BMW is back with another rendition of its ActiveHybrid system—this time in its flagship 7-series—with the world debut of the BMW Concept 7-series ActiveHybrid in October at the 2008 Paris auto show.

The automaker pairs the car’s twin-turbo, direction-injection, 4.4-liter V-8 engine with an electric drive for what is known as a mild hybrid—meaning the car cannot operate on electricity alone. Rather, the electric motors reduce fuel consumption and emissions—BMW claims by 15 percent—through such means as an automatic start-stop function that turns the vehicle off when it otherwise would be idling.

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