Five things you need to know about the 2020 BMW 745e

The 2020 BMW seven series has been heavily updated this year. And one of the most interesting mechanical updates beneath the surface is a new plug-in hybrid power train. Compared to its predecessor, the new 745E is more powerful with a longer driving range. I had a chance to drive it today in Germany and here are five things you need to know about this plug-in hybrid luxury sedan. A new lithium ion battery now offers a 12 kilowatt hour capacity up from 9.2 kilowatt hours before which improves electric range considerably. BMW says the battery can be fully charged in about four and a half hours on a level two charging system. The batteries is mounted beneath the rear sits, while the fuel tank is beneath the trunk. The version of the 745e headed to the U.S., which comes standard with X-drive all-wheel drive, will be rated up to 34 miles of all electric range on European test cycles. Now we don't know exactly what the EPA rated range will be when the car arrives on our shores, but it will definitely be an improvement over the outgoing 740e, which managed only 14 miles of electric driving per charge. Combined fuel economy when driving in hybrid mode should also improve in the new car. The hybrid's electric drive motor is now more powerful at 113 horsepower and 195 pound feet of torque. Those are increases 2 horsepower and 11 pounds feet versus the old motor. Under the hood the old 2 liter 4 cylinder engine has been replaced by a 3 liter turbocharged inline 6. Peak system output when the engine and motor work together has thus climbed from 322 horsepower in the old 740e, to 389 horsepower in the new 745e BMW's prior plug-in hybrids had somewhat confusing names for the drive modes. But BMW has since simplified it with easier-to-understand buttons. The default "hybrid mode" allows the car to pick for itself whether to use the engine or the motor for best efficiency Electric forces all electric operation and it's available at speeds up to 87 miles per hour. And Sport is of course for maximum performance. You can also program the car to automatically start in electric mode every time you get behind the wheel which was impossible before. And finally, this battery hold button will keep the battery charged so you can use all electric driving later on in your journey. The 745E can use more information than ever before to adjust how the hybrid powertrain works to save fuel. When you have a navigation route sets the [UNKNOWN] designed whether to coast or regenerate power when approaching an intersection or lowest speed limits on [UNKNOWN] and it can elect to save some [UNKNOWN] so you can complete the last couple of miles of your journey on the lectures do you learned. And the car can even use the driver assist senses to decide when to use the regent to keep pace with the vehicle head. It all adds up to an easier experience for the driver and a recent theory, improved efficiency in the real world. And those are the five basic things you need to know about the 2020 BMW 745e. For full written review of this plug-in hybrid as well as details on some of BMW's other plug-in hybrids Be sure to visit us at theroadshow.com. [MUSIC]