break though and I am constantly trying to catch up. Details show good ideas but bad execution. Window lifters are a maintenance items with the same interval as brakes. Ashtray and other mechanical trim pieces fail or fall off. The radio is not up to par with Audi/Mercedes/Lexus. Does not work without the ignition key. Cruise control is overly complicated, has to be turned on every time the car is started.

well i love everything about this car.handles marvelously even at speeds of 140m/hr.its a speed demon.the interior is superb feels like a jet on earth,built into a luxury limousine of excellence.very expensive to acquire,a few of these can be found on the market for a high purchase value and most who own them do not want to sell them.most are garage kept and are not a Monday to Friday car but mostly just a Friday car.very fun to drive especially long distance,put on some enya and relax and let go.

Performance - acceleration, braking, handling
Appearance - Beautiful lines, executive, business like
Fun Factor - fun to drive
I wanted this particular car since the body style was
released in '95.  2001 is the last and best year of this
particular body and it looks exactly as I wanted it too

The BMW 740iL is so good this is actually a second one I bought (after I traded in the first one a few years back, for an M5!).  All you have to do is to sit in one to be convinced - apart from the top notch material being used (high gloss walnut wood trims with chrome accents, soft and durable top grain leather seating surfaces, driver-centric centre console design, etc.), it is the generous amount of interior space that seals the deal - carvernous!  Space is a luxury quite often ignored - in this car, it is especially satisfying to be able to, say, reach for your cell phone in the pants pocket without having to bump into the door card or the centre tunnel, etc.  The seat excels not only in the number of adjustments available, but, more importantly, is so generous in size you can be very deliberate in choosing how you like to shift weight wth you behind while resting your elbow(s) on the softly padded arm/elbow rest(s).  All the buttons and controls are so inviting to use you just can't help but believe hours of research must have been put in to determine their locations and tactile feels to ensure positive engagement everytime!  A few other fine touches such as one twist start, heated steering wheel, and soft close trunk complete the list of modern luxury I ever wish for.  One pleasant surprise I have with this vehicle is the 6 extra inches of rear seat leg room (it is an "L" model afterall) - not only does it allow you to sit back there with your leg crossed in front without hitting the front seat back, the wide opening rear door also allows large objects to be easily loaded/unloaded into/out of the rear seat area (especially handy when transporting multiple sets of wheels/tires) leaving the trunk a permanent storage for our 3 folding bicycles, helmets, folded lawn chairs. etc.  A perfect score cannot be had without considering the ride/handling/engine performance.  This is the softest riding BMW I have ever driven and I can describe its as supple yet with extreme disipline in body motion control.  And yes, it is a car that can be driven to limits and be equally amazing (as long as you are smooth with the controls).  There are no pretend-to-be sport cars out there that can even dream of intimidating this 300 hp V8 beast, be it hot get away from the stop light or emergency lane change maneuvre!  The 4.4L aluminum V8 mated to a 5 speeds ZF auto box delivers smooth yet positive shifts with a pleasant and sonarous induction sound.  It has so much low end torque throttle response is always instantaneous (even superior to the Porsche Turbo!).  This all makes this car sounded like the perfect combination of comfort, luxury, and performance, and it sure is.  That's why I can easily pick this car as my most preferred ride over the other more exotic machines in my garage.  

PS.  If you don't like spending money to maintain you vehicle, this is not the car for you.  At 140,000 km, my car has new radiator, alternator, assorted suspension arms, heater valve, engine valley seals, and rebuilt transmission!  The list will certainly not just end there, but, IMHO, there is still nothing out there that I would rather have.