2016 BMW 7-Series: First Drive

What it is: 2016 BMW 7-Series full-size luxury sedan

Price Range:  $82,295 for the 740i, up to more than $120,000 with options

Competitors: Mercedes-Benz S-Class; Audi A8

Alternatives: Gently used Bentleys; Cadillac Escalade (only with driver)

Pros: A major step up in comfort and technology, especially from the rear seat

Cons: Not a track car, not a value proposition

Would I Buy it with My Own Money: Were I in the market for a business sedan where I could see myself equally happy as the driver or the driven? Absolutely.

Automotive luxury is a never-ending game of one-upmanship, though it can be argued that the game is won by any customer with the money to participate. Recently, however, the expression of luxury has moved beyond leather-lined interiors, fat chrome grilles and big motors (although all are still requirements.) Modern luxury has evolved to include high technology, world-class materials, and even olfactory stimulation. Mercedes-Benz threw down the gauntlet two years ago when it launched its current S-Class, which it called the best automobile in the world. Brandishing massaging seats with “hot stone” pistons, a perfume atomizer, and enough road-sensing technology to nearly allowing the car to drive itself, Mercedes had a strong case.

Come this fall, archrival BMW’s all-new, sixth-generation 7-Series flagship hits dealerships, which like the Benz, will only be offered in long-wheelbase form. Would it—could it?—out-pimp, out-hustle and out-luxuriate the Benz?

BMW just gave us our first stint behind the wheel to gather our first impressions, and being BMW, the drive included some time on a track — the private Monticello Motor Club in upstate New York.