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Hope this helps.
Best Regards,
Shipo
Anyway, good news, MCC, your car is in 112 status, meaning it's about to go into production. It will be a finished car in 1-2 weeks time.
Actually, there are valid reasons why the dealership would not want to disclose the production number of your car. They're just being careful. And let's face it, how does it help anyone (holding my breath for a back-lash!) know anything about where their car is or what it's doing. The prod number is of absolutely no value to the customer.
...gurumike squints in preparation for a barrage of comments....
Platypus - in the new Motor Trend, the editor responds to a question about the correctness of the 5.8 number. He confirmed that it was not a printing error and stated that they were able to achieve that time, something about how the AWD puts the power down so well. I can see how the AWD would be better off the line to a lower speed, but still quicker by 60 mph? I would never have guessed the AWD to be ahead of the RWD at that point. May-be it was raining when they did the RWD test ?!
Best Regards,
Shipo
Some first impression thoughts and just my humble opinions:
The new steering is much improved - heavier with better centre stability- than the model I test drove in February.
The car exhaust sounds smooth yet deep when I heard my wife tooling up the street on her first drive. I can see she is hooked - but I may have to hide the keys if I want to drive it.
The stereo upgrade was worth the extra cash but it does lack a bit of mid range. It sounds great if parked but drive along with the slightly noisier sport tires and the mid bass and mid range seem to disappear unless the volume is cranked.
The gas mileage is a bit low, in the mid 20s, but the engine only has 100 miles on it so it will hopefully improve with age.
The break-in period is a pain since it is hard to not rev the puppy past 4500 - it just wants to play. No problem with the 100 MPH limit because I want to keep my license and cannot afford the insurance penalties.
The sport wheels are stunning but boy they sure get black fast. I only have 100 miles on them and they look dark and abused. I've got to wax this baby soon so clean-up is easier. Still trying to decide if a polymer type wax is safe with this fine paint. I really do not like all the work with 3 step carnuba wax given the short period it stays put. Polymer is definitely more user friendly and the shine is fine - but what about those who say German paint and polymers don't mix - would you take the chance?
The rad fan seems to work okay - it kicked in during a construction delay. So far I have not seen the temperature needle move past half way.
The car handles like it's on rails. The extra road noise and slightly more harsh bumps are acceptable for the slot car like corning ability - it just corners with a take no prisoners attitude.
The car draws lots of attention. I just wish the gravel trucks would not keep getting close for a better look - they are loaded with bouncing missiles just waiting to put the first dent or crack in my new baby. It seems everyone - even non-carbuffs like the looks of the car. That's the sign of a classic design. If the lay person thinks it is a knockout then it must be done right.
I like the trunk cd changer but it does steal some of the valuable trunk space. The golf clubs just fit in sideways or I would have been left with the dreded mini van. The valet parking guy stalled it right at the front door to the clubhouse - how embarrassing glad it was not me. It does seem to need a fair bit of rpms to get going - hopefully that is only a new engine thing that will also improve with age.
I think the yellow signal lights and black side molding add to the car's lines. Silver with matching molding and clear lenses would look too monochrome for my taste - we need a little colour in the world (sorry if I spelled colour wrong for my American friends but I was taught that way).
The leather seats and steering wheel feels a little dry and stiff. Not sure if some conditioner would be a good idea but it should not hurt.
I was surprised to see that the red "clown nose" lense under the mirror does flash when the car is locked even though I do not have the optional alarm. With that and the radio flashing LED and the wheel locks my gem should be reasonably safe. For more protection, I would have to keep it locked in the garage.
There are so many different ways to operate the locks, auto climate system, stereo, and computer that I am having trouble remembering it all. Push a wrong button who knows what will happen - and I am one person that can set his VCR clock. I spent several minutes trying to find the button for the gas filler door only to find out you jsut push on it - silly me. Hopefully I will get into the groove soon - after all I have only had it for a few hours.
Finally, if you can't tell, I am just thrilled with this "Ultimate Driving Machine". It has the best mix of sport, luxury and class for my tastes. There is nothing nicer than shifting through the gears in a smooth powerful car that also is drop dead georgous and handles like a dream - hay maybe I've found the perfect mate.
Bob
It sounds like you are in heaven. Couple of things - I'm surprised it took you so long to get the car in Ontario. I ordered mine on March 12 in Boston and it was ready for pickup on May 1. I am also surprised that you had to pay for the HK stereo? I thought those were standard on the MY 330's. You should not have been charged for it if your car went in production in April. I agree with you on the black side moldings - platypus convinced me that they look sportier that way. I saw a 530 with the same colour moldings and I realized it looked too bland. I still like darker colours better, though, as the contrast of the black molding seems to be too sharp on lighter colours.
Hey, congrats again and enjoy it. These cars are a blast to drive.
330 xi, manual, black/black, pp, sp, cwp, x, cd going to freeport, ny?
Thanks
For lack of a better word... SWEET!
If time permits, can you advise us when the Munich assembly plant resumed the installation of the "new - new" steering rack? Week 17, 18, 19, or 20?
I consulted BMWNA and they were uncertain. Have you observed the rack assemblies of some recently completed cars from Munich?
Thank you in advance for reseraching this.
Tip o day: some insurers are no longer offering daytime running light discounts in California. The lights did not reduce the accident rates.
Parump
Secondly, yes they do! Dealers have in the past provided customers with the prod # for their car, only to see the car disappear from their inventory sheet. With the prod #, another dealer can transfer that car to their own inventory. It happens too often. When we do a dealer trade, the production number is kinda like a PIN number, with it, it's anyones! There are other reasons. Again, none that will ever affect your day to day life!
And why would you not give a deposit with out a production number ?? That just sounds like total paranoia. What exactly does that number mean to you that makes it so incredibly important. Please let me know.
Parump - Look at the production date on the black sticker on the drivers door jam. If it shows 4/01 or on, it has "new" (original) steering.
roc50mg - 111 (!) Didn't we check a week or so ago to see it in 150? Must have been someone else!
Thanks a lot for the backup on the Motor Trend performance comparison. That result has been substantially corrorborated by the Motorweek review as well.
If my car went 112 last Thursday (which is what BMWNA seemed to tell me yesterday), when should I be hoping for 150 status? DO you think there's a shot of me taking delivery on or before June 30?
Roc-
Hang in there buddy! I'd bet our cars will both end up on the same boat anyway.
Isn't this torture? lol
Dinan mods: Brave, I read somewhere that you would have to drive through 18 inches of water before anything gets into the Dinan's CAI.
I'm very cautious about doing any kind of modification and agree totally that any deviation from 100% stock can devalue the car. However, I also intend to keep the thing for many years/miles so that's not as much of a concern for me. I'm not in any hurry and I'll see how it goes.
As I said earlier, I think I'm going to get an alarm from Circle or Pacific first, and attempt the install myself. I'm about average handywise, and it looks like a pretty easy install. I've thought about offering my dealer $350 for the alarm/install - any more than that and I think I'll do it myself.
Next, I'm probably going to look into stereo upgrades. I'm a big fan of MB Quart stuff and I think I'm interested in their system for the 325.
Once I've taken on that, I'll consider the performance side. The car should be broken in by then and I'll have a better idea of what, if anything, I'm going to do. Alp, you sound pretty convinced about the Dinan mods and it sounds like you've got some experience in that area. Let us know how it works out when you do it.
2. I would not put down a deposit w/o a prod # for two reasons:
A. Delivery schedule would be anyone's guess. See, if the dealer gives me a prod # and shows me they have an allocation, that gives me an approximate date when I will have the car at the dealership. If I don't have a prod #, it means the dealer has no allocation for the car they just sold me and the car may not be scheduled to go into production for another month. Just look at what happened to Bob - he waited for his car for 90 days and I got mine in 42 (less than half the time).
B. W/o a prod #, the dealership can always bump me off to the next allocation if a better-paying customer walked in and offered them a better deal on the car that I had ordered (same options and all). As a matter of fact, one of the dealerships that I was shopping at, was selling the fact that although it was tough to get an allocation for the 325i (this was back when the first came out last fall), they would never bump me off. Obviously it had crossed their mind to do that in the past if they thought this was a selling point, you know.
I agree with you that your daily life should not revolve around a car wait - that is a pathetic way to live your life IMO. But the point is that getting the prod # guarantees me that I don't have to think about the car and that it will be here in 7-8 weeks and I can focus on other things. Make sense now?
alp - you have had similar mods but all done by other tuners, not necessarily Dinan, right?
Best Regards,
Shipo
PS: I am hooked on Bob Dylan again - the old stuff - you know, when he had something to say. After 22 years and 3 straight days in the car I still can't get over "Slow Train Coming" ) Do they have any bands with lyrics that good these days? Most intersting one I can think of is Rage Against the Machine but those guys seems to be angry for obscure reasons and their lyrics don't come close to the younger Dylan's.
Do all of you present BMW owners fill up your cars with Premium? Does anyone use medium grade or regular? Just wondering. I know that Premium gas helps performance, but will the engine be damaged in any way if you use regular unleaded?
I think when buying a performance car there are some inherent things you have to do when maintaining it, and premium gas is one of them.
So, no, I wouldn't dare put anything less than premium in my black beauty. IMO
I'll throw in my suggestion: Windfall by SonVolt. The chorus says "Both feet on the floor/two hands on the wheel/may the wind take your troubles away"
Definteley more Dylan than Rage.
Check it out at www.cdnow.com. Search for SonVolt and "Windfall" is on their "Trace" album.
It'll be the first song I play in my 325 when it finally arrives (BTW thanks to all for the info and sympathetic words about my long wait)
motorcity- premium all the way, absolutely. The minimum grade you can safely use is 91. No, I wouldn't try regular to see if the engine would still run after that ) The higher the grade, the more efficiently gas burns, the better the fuel mileage you get out of the car. Not to mention it makes a difference in performance. It's worth a buck a tank in extra money.
Having said all that, my wife used to switch off her Jetta's alarm because it used to go off by itself. She's never thought about doing that with the A4, though.
I love the old Bond movies, I even got a box set of three early Sean Connery ones on laserdisk 8 years ago. The newer ones are good but they just are not as cool as the oldies IMHO. So, I may have actually nipped the Boxster? Very Cool.
Motorcity3,
I think I read somewhere that one of our fellow E46 drivers tried an experiment with the three generally available fuel grades and some long distance driving. He (I think it was a he) found that mileage got so much worse with the lower grades of fuel that it was actually cheaper buying Premium.
Jasonkureejii,
FWIW, the first track on my HK was "Time" from Dark Side of the Moon, the second was "Little Wing" from The Sky is Crying.
Best Regards,
Shipo
It's also not about being "cheap", since I don't think it's a necessity for me, then I'm not going to buy it. I don't mean to offend anyone if they do have an alarm, that was not my intention.
Now, with regard to physics. Brave is right in that it is much easier to accelerate once at speed than from a dead stop. Sir Newton tells us that bodies at rest tend to stay at rest, and bodies in motion tend to stay in motion. This is called INERTIA. Think of pushing on a huge, opening-scene-of-Raiders-of-the-Lost-Ark-sized boulder that's at rest. Not much you could probably do to move it. But say it is nudged by a bulldozer. Keeping it rolling would require much less effort. These are Newton's laws of motion at work. Trying to stop that boulder, on the other hand, would require M5-sized brakes. The point is that the extra 250 lbs in the 330xi are less easily overcome from, say, 0-20 mph. The extra traction may help a bit, but since the majority of the weight shifts to the rear of the car under hard acceleration, I doubt that the additional traction of the 330xi's front tires would offset the entire 250 lbs. Beyond that, however, I would not be surprised if the, say, 20-60 mph times are very similar.
That said, woe betide the thief who sets off that alarm in the middle of the night while I am home.
At 3:30 AM, in desperation, I put on all black clothing and a black balaclava ski mask, grabbed a hammer and a large pair of wire cutters. I crept out to the car hoping that nobody would notice me, broke the window, popped the hood (the fool had an alarm without a hood lock) and cut the positive battery cable. After closing the hood of the car, I heard some other noises but in the wind I could not quite make out what they were until I looked around me and saw at least a dozen people who had opened their windows and were cheering and clapping for me. So much for stealth. I took a bow and beat a hasty retreat back home. It seems that nobody reported me, I wonder why? ;-)
Best Regards,
Shipo
BTW, the BMW alarm shuts itself off after 30 secs and does not restart.
Gas - The more efficiently the gas burns, the more power, better gas mileage and cleaner emissions.
Outside air temperature matters too, of course. Darwing in 120 degree air and compressing it has a different result than drawing in an compressing -10 degree air.
Also, the reason the car seem to accelerate less quickly from a stop is that the engines are at lower RPM's when pulling away from a stop. Most engines, and surely the sixes, have less torque at lower RPM's. A vehicle has the same intertial resistance to accelerating by 1mph at rest as when it's going 100.
dave