BMW X7 M60i Review & Prices

The BMW X7 M60i is the performance version of the German brand’s seven-seat SUV and comes with refreshed styling like the updated X7. With a huge M-division V8, it goes up against the likes of the Range Rover SVR, Porsche Cayenne Turbo and Mercedes-AMG G63.

There are plenty of performance SUVs now, but this particular one is practical for families and smart – much like getting a large North Face duffle bag.

Looks-wise, the M60i takes the rather bold updated styling of the base X7, then adds some sportiness. Add deeper bumpers, larger inlets and 23-inch alloy wheels, as well as a smattering of M logos, and you’ve got a dynamic-looking SUV.

The dynamic feeling continues into the cabin, with carbon fibre, aluminium and leather adorning most of the surfaces. You also get nice ambient lighting throughout, while you can also get the panoramic sunroof with lighting across that as well.

You get lots of storage, with big door pockets, a large bin under the armrest and a decent glovebox – although air fresheners do take up some space.

As a seven-seater, the adjustable middle row has a good amount of space, whether you have the seats in their forwardmost or rearmost position. There’s a good amount of headroom too, even with a panoramic sunroof.

Even in the rearmost seats, you get some decent space. Although headroom isn’t the best, adults can be comfortable, as you also get room for your feet under the seats in front, while there’s also a cupholder and USB chargers, as you do in the middle row.

With all seven seats in place, you get 326 litres of luggage space, with a split-folding tailgate offering a handy perch. Folding the rear seats gives you 750 litres behind the middle row. All the seats can be folded down with switches in the rear, and when the middle row is put down, you get a mostly flat space.

The seven-seat Range Rover has 818 litres with the rear seats folded down, while the Mercedes GLS has 890 litres.

BMW has tweaked the chassis of the X7 with this M60i, and when you take it on a twisty road, you get flat-cornering and an impressive overall driving experience. The suspension is especially impressive, providing lots of balance and the ability to soak bumps up brilliantly. The 4.4-litre twin-turbocharged V8 is also a triumph, giving lots of performance when you need it, while the eight-speed transmission is responsive in sport mode.

As you would expect from an expensive SUV with adaptive suspension, you get a comfortable ride around town, and even though the M60i gets rear-wheel steering, the turning circle is 12.4m – larger than a Range Rover’s 11m. It’s not the smallest car either, but the large windows help with visibility.

On the motorway, the M60i has plenty of kit to make long-distance journeys smooth, such as adaptive cruise control and lane keep assist. In comfort mode especially, the X7 is an excellent cruiser.

It may not be an obvious performance SUV choice, but the X7 M60i is comfortable, has loads of power and plenty of space – even if other options have a bit more space.

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Compared to other performance SUVs, the M60i is surprisingly good value. It’s cheaper to buy than the comparative Porsche Cayenne, Range Rover SVR and Mercedes-AMG G63 by some way.

But compared to the rest of the X7 line-up, it’s considerably more expensive – close to £30,000 more than the base X7.

Comfortable, composed and nice to drive, the X7 M60i is a capable performance SUV, but it’s quite large and has a big turning circle

In town

Measuring almost 5.2m long, the M60i is quite long, and it’s roughly as wide as a Range Rover. It has rear-wheel steering like the Range Rover, but it has a turning circle 1m bigger at 12.3m, so it’s not as manoeuvrable. But for such a big car, the X7 M60i still does okay moving around, especially considering the base X7, without the rear-wheel steering has a 13m turning circle. 

The wing mirrors are conversely a little small, limiting the view around the car in tighter situations. But the rest of the windows allow for decent visibility, taking advantage of the high seating position that you have – although not as high as the Range Rover. 

In comfort mode, the adaptive suspension soaks bumps up impressively well for a sporty model – even the 23-inch alloy wheels can spoil it. 

On the motorway

For long-distance cruising, the X7 M60i’s twin-turbocharged V8 engine isn’t very efficient to tell the truth. On a sensible cruise, the X7 can return an official 23.2mpg. Considering it’s a performance car, it’s not too bad – but as a practical SUV it’s not ideal to say the least. 

Putting that to one side though, and the X7 is comfortable and well-insulated so you won’t be too bothered by exterior noise and cracks in the road. The transmission can be a little hesitant in kicking down, so there’ll be a slight pause before you start accelerating. When you do start though, it doesn’t take long to get to the speed you want. 

On a twisty road

BMW has added a fair amount of upgrades to make the M60i as dynamic as it is comfortable. It gets active roll stabilisation, swivel motors to increase control through corners and reduce vibrations, an M Sport differential, retuned electronic steering, M Sport brakes and the aforementioned rear wheel steering that also helps at higher speeds. 

While being quite bulky at 2,675kg, the X7 feels surprisingly agile in this spec, to the point of being described as fun. The V8 kicks you out of corners in sport mode impressively and makes rapid progress, even on twistier roads. 

You do have to remember that the X7 is 2m wide, and on narrower carriageways you’ll need to be careful on oncoming vehicles at times, but for such a large car it’s impressive. It handles excellently with its tweaked steering, and rides well with its adaptive suspension.

You get a large amount of storage and space throughout, but alternatives do offer more boot space

As a large SUV, you can expect loads of interior storage spots and plenty of room for yourself. Either side of the driver’s seat, you get a large doorbin – which is surprisingly unlined – and a central bin under the armrest. The doorbin is mirrored on the other door and there’s a well-sized glovebox. Fragrances for the air conditioning system does take up space though. 

Both seats have great levels of adjustment, with the electronic controls helping get you comfy. The driver’s seat also gets electronic steering wheel adjustment, and by setting on the memory function, multiple drivers can get their ideal position quickly. 

Space in the back seats

With two rows in the back as standard, you get five extra seats – and optionally you can take one of the middle row out to get two captain’s chairs instead of a bench. But with the bench in place, you have plenty of head and legroom. 

The middle row can slide 14.5cm depending on where you most need extra space, and even in its most forward position, you still have ample legroom for the middle row to allow those in the rearmost seats to get as comfy as possible. You can easily sit three adults across the back, and for those needing to carry children, you have two sets of ISOFIX points. 

In row three, you get ISOFIX points too for extra child-friendliness, while adults can just about squeeze in there too. 

Both rows get pockets or storage, multiple USB-C charging points and cupholders,

Boot space

Against alternatives, the X7 does struggle to keep pace for luggage space. The 326 litres with all the seats in place is better than the Range Rover (212 litres) and Audi Q7 (295 litres), but the Mercedes GLS has 355 litres available. 

But beyond that, all the alternatives perform better. The X7’s 750 litres with the rear seats folded down is less than all the aforementioned options. The Range Rover has 857 litres, the Audi Q7 865 litres and the Mercedes GLS has 890 litres on offer. 

All of the middle and rear seats can be folded down with the flick of a switch, and with the split tailgate, you have a handy place to sit or to slide long items in. You can also lower the suspension to make loading things easier, thanks to the adaptive suspension system.

As with other BMWs, the cabin is well-built and pretty stylish, but some features are annoyingly buried in the touchscreen

With the M60i version of the X7, you get black wood across most of the surfaces as standard, but you can choose carbon fibre to add to the sporty nature. That’s paired with aluminium trim pieces, with the small gear lever and drive options all housed in the centre console.

But being the M version, you get tricolours smattered around the cabin. It’s on the seatbelts and the digital dials, while there’s further M logos on the steering wheel and in the ambient lighting.

The overall quality of the cabin is excellent, with the standard-fit leatherette used to upholster the seats, but you can choose merino leather for a more premium finish. There are some scratchy plastics around the doorbins, which feels uncharacteristic compared to the rest of the car, but that’s the only place of note.

You get a huge panel across the dashboard holding both the driver’s display and infotainment touchscreen, running the latest iDrive 8 system. The graphics are mostly clear, but it can be a little tricky to navigate when you’re on the move. A drawback of the setup is that BMW has oversimplified everything. All of the major settings for the cruise control and the entire climate system are all in the touchscreen, and when you’re driving, that’s a big distraction.

You get wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, both very simple to connect and also capable of showing the map application in the instrument screen – a very handy feature. On the whole, both are a better alternative to the BMW setup.

As the M60i, there are very few things you can add to it to make it better, but there are some additional features including a towbar, additional ambient lighting, proper sports seats and improved headlights.

With a 4.4-litre twin-turbocharged V8, you can never expect it to be efficient. At best, it’ll return 23.2mpg, which for a seven-seat, potentially family SUV, is far from ideal.

Emissions-wise, there’s not other way of putting it – the M60i is high on the scale. It goes from 276-292g/km CO2 that puts it in one of the highest tax brackets, and as the car is worth more than £40,000, there’s an additional charge for the first five years of ownership.

Unlike the majority of BMW’s models, the X7 hasn’t been through the rigorous Euro NCAP safety testing cycle. But as standard, the M60i comes with adaptive cruise control with brake assist, parking sensors and cameras for all-round views.

Strangely though, there’s some safety systems that you need to add in a pack for total security. The Technology Plus Pack includes traffic assist, lane keep assist and predictive speed limit adaption, and that’s an extra £5,000 – which is a bit of a rip-off for a car already costing £116,000.

As mentioned in the interior section, you get ISOFIX points throughout, as well as multiple airbags. The exterior also has M Sport brakes, which further improve the safety of the vehicle in all conditions.

With lots of electronic elements, the X7 may falter further down the road, and BMW’s reliability rating has not been quite as high for a little while as some might expect. But compared to a Range Rover, which has a poor reputation, it should be better overall.

The X7, as with all new BMWs, gets a three-year/unlimited mileage warranty, while there’s a 12-year guarantee for anti-corrosion. For that to be maintained, you need to go through an approved BMW workshop.