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Comments
http://www.caranddriver.com/
Cheapskates burning regular in cars designed to run on premium fuel can expect to trim performance by about the same percent they save at the pump. If the car is sufficiently new and sophisticated, it may not suffer any ill effects, but all such skinflints should be ready to switch back to premium at the first sign of knock or other drivability woes.
-Murray
What does the dealer have to do to get the lights to blink when locking/unlocking? Is it possible on an E36?
I have the alarm and it beeps, but no lights blink. I'd like the feature as I park in a poorly-lit open lot and it would be a plus in winter...
so I can find my Bimmer among all the others that park there. :-(
frankw3:
Check out tirerack.com
They have great info on winter tires. Also scroll back and read older posts that have covered this topic in great detail including sizes, brands and extra rims.
mudflaps - they clip on up behind the tires in the wheelwells... apparently, from what i've read, they are an absolute bear to get on (e36), not sure on the e46...
brave - ummm ice cream isn't ice and cream mixed together last time i checked. you'll have to do better than that. and, fwiw, i'm a HUGE nascar fan. your "bmw snob" slip is showing...
skobola - so now a sportscar is whatever anyone thinks is a sportscar? no. i'm sorry. if it's got 4 doors, "sports" cannot be attached to it. as i also pointed out, the m3 isn't a sports car either, it's a gt. would any of you consider a maxima a sports car? well, they call it one. that doesn't make it one.
sportscar is a sportscar.
sedan is a sedan.
coupe is a coupe (but can be a gt).
get over it. sheesh. what is it, a shot to your self-esteem because you can't put "sports" in the name? you've got the best sedan in the world. enjoy it. but don't try to make it something it's not.
go to the sportscars thread. read some of the topics on "what's a sportscar". maybe you'll glean some information about "what is" vs. "what i'd like it to be" there.
-Chris
Im totally in awe of the M3 3.2 motor and the M suspension, brakes, short shifter, etc., its totally awesome!! There were many fine people and some not very nice people here back about a year ago, I recognize a few of your names, and am suprised to see that many of you have come down from your "mountain".. Notice that Shifty has gone on to other places too.. I hope that you will continue to enjoy the cars, as they truly are the Ultimate in about every respect. My M Coupe is obviously not for everyone's taste, but it suits me just fine, looks more European than anything else, and definitely is a head turner wherever it goes. Cant say enough about the power, it has scared the bejeebers out of a few people already and I have not really lowered the pedal to the metal yet. There are trade-offs between the 2 vehicles, of course, but street legal racing cars would have to be that way, dont you think? I feel great knowing that whoever is going to buy my 325I is getting a totally dialed in unit with all options and more.
Trying to find a chatroom for my new vehicle but have not found the place yet, any ideas ?
Thanks to many of you for your efforts to help me with my new purchase last November and for all the fun we had at times.. Hope to hear from you again!!
Dan
-Chris
2) Go to "Anti Theft" activation section
3) Activate the alarm, but uncheck the DWA option.
Took all of about 10 minutes.
The first tech I spoke to told me it couldn't be done but the next one told me that there is now some type of upgrade in the computer system that allows it. I don't know if that's true but it certainly is easy enough now.
Regarding snow tires. I just ordered some for my 330 i with sp. Based on the reccomendations in this board, I went through tire rack and ordered Blizzak LM 22's with 16in rims designed for the BMW's. The entire package was $1124 plus shipping. Based on the reviews at the tire rack site these looked like a good choice. I live in the NY area and want good dry performance as well as snow and ice capapbilities and I want to be able to take the occasional ski trip to VT or NH.
(Kurt at extention 293 was very helpful.)
I am going to attempt to install myself and even ordered a torque wrench from the for $29. I hate to admit this as it might cause some to question my manhood but I've never changed a tire before. I've had the good fortune to only incur a few flats and just called AAA or MB roadsided assistiance. So that said, will putting on the four balanced and mounted tires be difficult? Is there anything in particular I need to be careful about, besides the obvious like dropping the wheeels on my foot! Any tips would be apprecitated or if the adivce is simply to drive over to my nearest service station and have them do it for me for $25 or so please don't hesitate to suggest. But somehow I feel a surge in my testostorone level when I contimplate doing it myself!
Main Entry: sports car
Function: noun
Date: 1928
: a low small usually 2-passenger automobile designed for quick response, easy maneuverability, and high-speed driving
Main Entry: se·dan
Pronunciation: si-'dan
Function: noun
Etymology: origin unknown
Date: 1635
1 : a portable often covered chair that is designed to carry one person and that is borne on poles by two men
2 a : a 2- or 4-door automobile seating 4 or more persons and usually having a permanent top -- compare COUPE b : a motorboat having one passenger compartment
Main Entry: cou·pé
Variant(s): or coupe /kü-'pA, 2 often 'küp/
Function: noun
Etymology: French coupé, from past participle of couper to cut, strike
Date: 1834
1 : a four-wheeled closed horse-drawn carriage for two persons inside with an outside seat for the driver in front
2 usually coupe : a 2-door automobile often seating only two persons; also : one with a tight-spaced rear seat -- compare SEDAN
Main Entry: grand touring car (gt)
Function: noun
Date: 1970
: a usually 2-passenger coupe
There is no entry for sports sedan, but I think a 325 is a low small automobile designed for quick response, easy maneuverability, and high-speed driving, just not 2 passenger.
How are you doing ?? Hope all is well with you and yours !
Oh man, this car - its unbelieveable! You need to drive one if you havent already, but I think that you have probably driven one more than I have since last week ! :-)..
Do you know where I can go chat with others about it? I dont want to intrude on this space here.. I have been so busy the year past, I have missed this. My apologies if Im offending any for talking about M's versus 3 Series..
Dan
-Chris
i've driven one, and from the second i sat in the seat, oh boy, did i want one... maybe next year...
hmmm... let's go start a m coupe thread in the sportscars forum... that'll work...
i'm glad you got it. you wanted it bad enough, and you'll drive it the way it was meant to be driven.
-Chris
I for one don't mind hearing about your beautiful new baby. Congratulations. You are obviously v.v. thrilled.
ccotenj:
Can I come too? After seeing one yesterday, the M roadster is a new object of lust.
If you think M roadster is nice, you should see a M coupe on the track.
I like BMW's for their refinement and versatility(who better has managed the integration of luxury and sport?), handling, and prestige. You might say my tastes, and income have matured. I actually don't drive that fast on the highway (minor road unpredictabilities can put you in the grave at 100mph). I do like to burn the turns on back roads, though.
i love the m roadster too... drove one before i got my 3er... but it was a bit small for the commute i had at the time (140 miles round trip)...
-Chris
-Chris
genie1: SLK is a fun cruiser, but for serious fun, M all the way.
Changing tires is fairly easy, so I will offer my steps. Please note, this is one of those situations where there are MANY ways to skin this cat. ;-)
1) Set the parking brake.
2) Chock at least the wheel diagonally opposite from the one you are going to change (if not both wheels at the other end of the car).
3) Mount the jack properly for the wheel you are going to change and then lift the car body an inch or two.
4) Loosen each lug nut one turn or so using the "Five Point Star Pattern".
5) Jack the car up so that the tire leaves the ground by about an inch (higher if you are going to use a jack stand)
6) (Highly recommended but never the less optional) Position the jack stand properly and lower the car onto the stand.
7) Remove the lug nuts.
8) Swap tires.
9) Replace the lug nuts and tighten them so that there is a snug fit for each one.
10) Lower the car (don't forget to lift the car first to remove the jack stand) to the ground.
11) Tighten the lug nuts with a wrench to something less that half of the torque specification using the "Five Point Star Pattern" as your guide for which nut to tighten next.
12) Torque each lug nut to specification once again using the "Five Point Star Pattern".
Repeat the above process for each wheel. Just to reinforce the Pattern thing with regards to tightening order, MANY folks have warped their rotors (and then blamed the manufacturer for using cheap materials) by not using the proper tightening pattern, even though they used a torque wrench.
Stokdgs,
Welcome, I have been active on this board on and off for over three years and you are not the first M3 type who has stopped by. The only thing that got our "Knickers in a Twist" so to speak was when an individual who had a 330i SP decided that said 330i was pretty pathetic, and bought an M3 as well. He then promptly informed the rest of us that we were not driving proper BMWs (or something to that effect). Given that the generally positive, upbeat and constructive nature of the discussions here becomes infectious, even he eventually settled down to become a welcome participant.
Best Regards,
Shipo
Thanks for the help, glad to see you are doing well. Ive learned more from you and a few others than anyone else, and I really appreciate it! I knew you had already done the homework on this M Coupe ! Yes, I plan to get it broken in like I did my 325I and then look out, the electronics say they shut it off at 155 ! (kids, dont try this at home :-) ) Hopefully this year, I will have more time to make a driving school or two, have a friend in Atlanta who says the Spartanburg course is great..
Genie 1, I also saw a white with black top M roadster at Niello, it was very nice looking and sexy, but still a convertible, and I have already passed through that phase once. Think in the Imola Red, it would be absolutely stunning !! They are trying to sell it for a sweet deal I imagine, since it was an order that fell through..
Dave, you are absolutely right ! The M Coupe is the better handler of the two, I can tell you that from first hand experience.
One other thing, the picture on the bmw website, as good as it is, does not really make you go as crazy as real life - looking at the back end, big, flared fenders covering 9" wide wheels, and the 4 stainless pipes coming out the back.. And the sound !! Truly the best BMW symphony in 4 part harmony !!
DanF
Golden Gate Chapter is running a Laguna Seca in Feb. If you're not a member, you should join and have some fun.
My problem is that I listen to many types of music (classical, classic rock, jazz, pop, even a little metal). My current Bose system is beyond awesome when rock/pop/metal etc. is played loud. But Mozart and jazz are a muted, mushy mess. In a previous car, I had a GM system w/aftermarket JBL speakers and a factory equalizer. It was better on average for all types of music, but wasn't as tolerable at ear-splitting volume, as my Bose system. If all I listened to was Jazz, I'd invest in Polk speakers - they repoduce subtle notes and highs, beautifully.
use of jack stands is always wise... and don't use the cheapo pep boys ones... get good ones if you are going to use them... otherwise, don't bother...
-Chris
I having had a new 325I as well, and totally loved it, would not ever be inclined to tell anyone that this or that vehicle is the best and they should all be driving one too. I will always remember that 325, it was absolutely perfect in every respect, and eventually when I get too old to enjoy the rocket sled may go back to the 3 or 5 Series anyway.. If I were to want anything on the M Coupe, it would have to be Xenon headlights. I totally loved them on my 3 series and miss them.. At this kind of speed potential you need all the help you can get :-)..
Im actually going to have some pics to post soon of my former black beauty and my new silver streak soon...
Thanks to all !!
Dan
fwiw, i like mb quarts, some don't like them on the high notes... plus they make a direct drop in kit for e36's, not sure if they have one for the e46 out yet...
i have the drop in kit in mine, and a 10" a/d/s aluminum sub in the trunk... driven by a butler tube driver amp, with an alpine head unit and alpine cross-overs...
there's many different "keys" to getting good sound... good speakers is always a key upgrade... however, something that gets forgotten a lot is that if your amp is straining to power everything, it's not going to be as good as if it's not working hard... also, the quality of the amp makes a BIG difference if you listen to classical (for example)... the "cleaner" power really shows up there... not all 1500 amps are the same... there's a reason why one costs 150 bucks and the other costs 1500...
ok, so i digressed...
-Chris
I wonder, is power the problem with the base stereo that people are reacting too? Does anybody know the wattage of the two systems?
not sure on the wattage rating, but the speakers in my car when i got it were sloppy and muddy, the phasing was horrible, it was underpowered (the list goes on)... granted, a convertible isn't the best listening environment in the world, but the stock system was really bad...
-Chris
P.S. You are correct that you don't mix ice and cream directly. In the past, the older machines needed dry ice to help freeze the cream but you still did not mix them. Today's machines don't need the dry ice any more. Frozen cream would probably be a more correct term for ice cream - I was just using ice cream as a figure of speech.
i like ANYTHING that they race... whether it's overweight fake coupes with v8's, to high-tech f1 (of which i haven't missed a race live in years, regardless of what stupid time it is on), to lawnmowers...
you generalize amoungst bmw driver's waaaay too much... i pointed out "the snob slip" because of your blanket implication that "real bmw driver's don't watch nascar, we're too sophisticated for that"... well, i'm here to tell you that you are incorrect... there's quite a few of us who a bimmerheads who are just all-around "car guys", and we drive a bimmer for what i will (self-righteously) say are "the right reasons"...
as far as your shot at my "enthusiast status" because i drive a convertible... i'll tell you the same thing i tell everyone else. i didn't buy the car because of the roundel, i bought it because it's the best dadgummed ragtop out there, and i will unabashedly admit to being a ragtop man through and through... if you read my previous post, you'll see that i didn't get a m roadster because i couldn't deal with it on a long commute... i AM an enthusiast, but i'm not stupid...
-Chris
ps dave, they do build 'em in barns, it's just today's barn is a lot more "modern"...
Thanks for the add, you make a great point, I suspect that the OEM jack from BMW is far safer than a Pep Boys Jack stand. I used one of those once in San Diego on hot asphalt. One edge of the stand started to sink into the asphalt, and then the whole thing bent in half! Fortunately, I noticed the pressure on my chest and got out from under the car just in time. ;-) I then had to figure how to jack up my car with the rear bumper resting on the ground (this happened back in the days of bumper jacks, Klick, Tock, Klick, Tock ). :-(
Dan,
Looking forward to you pics. ;-)
Back to Chris,
I swapped out my 1300 watt Carver two years ago and replaced it with a 300 watt Luxman, I was stunned by how clean the new amp was. I used to love POWER, with age, I now love Refinement. The first time I listened to Mahler: Symphony No. 1 on the Luxman I was initially confused by new sounds that I had never heard before, after several passes through one section, I realized that I was hearing the musicians turn the pages of their music!
Brave,
Maybe this is just an “Urban Legend”, however, when I was growing up I was always told that NASCAR was the legitimate outgrowth of the old “Moonshine Runners” and their slightly illegitimate profession. ;-)
Dave,
I should have a barn so nice. ;-)
Best Regards,
Shipo
Best Regards,
Shipo
This link will take you to a place where you can buy (sort of) an equine version of a BMW: ;-)
http://www.adoptahorse.blm.gov/
http://www.egyptianarabians.com/gradin/haziz/index.html
On the other hand, I think of the Egyptian Arabians (which by the way also escaped into the Americas centuries ago and are some of the ancestors of the Mustangs) as a very beautiful but tempermental Mabach Mercedes.
Both are truely wonderful beasts, but for my money, give me the beast that has Mr. Darwin on its side. ;-)
Best Regards,
Shipo
Of course, the fact that they pre-empted all TV shows for the entire duration of Ascot may have had something to do with it.
Where are you off to?
amen on the clean power. when i picked up my 3er after it's stereo-ectomy, i was like hans stuck in the m3 commercial... lol... the tube driver was definitely worth it, and the tubes glowing at night when you open up the trunk are quite cool looking (as much as i hate to admit i look... lol...)... when you have a convertible, to create any kind of adequate listening environment, you need to have a lot of clean power... the butler puts out 1500 watts, so it's not working real hard to power everything... also, i listen to primarily classical music, which is why i got the aluminum sub... you want nice clean resonant bass, not muddy ba-boom-boom type bass... you could really do up a sedan with a moderately killer stereo setup for around 3k... it's so much easier to get the phasing at least somewhere in the neighborhood with the hard roof... but i digress....
-Chris
ps. as long as we are dreaming about "really nice barns", how would you like to have that ultimate garage guy come over and set you up? dang...
pps. and the "barn" better be big enough to have a spot for that porsche speedster that you "are gonna rebuild someday"...
Could you elaborate on the five star pattern? I was planning on using the jack that came with the car so I guess that would be without the stand, right?