New Car Review

'95 BMW 740iL
Our Bavarian limousine has been busy shuttling people around Tinseltown to dinners, jazz concerts, and business meetings. Despite its gargantuan size and voluminous legroom, the 740iL is essentially a four-seater, albeit one with enough panache to serve as a royal coach. After a recent 1000-mile excursion across the Southwest, the big Bimmer was described in the logbook as "a truly phenomenal highway car." Even high speeds, heavy rains, and derelict roads couldn't upset the 740iL's stately demeanor; nor could they lower the total trip fuel economy below an average 21 mpg. Finally, after months of top-notch motoring, the time came for the 7-Series' first trip to the dealership. The scheduled oil service included the standard oil replacement, filter change, fluid-level check, and function test on all operations. It also meant replacing the break-in fluid housed in the differential with fresh synthetic. The next time we visit our local dealer should be at 20,000 miles, when an oil change, climate-control microfilter replacement, and tire rotation will be performed.