The über-spypixphotographers over at KGP Photography are famous within the automotive world for snapping images of pre-production vehicles undergoing extreme-conditions testing in Death Valley, the vast desert straddling the California-Nevada border that's home to the highest-recorded temperatures in the Western Hemisphere. But on a recent night, the master snappers came across a 2010 BMW 7-series “Hybrid Erprobungsfahrzeug,” or hybrid trial vehicle, in a parking lot near the scorching proving grounds and did what they do best (and we're not referring to how many hotdogs they can consume in 5 minutes). In these pics, the gold car is the hybrid and the silver the conventionally powered model. As you can see, the changes appear to be limited to the wheels and to cosmetic or aerodynamic changes to the front bumper. Otherwise, the exteriors of the vehicles appear identical except for the paint. Hidden from auto-spies' eyes is a 20-horsepower electric motor that works with a conventional twin-turbocharged V-8 to – as BMW board member Dr. Klaus Draeger told us last January – “significantly reduce both fuel consumption and emissions.” There's also a lithium-ion battery pack and a regenerative braking system in what is sure to be a package with a stratospheric price in line with Lexus' $106,000 LS600 h hybrid.
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2010 BMW 7 Series Hybrid Resembles 2009 Standard 7 Except Deep Down Inside
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