BMW is protecting its name, or could it actually make an M7?
BMW filed paperwork at the United States Patent and Trademark Office, April 27, 2018, in order to obtain the rights to the M7 moniker. Although the move shows that the company is interested in the name, it is not clear if the German brand plans to use the high performance name on future production vehicles.
The USPTO will not grant BMW rights to the M7 name if a trademark is applied for. The process of reserving a title can take a while. Ford, for example, took over a year to reach the point when the trademark office made the file for the Maverick nameplate publicly available to determine if other companies were opposed to the Blue Oval’s use.
In the United States, BMW held the rights to M7 in the past. This was very recent. The company owned the trademark for the name from April 24, 2012 to April 24, 2018. According the USPTO documents the firm was able to renew the application, but did not for some reason. Instead, the lawyers for the automaker waited three days and then filed new paperwork.
For many years, the German automaker has been fighting back against rumors about an M7. Some execs believe that the M badge is only for vehicles that an owner could possibly take to the track. This is not something that a 7 Series buyer would do.
For those looking for a more powerful 7 Series, BMW already has two options. The Alpina has a sporty appearance and packs an incredibly powerful biturbo V8 of 4.4-liters with 600 horsepower and 590 pound feet of torque. The HTML760i has a 6.6-liter biturbo-V12 that produces 601 horsepower and 590 lbft.