The 7 Series’ pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Panamera doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.
The 7 Series has standard Active Headrests, which use a specially designed headrest to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Active Headrests system moves the headrests forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Panamera doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.
The 7 Series has a standard PostCrash iBrake, which automatically applies the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Panamera doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.
In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the 7 Series are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Panamera doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.
Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The 7 Series has a standard Active Park Distance Control that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Panamera doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.
When descending a steep, off-road slope, the 7 Series xDrive’s standard Hill Descent Control allows you to creep down safely. The Panamera doesn’t offer Hill Descent Control.
The 7 Series has a standard blind spot warning system that uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them and moves the vehicle back into its lane. A system to reveal vehicles in the Panamera’s blind spot costs extra.
To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the 7 Series’ standard Cross Traffic Warning with braking function uses sensors in the rear to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side and automatically engage the brakes. The Panamera doesn’t offer a rear cross-path warning system.
The 7 Series’ driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Panamera doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.
Both the 7 Series and the Panamera have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras and available around view monitors.