BMW's claimed fuel consumption of 5.8 litres/100km in the European combined cycle was never going to be realistically replicated in the real world. We did not come close to achieving even the official urban average of 7.5 litres/100km, but a reading of 12.9 litres/100km on our test car's computer averaged over a 360km mixed route represents a decent return for a petrol-driven vehicle in this segment.

The last time this writer was behind the wheel of a previous-gen BMW 7 Series, the test car asked for 15.5 litres/100km.

Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 2 - Run Flat. Compared to the average performance of three leading competitors.

Braking distance on wet road from 80km/h to 20km/h, measured by TVSD Automotive in December 2010; Tyre Size: 255/40R19; Test Car: Audi A7; Location: Mireval (FR) & Garching (GE); Report nr: 76244706-1. The Eagle F1 Asymmetric 2 received the highest recommendation in various independent tests by experts and magazines across Europe immediately after its launch, including top scores in 2011. "Very Recommendable?" Auto Zeitung (Germany).

Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 3 Launched in Malaysia. Perhaps more exciting was a slalom challenge to show off the responsiveness of the tyres in directional changes.

Slaloms are always fun because they're as much a test of car and equipment as they are of driving ability. Nonetheless, the cars prepared for us had unusually light steering and the tyres felt as though they hadn't quite been worn in yet, so perhaps the feedback was not quite representative of what the tyres could do.

Sedona pricing begins at $26,995, at which point the sliding doors don't move on their own, the seats are cloth, and there's no rearview camera. Moving up through the Sedona hierarchy adds leather seats, power doors, additional paint colors, the backup camera, power folding mirrors, larger wheels, navigation, and more.

Check all the boxes and you'll end up with a Sedona Limited like our test car and a price tag creeping into the mid $40Ks, but a well-equipped, leather-lined EX can be yours for $33,195.

BMW 7 Series having fancy sounding laser lights as fitted in the 740Li, but the standard Adaptive LED headlamps in our 730Li test car is no less sophisticated a piece of lighting hardware. Its built-in DRLs illuminate in a distinctive double-C pattern first pioneered in the facelifted F30 3 Series.

Standard 19-inch alloys ensure that the 730Li is not let-down by under tyred proportions.

BMW 7 Series specced a 360-degree camera package as standard with this car. Supplemented by all-round parking sensors, the system has a good knack of self-activating at the right time, and BMW's advanced image extrapolation software is even able to generate a projected visual of the vehicle's surrounding from a variety of well-judged angles.

BMW 7 Series adaptive LED headlights, all-round parking sensors with 360-degree camera, panoramic glass roof, paddle shifters, and a key fob that almost resembles a smart phone – remember to charge it regularly. It also comes with Driving Assistant Plus, a system which actively intervenes in the vehicle's directional control upon detection of an imminent collision.

The previous model's 3.0-litre engine was among the last surviving members of BMW's famed naturally-aspirated inline-sixes that made way for downsized four-cylinder turbos that delivered equivalent or better performance with improved emissions. So, here in the 730Li, we have, for the first time in a BMW 7 Series, a 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine.

Essentially the same B48 powerplant that also features in the 330i, the engine is tuned to more potent outputs of 258hp.

Can a 2.0-litre engine properly power a BMW 7 Series? If you look at it purely from a performance standpoint, BMW's previous N20 was already good enough to match the outgoing model's 3.0-litre inline-6 for outputs.

The bigger challenge is to engender the kind of gentle yet relentless power delivery that does not come naturally for a turbocharged engine and gets progressively harder to achieve as you ramp up boost levels.

Specialist Repair of a Damaged Victorian Tiled Hallway in Newport。The property owner had previously asked a different company in to carry out the floor restoration but the tile repairs made were disastrous. The repair attempts were never going to be successful as this was a particularly difficult situation and required real specialism in dealing with Victorian tiles.