The V8 powering the 740i (and the 740iL) also graces BMW's faster 5-Series models. Swiss watches should have the same engineering elegance. A cover makes the 32-valve double-overhead cam engine look more like a Romulan starship, but the real space age stuff lies underneath, including Bosch HFM-Motronic M5.2.1 with adaptive knock control and VANOS. No, not an archvillan or Star Wars locale, VANOS is an acronym for the German VAriable NOckerwellen Steurung, which translates into "variable valve timing" and can't be used in Scrabble. New this year, VANOS didn't alter the V8's peak power output, a healthy 282 horsepower at 5400 rpm, but it beefed up the torque to 324 pounds-feet at 3700 rpm, bettering last year's output by 14 and lowering the peak by 200 rpm. Normally, we'd say this should make the '99 740i more flexible around town, but the older models hardly had a problem. The new V8s will accelerate faster and are certified for the government's LEV, or low emission vehicle, standard. The V8 also gets long-life spark plugs, and oil-change intervals are now 100,000 miles on average (calculated by an on-board computer).

All 7 Series models come equipped with a 5-speed automatic transmission, but the 740i with the Sport Package features Steptronic transmission control (as does the 750iL). The visible part of Steptronic is a gear selector with a special quadrant. Instead of the usual PRNDL, Steptronic ends at "D." The lever can be slid to the left into another slot for a semi-automatic mode. In this slot, moving the lever rearward selects a lower ratio, moving it forward goes up one. Steptronic can be overridden, sudden full throttle will cause it to downshift, and it will upshift when maximum revs are reached.

The Sport also has a shorter final drive ratio, 3.15:1 instead of the usual 2.81:1, for quicker acceleration. It also includes a torque converter with a higher stall speed for a quicker jump off the line. Underneath, the 740i Sport retains the basic 7 Series suspension: double-pivot strut-type front suspension with forged aluminum lower arms, and four-link independent rear suspension with twin-tube shocks, and anti-roll bars front and rear. But the front suspension is lower by 0.8-inch, springs are 10 percent and 25 percent firmer front and rear while shocks are twice as firm as on the standard 740i. The 740i Sport Package also gets a bigger-22 mm vs. 20.5 mm-front anti-roll bar.

The sharp-eyed may notice the lowered front end and Shadowline exterior trim (matte-black replacing chrome around the side windows, body-side molding and windshield washer jets). The most obvious external cues to the Sport Package are the elegant 18-inch M Parallel Spoke wheels, eight inches wide in front and an inch and a half wider at the rear. The front rims are mounted with 235/50ZR-18 performance tires while the rears are wrapped with fantastic 255/45ZR-18 performance rubber.