It was an evening of back-patting and hand-shaking as the best operators within the limousine and chauffeur industry were awarded for their successes – but outside in a single parking space was another industry winner! Paul Webb takes the all-new BMW 730d on a cross-country sprint.

The Limo Broker Awards in December was an ideal opportunity for me to put the new BMW 730d long-wheelbase to the ultimate test with a long-haul dash from the south-east sunshine coast of Eastbourne, to the withering heights of Cardiff – a round trip of almost 450 miles.

When the all-new 7-Series was launched a year earlier we were lucky enough to put the first versions in the UK through its paces and discover what the flagship Beema had to offer the chauffeur industry. The Seven’s been a favourite for chauffeurs for many years as the long-wheelbase version has always offered a good amount of equipment in the rear seats and excellent luggage space. The only areas which have previously let it down was servicing costs and depreciation – but that goes with any luxury car which costs the wrong side of £50,000.

The latest version has stacks of new technology and the massive widescreen idrive system has been dramatically improved making it much easier to navigate around the system than the previous versions. The various levels of suspension settings give the 730 an amazingly smooth ride – other settings stiffen up the ride but for a vehicle like this, you only really need the ‘super glide’ setting.

The comfort seat option was fitted to our test car and gives the driver an endless amount of seat adjustments giving support in every area. I have always loved the upper back and neck support on the comfort seats which just make the 7-series an absolute delight to sit in.

So, the first challenge of the journey was to set the GPS – all I had was a hotel name on the outskirts of Cardiff, but this was no problem for the system and it easily located the full address of the hotel using the Point of Interest facility. It also warned me of delays along the route and notified me that I would kindly be charged to travel into Wales.

It was not long before I was re-routed due to the Sunday drivers causing chaos on the M25, so the system adjusted my route and simply took me right around the delays directing me up the M3. This is something I have always ignored in other vehicles, but for some reason you trust the BMW and on this occasion, that was the right choice.

The main thing that stands-out for me in the 7-Series is you do not have to look or reach far to find anything – it seems as if you can just sit back and all the information you ever need is just right there waiting for you. There is a great head-up display which gives you the sat nav directions, the current speed limit, your speed and basically anything else you choose to display in it.

After four hours of driving, I arrived feeling as fresh and relaxed. The most important thing is that my dinner suit which I was wearing was still in a presentable condition, mainly because you’re not constantly fidgeting in your seat to get comfortable.

The 7-Series was treated as a VIP and was rewarded with a parking space right in front of the reception to the dinner. This was a good opportunity for me to stand for a while to see the reactions of fellow dinner guests. It certainly turned a few heads with one guest even keen enough to hop the rope and post barrier to have a closer look!

It’s rare when you go to a dinner and happy with not having a drink, because you are looking forward to the journey home! So, with a full belly, some carefully selected music, cruise control set and empty roads the journey back to Sussex was completely effortless and a delight.

Returning around 40mpg, it is simply stunning that a car this size and with so much power can return such an impressive MPG figure. The engine is smooth, quiet and punchy – personally, I think any chauffeur not choosing this model and going for a larger petrol engine would be silly, as the 3.0 diesel simply offers absolutely everything you need.

From the outside the car is prettier than it has ever been. When it was dramatically redesigned back in 2001, the 7-Series was ugly, and it took many years for chauffeurs to start accepting its looks. A few adjustments to the looks over the following years made a slight difference, but now after the complete redesign it looks powerful, sleek and well thought out.

There are many technological advances in the 7-Series which really proves that BMW is way ahead of some of its competitors. Items such as the camera on the front corners of the car helping on blind corners, internet access, four-wheel steering and the head-up display are all systems which just are not readily available on other high-end cars in the market place.

It is certainly going to be an interesting year for the 7-Series as there is a range of revised and all-new luxury cars hitting the showrooms – but I do think that when chauffeurs find out what the 7-Series can offer his business and clients, it will be an easy choice to make.

Paul Webb

Priced from: £55,260.