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Yeah, folks like that sort of grate on me as well. I like BMWs, in fact, I like them a lot, so sue me. ;-) That said, I have a soft spot on my heart for other marques as well, and can fully understand how/why others might like something different than me. Differences are cool, hell, if we did not have different opinions, the Town Hall would not be so successful, however, the personal insult thing stepped over the bounds of what I consider acceptable.
Best Regards,
Shipo
i saw that response in the other thread, but figured you were a big enough boy to handle it yourself...
-Chris
Fortunately, only one person has gotten down on me, another questioned the story a little, in a very respectful manner I might add. Another person even thanked me for the pictures, so, it ain't all that bad, I guess I won't need my Prozak(sp?) today afterall. ;-)
Bummer about your mother, buyers remorse after such a short period of time. :-( Maybe she can do an early lease turn-in and do the ED 330xi thing sooner. I mean, after all, it sounds like you NEED a trip to Munich. ;-)
Best Regards,
Shipo
Best Regards,
Shipo
P.S.
Just in case anybody was wondering, the "Prozak" thing was just a joke. ;-)
I am currently considering the Cadillac CTS (Love the car minus the somewhat gutless 3.2L Opel V6 engine and some interior material discrepancies) and the car generally is a blast to drive...it indeed has Germanic DNA in its balanced chassis. The other runner up in a far third position is the Infiniti G35 sedan, but can't stomach the rear end looks (I find it much more controversial than the CTS) and some cheapo interior bit pieces. It seems the cost cutting at Nissan has also infested the Infiniti lineup. The 260HP engine is terrific but the ride appears to be very harsh.
Has anyone crosshopped the CTS, G35 and 3 Series before settling on the Bimmer or any other of the aforementioned choices???
How do you guys deal with the inmense popularity of the 3 series? It seems that these cars are not exclusive commodities anymore...does that bother you?
Appreciate your responses!
the fact that there are more of them on the road effects the handling and driveability of mine not one iota...
DO - maintain it.
DON'T - ignore service intervals.
option not worth the price - the automatic. regardless of whether or not it's made by GM or faeries from the netherworld.
-Chris
FWIW, I have not heard of even one failure of that particular unit, which, even though I drive a 5-Speed myself, I would have noticed.
Best Regards,
Shipo
P.S.
Yeah, what Chris said. ;-)
I told my service manager about these problems, and he said that he does not like the nose masks, and that he had no advice to offer. I tend to agree with him.
My wife agreed to forget using the mask. I have found that keeping the front end and mirrors waxed heavily makes it easy to wash off the bugs. And, staying away from trucks and other avoidance techniques helps minimize any rock dings.
I can't offer any advice on the headlight washers since her car doesn't have them.
I think the G35 Coupe and Sedan are nice cars, but I would never buy one. I know that R&T scored it the highest, but I believe they qualified the win over the 330i largely b/c of price. The testers admit that the 330i is a better car but it was something like $6K more than the G35.
I'm seeing more of them (G35s)on the roads, but I think the styling is pretty vanilla. The only rear end that comes close to looking as bad is on the new 7 (weep).
Just last weekend, I saw a few of the new W211 E-Classes over at a local watering hole, and a lot more driving up and down my street. I have also seen things like Smart cars, A-Classes C270 CDIs, and just recently I have seen several of the next generation CLKs floating around as well. If we don't move this summer (still up in the air), I will most certainly get an early view of the new E60 5-Series sometime late this year or early next year as BMW routinely drives their "Mules" around the on the local roads.
Given that most of these are not closely held secrets, I have not bothered to try and snag a few shots, however, if anybody has any requests...
Best Regards,
Shipo
By the way, prior to 1997, I was contractually bound to not photograph any of the cool stuff that I saw at MBUSA, because I was a consultant there back then. That said, I saw some very interesting cars, most of which have made it to the U.S. market, a few that have not.
1. I just got my VIN, and according to the secret decoder charts on this Board, my car is scheduled for production in South Africa. Part of me wants to call the dealer and say reschedule it for a German build. That said, part of me knows that it is not really relevant, and that rescheduling will only delay my car. What would you guys do? If its not really a BMW anyway, without SP and manual transmission, what's left if its built in SA?
2. Why does EVERY discussion topic or answer to a question have to include a condescending, derisive comment about automatic transmission? Who are you guys trying to convince, those of us who see the advantages of automatic, or yourselves? Funny how the option not worth the price is the one the majority of buyers choose?
3. As for GM building the transmission: Have you EVER heard a complaint about a transmission in a BMW? It is considered to be the best manual transmission in the world by just about every reviewer I have ever read.
4. As an owner of four Nissan cars (including mother and mother-in-law, whose cars I helped them purchase), I have to weigh in on the G35 coupe. WHY??? The G35 is already built on the new "Z" platform. Isn't the new Z coupe enough? I guess they just want to include back seats that will get them into the comparos with the 330Ci and the Acura CL.
My understanding is tha the GM 5L40-E 5 speed automatic previously offered on most GM applications was mainly designed by GM and fine tuning it to BMW vehicle app specs. I am not ulterly familiar with that GM/BMW tranny relationship, so feel free to correct me.
I have a friend of mine that lives in Germany and he tells me that the few customers that buy new Bimmers there with automatic transmissions demand their dealers to make sure their new cars are equipped "With the American automatic transmission"....funny taught.
So which automatic you prefer? The GM or the ZF unit? What are the main differences between the 2?
Yeah for me driving fun has become a good auto slushbox. I like to mesh my own gears, but my wife can't and won't drive a stick shift car. So since she will need to drive the car from time to time as well, so I must compromise.
Besides, with the kind of traffic in this city, the "Joy" of driving a manual tranny vehicle wore old a long time ago. Also for resale purposes, 4 door sedans equipped with automatics (Regardless of make and model) sell better and quicker in my market region than stick shift equipped sedans.
Coupes and convertibles are a different story altogether....
Couldn't agree with you more. Like I said, I love shifting my own gears, but reality is where I live traffic is pretty bad 24/7 (Bumper to bumper) and wife refuses to drive a manual transmission car. I have found that most automatics (Specially GM's) are excellent slushboxes, smooth, and don't seem to hurt either performance or fuel economy. As far as resale value, it is easier to quickly get rid of a sedan with a slushbox than a manual stick shift, at least where I live.
"3. As for GM building the transmission: Have you EVER heard a complaint about a transmission in a BMW? It is considered to be the best manual transmission in the world by just about every reviewer I have ever read."
You mean GM "Automatics"? GM only manufactured 5 speed automatics for BMW RWD vehicle applications. I think manual gearboxes were still sourced from ZF. Yes the GM autos are extremely reliable eveidence by the very slim margin of complaints from BMW automatic equipped owners.
Automatic transmissions:
Pre March 2002:
GM Automatic on the 323i, 325i, 328i, 330i, 525i, 528i and 530i
Post March 2002 (as is my unconfirmed (as yet) understanding):
ZF Automatic on the 325i, 330i, 525i and 530i
Manual transmissions:
Getrag 5-Speed on the 323i, 325i and 525i
ZF 5-Speed on the 328i, 330i, 528i and 530i
Getrag 6-Speed on the M3, 540i6 and M5 (the two 5ers are also unconfirmed)
Best Regards,
Shipo
If buying a new 325i or 330i, would then prefer one with a build date pre-March 2002.
Don't trust yet the reliability of automatic ZF boxes.
Because they usually want more standard features, better leather, better sound, better ride with that automatic transmission (i.e. turn our beloved 3 series into a Lexus).
"Funny how the option not worth the price is the one the majority of buyers choose?"
Funny how US is also the most obese nation in the world as well.
Please connect the dots for us, Dave. I am eager to listen to your interesting theory.
For the record. I am not obese. In fact I am 5'10" and only weigh 160 pounds, so I am not taking your comment personally, but I still find it insulting.
Obesity has more to do with genetics and lifestyle eating/excercise habits and much less to do with the fact that whether we choose to mesh our own gears or not when driving.
I have never seen a recommended diet and excercise regime that calls to drive a stick shift car to burn more calories...LOL!
Personally, I'd not be at all surprised to see a correlation. In a nutshell, I'd summarize it to: "Laziness takes many forms."
We complain about how poorly the public drives, yet the public clamors for each new mechanism that facilitates them "tuning out" the road. Today, its cruise control and automatics. Tomorrow, it will be radar-based adaptive cruise control and "smart" highways that allow hands-free driving.
-hh
1)John Deere for a manual reel mower
2)dishwasher for dishpan hands
3)Power seats for ones that you have to reach and pull a lever.
Then we can end the bought a "Auto tranny " cause Americans are lazy business.....
DL
1999 323i Sport Auto
If you don't trust me, just look at say the last 12 issues of both. Can be scary reading if you drive automatics.
First in regard to buying a used 8 Series:
"There are also problems with the...ever- present automatic transmission failures in the 80,000-120,000-mile range.... If you can find an 850i/Ci with about 130,000 miles or so, they are often better deal than the 90,000-mile examples because someone has probably already replaced the automatic transmission.... A manual gearbox is more durable."
Second about used 3 Series:
"We have never said BMW automatic transmissions don't shift well. On the contrary, BMW automatics shift excellently absent a problem, and are far better than any other manufacturer's slushbox in my opinion. They shift great until they don't--this is the problem: they don't last as long as a manual gearbox. BMW's GM and ZF automatics are very slick units, if only they'd last."
See these type comments all the time in Roundel and Bimmer. And both are BMW-dedicated enthusiasts magazines that test cars with automatics. Have lots of readers with automatics.
ButMyWife
DL
vkwheels: Missed you by a day. We finally made it to Irvine MINI Sunday. We took turns driving the Graphite S. That car is smaaaallllll. A kick to drive, though. Very close to giving them $1,000, which moves us from the regular waiting list to the serious waiting list. This would be for a December/January delivery. Big color quandary going on in the household now -- Electric Blue or Yellow -- and even red is starting to make a late charge.
Thanks everyone!
the amplifier in the e36 is a separate unit that is VERY easily taken out and replaced...
go to zionsville auto parts, www.zionsvilleautosport.com and fill out a used parts request and they'll get you one... or any number of bmw parts suppliers on the web...
the anti-theft isn't an issue...
-Chris
Thanks everyone!
The AWD drive components are the same used on the X5 and are derived from a early 80's design (badged 325iX). It is as maintenance-free as other parts of the car and I don't anticipate any problems during the car's life.
I saw two posts in this board about people having problems with vibration during acceleration and high speeds but other than those, no other problem reports.
Chris, when you say the security system is not an issue, do you mean that you could take it to the dealer and have him activate it or that you can enter the code yourself. You could probably help hpowders a little more by telling him where to look for the amplifier on the E36.
Two mornings ago, I heard (er, "saw") my neighbor back over a skateboard in their driveway. Do we blame the kid for leaving the skateboard in harm's way? Or do we blame the car for a reverse sensor that doesn't sense an object that small? Or blame the engineer for designing a sensor system that doesn't have excessive false alarms (by ignoring skateboard sized objects)? Or blame the driver for not bothering to be aware of their surroundings?
To take your analogy to another level I'm sure you can extrapolate all the extra safety *stuff* on modern day jet liners facilitates laziness also.
Interestingly, I have a friend who's a senior 747 pilot for BA and he's a fan of automatics. I think the difference is that he sees piloting as a job, so he appreciates labor saving devices so that he can concentrate on doing other things better: its a productivity tool. Yet this has translated over to the options he's bought on his 5-Series as well. It would appear that he sees driving as merely a means to an end, instead of as a recreation unto itself.
Personally, I don't have a particular problem with this tool or that, so long as we're able to resist placing blind trust into its alleged infallibility. And also don't forget that it was such high levels of technology automation that facilitated the 9/11 WTC crashes: the Autopilot comes standard with preprogrammed waypoints that only require entering in a six digit shortcut code.
-hh
let me look in my bentley book tonight and i'll give him the exact location and how to replace it...
hpowders, if you can't find the replacement one, email me... i have an entire e36 stereo system sitting in a box at my house, along with the 6 disc cd changer (trunk mount)...
-Chris
As far as the correlation between laziness and automatics, my best friend is 5'7" tall and weighs about 250lbs. He owns a couple of restaurants and busts his butt at work. Outside of work he does absolutely nothing as far as excercise or physical activity goes (he walks his small dog). he drives an Audi A4 3.0 with a 6 speed, quattro, & sport package.
I just had to give that example to play devil's advocate, but I do understand dave330i's viewpoint. Many people who have never driven or owned a manual transmission car say that they don't want it because of traffic in their particular region. Sticks today are much easier to drive then they were back in the 60's, 70's and even 80's. The clutch on a Honda/Acura is light, but sturdy (easy to modulate in traffic), a stick shift Audi with Quattro is simple to launch (at the top of a hill or in stop & go traffic), and I don't have to get into the benefits of driving a BMW with a manual transmission.
The car manufacturers themselves are pusing each other to put more features as standard to their cars. When MB introduced the new C-Class (granted it had its own share of problems), they "forced" BMW to make fog lights, 16" alloy wheels, & a CD player as standard equipment on the 3 series.
Personally I believe that current technology should be perfected before a new technology is introduced. I'm also all for luxury items like leather, sunroofs, CD players, power everything, heated seats, but I think the naigation systems have a long way to go. I'd rather BMW or Audi or MB perfect their own product through superior engineering than compete with luxury brands like lexus or infiniti as far as marketing horsepower wars and bells & whistles go, but that's not going to happen. They've got to sell cars, they've got to make money, and they've got to turn a profit.
Sorry for the rant. I'm not even sure if I made any sense.
2001 Prelude Type SH, 2022 Highlander XLE AWD, 2025 Camry SE AWD
you made sense, and the last paragraph should be imprinted on the forehead of every design guy who works for those companies so they see it in the mirror every day. i don't WANT a lexus. i WANT a bmw. my old man loves his es... frankly, the thing is more like a buick than a buick is... but that's what he likes...
-Chris
Other than that, performance-wise, our 325xi has been running great. Acceleration has been quite good and handling is incredible (5sp, SP).
As for comparing to a 325i, it may be a tad slower, but I don't care. It still hauls for me and I have the knowledge of knowing I have a bit more surefootedness when I need it.
Comparing to a 330xi, there are features in the 330 that you can't really get in the 325. Touches like the chrome trim around the dials, the nicer door opening cover... little things like that... and oh yeah, the 3.0 l engine. I do wish I had that, but I don't miss the bigger payments that come with it.
-Paul
What does this have to do with laziness and obesity? You took my example and showed were technology failed, rather than trying to correlate an assertion that technology leads to laziness and obesity. Technology fails all over the place, because people fail and people aren't perfect.
2001 Prelude Type SH, 2022 Highlander XLE AWD, 2025 Camry SE AWD
nope, there's nothing wrong with it, actually, it can be somewhat amusing, as long as it doesn't get personal... i'm somewhat tempted to point out that an f-body whups them both in hp, 0-60 times, AND in price, but heaven only knows what kind of a hornet's nest that would stir up...
-Chris
2001 Prelude Type SH, 2022 Highlander XLE AWD, 2025 Camry SE AWD
I've never owned a BMW before (have had Lexus, Audi, and Mercedes) and need to check this one off my list...
I've test driven the 330i and would like your (attempt at unbiased) opinions on a couple questions:
[1] How does the 330i handle in winter. (I live in Chicago and we have the potential for having a lot of snow, though we haven't had much at all the last few years). I realize I could get the 330xi, but wondering how the regular model does.
[2] This is probably impossible to "answer", but when I drove the 330i I found it rather loud inside. I realize this is probably part of the BMW mystique, but just wondering what people think about the "rumble" of the road and engine. (I dont necessarily want the isolation of a Lexus, but the Mercedes C320 had good "road feel" without as much of the noise). Please don't yell at me for asking this! ; )
[3] Any changes (even if minor) coming for 2003?
[4] How cumbersome is the Navigation system to use. I LOVE having Navigation and will get it in whatever car I ultimately decide on. (Not looking for discussion on the merits of Navigation...just opinion on BMW's navigation).
Thanks!