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Comments
Brave is right about having options:
Roadtrip w/ family to grandma's - Expedition
My daily commute - BMW
Wifes daily commute - Volvo
Houston flood like last week - Expedition
Weekend storm and BMW freshly washed - Volvo
I say GO FOR IT! I think most people hold off on things like that until they are much older. Then they don't have as long to enjoy them.
Wow, sorry for the long post. Typing this during lunch.
You can move to the next and last track of a CD with the "radio's" up and down arrows on the steering wheel.
Did not know the black was available until I saw them on Circle BMW. Anyone seen them? Look good? Look cheesy? Thanks.
http://www.edmunds.com/reviews/roadtests/firstdrive/46799/article.html
<<<There is a special "sport" control switch that changes the engine's drive-by-wire throttle calibration. Flipping the switch changes the way the intake butterfly valves respond to the gas pedal. In sport mode, the valves open much more quickly, lessening throttle response time.>>>
It seems easier than we'd thought. Maybe Shipo can help us understand throttle response better now that he's back.
Ok here is what I would do:
1. Call Greg at 800 831 1117 (ext. 6197)...very knowledgeable and helpful BMWNA guy! He may be able to help.
2. If u dont find him, then call Karen at 800 831 1117 (ext 6294) also very helpful
3. Go to www.wlna.com and look for the VPC phone # at Port Newark (its on the pdf file). If you cant find it, call the shipping people at Newark (Tel # starts with area code 973..) and get the VPC info from them....tell them that you want thename and Tel # of the center where they took the commercial (BMW) vehicles on June 12th, once they were off-loaded from the Jinsei Maru...they must have some record of where the cars went!
4. Get back to us either way and I will think of something else in meantime.
5. Maybe Guru can help with his BMW GPS system!!
Good luck!
Looks great......and very Shtroumphish!!(or whatever!!)
Chrome tips Highly recommended!!!
P.S. I'll have a digital camera by tonite......so guys, be prepared for a photographic onslaught!!!! I am gonna paint the board Sapphire Black!!
Also: if they did not do something on the cert. list, then they would have to do it under warranty anyway. So they are usually very thorough.
I also called BMWNA and the guy there said that I should check that the dealer had ensured that the car would meet the certified criteria before marketing the vehicle as such.
I think I would have greater peace of mind if it had been pre-certified, but I will really have to check with a fine-tooth comb (my horoscope said: check pet for fleas) on Saturday.
Well: Got the financing and insurance settled, checked the market for fair pricing (I did OK) will work on the trade-in tomorrow...
I will soon be set to enjoy this car....
Looking fwd to the pics of the Sapphire Black. Came oh-so-close to ordering that color myself, but I was pretty optioned out, so when it came to color, I couldn't justify the $$$$ for Sapphire Blk vs. Black-black.
"Shtroumpish"?......i dunno
But I wanted to clarify ur comment on my "worrying":
Unlike some people, I typically am not used to a smooth sailing (or what I would like to think of as smooth!). I have been bitten more than once in my short life so far, and frankly dont have the patience or reserve for things to go wrong anymore! I have become compulsive about most things.....I like to take precautions, ask questions, clarify, beat the doubts to death.....sometimes it is possible to be ahead of the game using this approach, at other times its not.....but that is the basic philosophy!
I am in a comfortable position today not perchance or due to good fortune only, but by using my own meticulous approach to life. Hence, when I get a solitary chrome trimmed window in an otherwise shadowlined 35k bimmer, alarm bells start ringing........
BTW, the sapphire black was my wife's choice!
It is very difficult to advise on life philosophies - all that matters is that you pick one that works for you. In real life, I can be very stubborn, aggressive, and biting - you've seen that trait of my personality on the board. Yeah, you can read a lot about the real person from the board. Most of what I've achieved, just like you, I had to fight ferociously for. I was a lot more restless when I was 25 and I like the 32-year-old version of me much better b/c I'm at peace with myself and am very comfortable with who I am. But in my experience, I've realized that when you take a punch in life, you shouldn't be standing stiff and tight - it hurts more that way, like going head against the wall. It's typically better to flex a little as you're taking the punch - it softens the impact and although you do lose some ground at first, you can use the bounce to come back and even attack. Think about it - maybe you'll interpret it better for yourself than the way I can explain it. Ultimately, I measure my success by how happy and at peace with myself I feel and how happy I can make the people that I love. Worrying a lot about getting ripped off doesn't help me achieve any of this b/c it often breaks my emotional balance. You can replace a lot about your body (where should I start?) but there's not much you can do about your nerves - they are a limited resource that you use up over time and unlike, say hair, you can't regenerate them or transplant them. I believe in working smart, not necessarily very hard
I agonized for weeks about whether I should splurge and get this car instead of something like a Honda Civic. I did a great deal of research and forecasting. But ultimately, it was the people on this board that helped me make up my mind. I'm glad I didn't end up on some of the other boards (bimmer.org for eg.). It would have scared me off big time.
Of course, once I drove the car, I was sold...so all reason and logic pretty much went out the window.
And I have always wanted a BMW before I was 30...so there!!!!
The Napa and Sonoma Valleys were a better Wine Route, but Niagara is not too bad.
My friend was coming in this evening from Boston
I called the airlines just to make sure that i have everything correct
Guess what....his original flight is canceled
And they are filling up the remaining airlines with those passengers......and my friend didnt know about it (he is the carefree types)
so i called him....and a stitch in time saved.....
So, there u go.....
Summer was last week here...we're on to winter.
"The fly-by-wire system operates thusly: The driver give commands with the accelerator pedal to two potentiometers which move each throttle butterfly operating in its own housing mounted directly at the intake ports. As the driver moves the gas pedal, the commands are calculated by the engine's computer processor and received by a DC servomotor between the cylinder banks. In turn, through a small gearbox, this motor drives a shaft that drives a link to each cylinder bank to rotate the throttle butterflies of that bank.
These two links rotate the throttle shafts, connecting via balljoints at cylinders 3 and 6. From these points, the other three throttle butterflies are opened and closed and the servomotor reacts to any pedal movement in a light-speed-like 120 milliseconds. The result is the driver perceives no lag time — only instant throttle response. Furthermore, the M Driving Dynamics Control System, controlled by a switch on the dash, provides two settings for throttle response: normal and an even quicker sport mode. In addition, the throttle butterflies for cylinders 4 and 8 have their own feedback sensors to monitor operation. If a fault is recognized in the system, one of four limp-home modes allows operation of the car at speeds of up to 62 mph."
On the subject of throttle response, I have never seen the code behind the throttle by wire for any car BMW or otherwise, so I can only make a speculative guess as to what is going on.
Most throttle bodies are fairly linear in their opening (ie. 10% pedal travel yields ~10% throttle). With a conventional mechanical linkage, once it is set by the engineers, that is it. With throttle by wire you have complete control of the "Butterfly valves" in the throat of the throttle body (or throttle bodies in the case of the M3). Can a computer be programmed to "learn" a driving style and adapt? Yes. Has BMW done this for the E46? I am leaning toward NO.
Given the "Fuzzy Logic" necessary to read the mind of the driver and adapt the throttle response to said driver, the code would have to be far more complicated than the M3 which has a simple two position switch for setting throttle response. If BMW had an adaptive throttle, I suspect it would be on the M3 and the rest of us would have the switch, not the other way around.
Many people (including myself) have noticed that the throttle response on our E46's became crisper somewhere between 2K and 5K miles. Guess what? For the benefit of my business partner, I lurk over in the Dodge Intrepid R/T board, they have notice the same improvement that we have. My guess is that the engine and drive train has loosened up a little and we are experiencing less engine and drive train friction loss.
One item of note, when I was at MB, I was talking to one of the engineers about throttle bodies vs. dynamic valve train engines (no throttle body). He told me that one problem with a free flowing throttle body is that initial engine acceleration was too much for normal driving situations. During testing, MB found that they had to "De-Tune" the throttle body a little so that people would not hit the car in front of them when in heavy traffic. With a throttle by wire system, the physical throttle body can be totally optimized and the computer can actually slow the opening of the butterfly valve (ie. 10% pedal travel yields 7% throttle).
Now for the good stuff, in theory, a throttle body is unnecessary! If somebody could invent a totally dynamic valve train that could withstand the rigors of adjusting from 0 lift to full lift and full duration, you can then use the valve train as your throttle. Under testing, they have found that a fully dynamic valve engine can produce anywhere from 7% to >20% more power from a given amount of fuel. I think the term the engineer used was the elimination of "Pumping Losses". I guess that the new valve train that BMW is going to start using in a year or two is moving in this direction.
WARNING, much of what I have just written is speculation based upon many sources, so take it for what you paid for it.
Best Regards,
Shipo
Here we go - I have to go read Shipo's response above.
genie: awesome! I should have guessed that they can grow grape vines up there. They make some decent table Reislings in Michigan.
C-de-Pape is from near Avignon (Bouches de Rhone). I was about 45 minutes away in a small town between Aix-en-Provence and Marseille. This region is one of the most amazing places I have visited.
And lets not even get into the fabulous food...
I, too, live in Chicago and in the 90 degree weather my parents commented on just how comfortable and cool the car was...until the aux fan died on Sat, that is.
Mystic5. How do you like that 325iX? I'm trying to convince a neighbor to buy a 325iX or A4 Quattro instead of an RX300. The car he's dumping is a Subaru and his other car is a Saab 9 turbo convertable. I don't think that he'd be happy in an SUV, even a car like one.
Now that Shipo's back I also have a question about a clicking noise i hear from the rear deck above the rear seat. It seems to be related to inertia because it comes on like clockwork when i accelerate from 0 to 15. The sound seems to be coming from too high to be related to the drivetrain itself.
We did some wine tasting in Chateauneuf-du-Pape and around Aix. It was great! Of the ones that allowed tasting I favored Chateau Mont Redon, 1998...not quite ready yet, but powerful and with a great finish. The local wines there are great also...but so many of them are pretty heady with high alcohol contents.
Pomeral is region of Bordeaux, unless I am mistaken. Quite a different style and grape from the -du-Pape's and Cotes du Rhone in Provence. But a totally robust style.
Personally, I prefer the big but subtle Burgundies...or even the Burgundian styled American Pinot Noirs.
If you like the -du-Papes...have you tried the Austrialian Syrrah's or Mertages? They're also very robust and flavorful.
I have owned 9 cars and have never experienced anything like this. Why should I purchase a car that has allready had to have the door repainted by some body shop? I hope the second car that was repaired at the VPC was fixed properly. Am I out of line to be upset??
2nd car is on the way....had a chip on the drivers side door molding which was repaired at VPC
Does anyone have any info on VPC "standards"
for repairs..?
Thanks..Adam