Leaked ahead of schedule: BMW 7 Series Facelift 2026 appears early on BMW M website

Picture the scene: it's April 22, 2026. BMW has planned a grand world premiere for the facelifted 7 Series later that afternoon, German time. Journalists are waiting, embargoes are in place, everything runs like clockwork. And then — someone at the M GmbH division accidentally hits "publish" on their own website, bmw-m.com. The entire facelift model, internally known as the G70 LCI, is out in the open hours too early. It's the kind of leak that makes public relations managers reach for strong coffee, but for car enthusiasts, it's an early Christmas present.

So, thanks to this very human error, here's everything we now know about the 2026 BMW 7 Series facelift.

Let's start with the exterior design, because BMW never does things quietly. The front end features new kidney grilles — those iconic "nostrils" that have sparked endless debates online. This time, the Iconic Glow illumination has been upgraded. Instead of just outlining the grilles, the light now runs around the full perimeter of each kidney. At night, you will see the complete shape of the grilles, not just a glowing contour. It's bold, it's unmistakable, and it will either make you love it or laugh at it — there's no middle ground with BMW.

Moving to the rear, the changes are more subtle but still significant. The taillights have become considerably wider. Instead of a single thin light strip, you now get two parallel light bars, stacked one above the other. From a distance, they almost create the illusion of a single continuous light band stretching across the trunk lid, but with a more intricate and premium look. It's a nice evolution of the current design language.

Now for the biggest surprise, and it's hiding inside the cabin. BMW has updated the 7 Series cockpit with inspiration from the "Neue Klasse" design language — their vision for future electric vehicles. The unexpected addition is a dedicated Passenger Screen, a display mounted directly in front of the front-seat passenger. According to the leaked landing page, this screen is several inches smaller than the central infotainment display, but it gives the passenger their own space for movies, music, or navigation duties without distracting the driver. Above both screens, stretching across almost the entire width of the windshield, sits the Panoramic Vision Display — a narrow strip that projects key information right into the driver's line of sight.

And now, the part that makes petrolheads and EV fans equally excited: the technical specifications. Before you ask — no, there is still no full-fat BMW M7. That dream remains unfulfilled. However, the M GmbH division offers two sporty packages for customers who want extra performance without sacrificing luxury.

The first is the BMW M760e plug-in hybrid. Under the hood, you'll find an inline-six cylinder engine working together with an electric motor. Total system output is 612 horsepower. That's enough to launch the big sedan from 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 4.2 seconds. On electric power alone, it can cover up to 80 kilometers (about 50 miles) — respectable for a car this size. But as the source notes, the M760e still lives somewhat in the shadow of its fully electric sibling.

That sibling is the BMW i7 M70, the most powerful electric 7 Series you can buy. After the facelift, it produces 500 kilowatts, which translates to 680 horsepower. Torque is a mind-bending 1,100 Newton-meters (811 pound-feet). The result is a 0–100 km/h sprint in just 3.8 seconds. Impressive, but not even the most impressive part. The real headline here is range. According to the WLTP cycle, the updated i7 M70 can travel up to 686 kilometers (about 426 miles) on a single charge, depending on which tires you choose. To put that in perspective, the pre-facelift i7 M70 maxed out at 559 kilometers. That's an increase of nearly 130 kilometers — a massive leap forward in battery efficiency.

So what does this all mean? If you've been waiting for a luxury sedan that can embarrass most sports cars at a traffic light while also letting you forget about gas stations entirely, the facelifted i7 M70 is now a much more convincing argument. And if you still prefer the sound of a combustion engine, the M760e hybrid offers plenty of thrills without the range anxiety. All thanks to one over-eager webmaster at BMW M who couldn't wait until the official premiere. Their loss is our gain.