Considering a BMW 7 Series

Our 970 Panamera Edition arrived as our new family car in late February 2016. But buying a Panamera hadn’t been part of the plan at first. At the beginning of the year, we were almost set on the new BMW 7 Series as our next family car—until a last-minute twist changed everything.

At the time, I was firmly in the new BMW 7 Series camp.

・The BMW 7 Series seats five
・It comes with laser headlights that illuminate the road up to 600 meters ahead (We probably wouldn’t use them in everyday driving, but they sounded pretty impressive!)
・The headlights are connected by a sleek new design
・The dealership made a great impression by loading the kids up with snacks and juice 

Most importantly, I’d set myself the goal of buying a Panamera with my own money. I didn’t want my husband to buy one for us as a family car before I could do that.

Falling for the Panamera

Rewind to July 2015, when I first test-drove a Panamera. My husband brought me to the dealership, and I reluctantly agreed to take it for a drive (At the time, I was terrified of driving anything wider than 1,900 mm.) But the moment I pressed the accelerator, I was blown away.

How does a car feel this connected to its driver?! ヽ(ﾟДﾟ )ﾉ

It accelerated exactly as much as I asked it to. The steering felt just right in my hands, and the car turned precisely where I wanted it to go. “This isn’t a car—it’s a horse! It’s like the legendary Red Hare, racing a thousand miles in a day…!” I was absolutely captivated.

From then on, buying a Panamera myself became my goal—and the motivation that kept me working hard. I often told my husband, “I’m going to buy my own Panamera, so please don’t buy one before then.” Every time, he’d give me a funny look and say, “Well… do whatever you like.”

Given all that, by the start of 2016 I’d nearly made up my mind: “I’m not in a position to buy my own Panamera yet, so I’d like the BMW 7 Series to be our family car.”

Then, out of the blue, my husband said:

“Let’s go take a look at the Panamera too, just to be sure. H, our contact at the dealership, said we should stop by for a test drive when we were ready to change cars. We can make sure we’re happy with it, then go for the BMW 7 Series.”

Fair enough, I thought. So the following weekend, we dropped the kids off at daycare and headed to the Porsche dealership together.

An Unexpected Turn

As soon as we arrived, H greeted us with a smile and said:

“Rather than have me explain everything, you’d probably get a better feel for it by driving. Take it out for about an hour, just the two of you.”

He handed us the keys. “Wait, really?” I thought. My husband climbed into the driver’s seat, I settled into the passenger seat, and he fired up the engine with a “vroom.” The moment he pressed the accelerator, I blurted out:

I-it’s completely different… (；ﾟДﾟ)

I’ll never forget the look on my husband’s face—a mix of surprise and sheer delight. I felt exactly the same way. “This is on another level. The 7 Series doesn’t even come close…” Of course, the 7 Series is a fantastic car, but the Panamera just felt like it belonged to another class. And I’m not exaggerating: it took just two seconds behind the wheel to feel the difference.

H was waving us off from the dealership with a smile, saying, “Have a great drive!” I could barely resist rolling down the window, leaning out, and shouting:

“We’ve decided—it’s the Panamera!”

Our Panamera Comes Home

Still, we wanted to make the most of our test drive, so we spent a full hour enjoying the mountain roads before returning to the dealership, absolutely thrilled. After that, I regretted even briefly wavering toward the BMW 7 Series. I begged my husband, “I take it all back—I don’t want anything but the Panamera!” And that’s how a Panamera finally made its way into our home.

The BMW 7 Series is undoubtedly a great car, and BMW’s “Sheer Driving Pleasure” slogan reflects the fact that it’s fun to drive. But the Panamera strikes a far more compelling balance between sports-car performance and luxury-sedan comfort—at a level I felt the 7 Series couldn’t match.

Honestly, the Panamera is an incredible car.