The BMW 7 Series is no longer a car purchased by out of touch dictators from far away countries, they are just as likely to be bought by out of touch politicians, high flying business executives and rich kids from Instagram. But the current 7 Series is missing something, its missing the capital M. M stands for ‘Mean-Machine’, in BMW parlance that translates into lots of BHP and a revised handling setup which ditches the plutocratic comfort settings for a more uncivilized driving performance and experience. Yet the current 7 Series has no ‘M’ derivative just a watered down M-Sport kit which offers more aggressive body work and comparatively impassive suspension. But there is hope on the horizon and it looks likely that the 7 Series will go for a fully blown M Series derivative, a range topper to top all other known range toppers. But it won’t be happening tomorrow or the day after tomorrow, it will be happening when the new 7 Series is revealed in 2017. Our friends over at Topspeed.com have been speculating based on various media reports. This speculation has led them to get their sketch books out and theorize on the look of the 2017 M7 which is pictured and has apparently been confirmed by BMW executives. Auto tuners, Alpina have already given the current generation 7 Series a BHP boost with the B7, however its the Mercedes S63 that has had BMW executives frothing at the mouths in envy. TopSeed.com speculate the 7 Series will be evolutionary in exterior design and technology. Spy shots have emerged of a completely redesigned interior, further speculation also suggests a new light weight target is on the cards and a UK price point starting at around £120k (for the M7). Topspeed.com also go on to further speculate the V12 engine wil be tuned to deliver 535bhp. This is where our opinions diverge, BMW will cease using the V12 and instead go for a twin turbo V8 Hybrid, maybe even a quad turbo which could give out over 650bhp. Why? Well because engines are now going through what is a period of divergence, from a pure reliance on petrol to a marriage of hybrid technology. One day all cars will be Plugin-Hybrids and a  BMW M7 PHEV could be the signal that the classic combustion engine era is drawing to an end.