BMW 3-Series 2005 and earlier

parump

Marincountygal,

Total Window Eclipse Tinting in Novato is highly recommended and used by the Sonnen dealers in Marin County. (I do not have experience with them.) In general, they suggest using a metallic medium tint, lighter for the front passenger seats in compliance with DOT regulations. The cost is probably between $400 - $500. My guess is that the quality of the work justifies the price.

The potential downsides of the metallic tint is that it may interfere (theoretical) with radar detectors, cell phones, and radio reception. Ask to see examples of their work and inspect the rear window. Evidently, this is the most challenging and look for good adhesion and allignment with the edge of the glass.

I hope that this helps!

Parump (Week 19, status 150)

brave1heart

I'm not sure if there are official speed limits in Saudi Arabia but if there are, they would be just a formality. It's like driving in Nevada - it's all straight and desert. Even if you get pulled over driving at an outrageously high speed, most foreign visitors are likely to get away with a verbal warning. I think the speed limits around here are the lowest in the world and artificially low at that - a leftover of the oil crisis from the '70s. Most of all, ticketing has turned into a money-making machine for local authorities and unscrupulous politicians. Most fatalities happen on back roads or running red lights or reckless driving (DUI). I think there should be no speed limit at all on our highways. I do believe in people's self-preservation instincts.

brave1heart

I'm excited as a kid. I can't believe I am feeling excited like a little kid at the age of 31 (going on 32 soon). It's almost embarrassing - I don't know if I'm gonna be able to get any sleep tonight. I hope we get a cooler day tomorrow. Are you cruisin' tonight?

laflea

I just picked up my 325I today, it took approximately 5 weeks to be built and arrive in Louisiana, it was a Munich car, so that helped. I ordered it from Richard Ford at Moss Motors. He was great to deal with, and I got it for 1500.00 off MSRP, and no other fees except the typical tax, title, license. And for those of you baffling between getting the Harmon Kardon upgrade, I did and am very satisfied.

Rodd

brave1heart

I've arranged with my dealer to drive both my new 325i and a '00 323i back to back tomorrow afternoon when I go in to pick up my car. I want to have a perfect oportunity to compare the new steering to the old one. I'll let you know how it turns out.

shipo

I have worked with many folks from India over the last 8 years. While I have never heard any of my friends talk about a speed limit, I always ask "What was the fastest speed you ever drove a car prior to leaving India?" The highest I have ever heard is 40KPH (about 25MPH)! They initially cannot believe how fast we drive here in the states. I guess all things are relative.

Best Regards,
Shipo

shipo

If your initial drive tomorrow takes you down here to the north western NYC metro area, give me a shout, you can drive my 1999 328i. It has steering that is similar to my 1979 VW Scirocco, which had no power assist at all and was easily the best steering I have ever had in a car.

Best Regards,
Shipo

akwon

Sorry to hear that. I can't believe a BMW dealer could be SO unprofessional! Maybe I just ordered from the same dealership (oh no!). Did you, by chance, get your car from BMW of Arlington (formerly Heishman BMW)?

brave1heart

Shipo - you are so right that it's all relative. In most of Europe, the speed limit is 130 kmph (85 mph) and typically they won't pull you over if you are going a little over - like 90 mph. A typical highway in Europe would be only 4 lanes (two lanes each way). Most sections of the autobahn that don't have a speed limit (most of the autobahn still has a speed limit) are only 2 lanes each way. They don't have the same long wide stretches of open road like we do here in the U.S. and they don't try to enforce the highway speed limit too hard. Also, most traffic cops would be standing on the side of the road, unlike the cruisers that come right up your tail here. So if you happen to be going 90 mph or higher, it's unsafe for any cop to pull you over. Anyone out there in Germany that can tell us more?

brave1heart

I'll be happy to take you up on the offer. It goes both ways with my 325i. I love driving down to the City - my wife lived there for 6 years before we got married, so we used to take turns driving Boston - New York almost every weekend. Crazy, I know. We moved in together 2 years ago and now I can buy a BMW with the savings from the phone bill :O). I am not planning on going that far South tomorrow but we are planning on going down to visit some friends for Memorial day wkd. It would be great to share some cars and beer (in the same sequence); I'll send you an e-mail to see if you'll be around. Thanks again!!

errickson1

I also ordered my 325 from Richard Foard at Moss Motors. He has been quite busy as a result of this board....I know of at least three people (including me!) who have crossed state lines in Texas to buy from him...lower prices and interest rates. Great guy and easy to deal with. I was told mine would be a Germany build also...week 20...tick tock.

brave1heart

I'm thinking of going with John Lee Hooker -'Let's Go Out Tonight' is winning the Top 1 spot so far. I may go through some Crystal Method (Vegas) later to "test-drive" the limits of the HK system. And yes, inevitably returning to Pink Floyd (probably 'Dark Side') at the end of the day. Any other ideas would be greatly appreciated!!

shipo

When MB had me working in Germany back in 1996, I had an office that looked out over the Autobahn (I think it was the A8). Our office was in Leinfelden-Echterdingen, right by the Stuttgart airport, and we saw a few VERY high-speed chases every week. The roadways over there do have reduced speed limits in urban areas, and Leinfelden is right where the speed is reduced for the cars heading into town. Needless to say, the local constabulary staked the area out fairly well, looking for those who neglected to slow down, or those who pulled the trigger a little early when leaving town.

My only brush with the German police was during Volksfest (Stuttgart's version of Oktoberfest). Being the token Yankee, it was deemed that I would not be able to hold my beer as well as my German friends. As a result, I was given a limit of one beer (1.5L = 51oz, that's a big beer) and made the Designated Driver. During the evening, I had my one beer at about 8:00 PM, and they had between 4 and 6 of those monsters. I am not kidding when I tell you that between the beer mug and the beer itself, it felt like it weighed 10 lbs. After singing and dancing and waving that damn thing around for a while, your arm gets rather tired.

When the festival closed (around 1:00 AM), we piled in my rented 320i and pulled out of the parking lot, right into a police roadblock. I am telling you, the German police do not mess around; they were taking every driver out of their car and giving them a breathalizer test. Even after 5 hours, I still registered a 0.002 (their limit is 0.08). They had a paddy wagon stationed there and those who blew the limit or higher were arrested on the spot.

Best Regards,
Shipo

shipo

I have found that a good test of the HK is Stevie Ray Vaughan's interpretation of Little Wing on the Sky Is Crying CD.

Best Regards,
Shipo

brave1heart

Shipo - I almost slid off the chair reading and laughing over that section that goes '...After singing and dancing and waving that damn thing around for a while, your arm gets rather tired.' The 10 lbs beer... Your friends had like 6 of those?!? That's 9 ltrs (over 2 gallons of beer EACH?!?). Unbelievable!! Well, I thought I'd seen on TV that police in Germany do not chase speeding cars in densely populated areas for public safety. I'm fine w/ taking the breathalyzer test - I'd feel safer going on the Autobahn knowing that there are no reckless drivers. Just curious - what kind of cars do the cops typically drive? How do they stay competitive with all these Porsches around Stuttgart?

shipo

If I remember correctly, they used a combination of BMW bikes and 5-Series sedans, and of course, Radios. It sure is tough to beat Motorola.

Best Regards,
Shipo

brave1heart

SRV is an old-time favorite of mine. I couldn't find that CD, though - someone must have borrowed it... I used to listen to 'Lenny' from 'Texas Flood' like 20 times in a row when studying at night in college. It helped me concentrate and I never got tired of it. Maybe I'll take that one instead.

brave1heart

Yeah, that makes sense - it's tough to beat the bikes, esp. in European traffic jams. I'd be lining up to join the police if they promised me a 540i manual for a patrol car. How about that? I'd use any excuse to go speeding with that thing. Just pull people over at random and go 'Sir, I just wanted to tell you that you have a nice car and I enjoyed catching up with your 911. Good day now - no need for a ticket, just cruising.' :O)

gr8st8

braveheart:
I share your opinions on eliminating speed limits on highways. Here in Michigan the speed limit on highways is 70 and although I heard that that supposedly is one the highest in the US, I still wish they would raise it 10 mph more....:)

shipo:
It must've been rather interesting watching those high-speed chases. Glad to hear it turned out OK for you when you were stopped. Did they make you perform those drunk-testing exercises as the police here in the U.S. do? By the way, were you a fan of the FVB Stuttgart?

shipo

Brave1heart,
Lenny works for me, good choice. I got some grins on the "Good day now - no need for a ticket, just cruising". ;-) Fun job.

Gr8St8,
From one Michigander to another, howdy.

They asked me a few questions and went right to the breathalizer test, no touching my nose or walking the line.

Best Regards,
Shipo

brave1heart

The highest speed lilmit anywhere in New England is 65. Cars are getting newer, faster, much safer - there is no need for the speed limit to stay at its level from 1972. I don't consider raising it by 10 mph a huge gain. C&D did some stats research a couple of years ago and they'd found out that there was a significant correlation between general employment level and fatalities but there was no correlation between highway speed limits and fatalities. It was interesting and I would've never thought about it - the lower the unemployment level, the more people you have out there driving, some even commuting to multiple jobs. That puts more stress on traffic and causes more accidents. Relaxing the speed limit so far has not increased the number of fatalities. I keep saying there would be a lot less traffic jams if people drove a little faster and paid more attention to the road. I'm fine if they want to install cameras at every city intersection - they can track the knuckleheads more easily that way.
I've graduated from the Field Sobriety Test twice, BTW. Passed it with flying honors both times. They get evil around here in Mass. Last time was two years ago. We came out of a bar and we were just talking, we weren't being loud or anything. A cop immediately got on my tail and drove behind me for almost 2 miles before he pulled me over. After I passed the test, he told me 'Watch the marked lines'. What a clown...

alpine325i

Yeah, I went cruisin', just got back. Seems like the whole world was out cruisin' too. "Vegas" was the first disc that I played just to see if it would handle some bass. "High Roller" sounded pretty good but now it sounds better with the subs broken in a little more, louder,lower, and sweeter. I used to play guitar in a couple of hard rock and heavy metal bands, so I still listen to hard rock also, like Linkin Park's Hybrid Theory, they're new and the lyrics are dark, but I love how the CD was produced, heavy guitar with some heavy bass hits. I download music from a program called "File Navigator" which is incredible and easy to use. It's free like napster but you can add as many MP3 servers or "Napster clones" to the program for more search results at a faster speed and higher quality sound. Then I burn the music on to a disc with an Iomega Zip CD 650, great burner for $250 and my blank CD's cost $20 for 50 with 74 minutes of playing time for each disc. I always download the highest "bitrate" (320KB) to get the biggest and most dynamic sound. It is a MAJOR difference in sound quality! The CD's that you buy at The Wall or whatever are recorded at 128KB to 192KB bitrates which sound weak compared to the 320 bitrate! With this setup I don't have to buy any CD's anymore. So far so good. Napster was the first to offer free music, but now there are over 400 MP3 servers or "Napsters" to get free music from. I've had some fancy CD burners that were fast but I had to take them back because of incompatibility problems. The Iomega Zip CD 650 is a little slower (15 minutes for a full 74 minute CD) but it never froze up on me once and is the best i've seen for the money. I don't know if you have a burner or not, but try to avoid "internal" burners because they are a nightmare to install and you need a $100 SCSI card to run it. I have an "external" drive using a cable to one of my USB ports. Whew! I think i'll shut up now )

alpine325i

I forgot to mention some of the music I like also: (mellow stuff) Pat Metheny's "First Circle" CD or anything from Pat Metheny, Peter Gabriel's "Secret World Live", Andy Narell's "Down The Road", Pink Floyd, Linkin Park, all the 80's hits, and some hard rock and a little bit of tecno and rap because of the massive bass. In other words, all kinds of stuff )

kashchei

I found a 1995 318ti hatch back at a local used car dealership (not a BMW dealer). It has 97K miles and they're asking $9,995 for it. I gave it the physical inspection and everything seemed fine. It even checked out at carfax.com. I'm a first time buyer and I don't know what else I should really look out for. Does this seem like it would be good buy???

kashchei@prodigy. net

hippo168

I've seen different info about this one. Can anyone please confirm? Thanks.

gr8st8

shipo:
Howdy, too...
Isn't the weather getting nicer and nicer here lately...:)

braveheart:
Surely a 10 mph increase is not a huge gain, like I said I agreed that there should be no limits at all on highways. But, as you pointed out, given their tendency to keep the limits for a long long time here in the US, I'd welcome even a 5 mph increase anytime. Speaking of the Field Sobriety Test, I passed it once too although it wasn't exactly with flying honors due to that one damn exercise where they have you standing straight and lifting your head up skywards and walking reversely to the back. It sounds easy but believe me it really screws up your whole balance and you really have to concentrate if you don't want to fall. I get a little laugh everytime I remember I almost failed that one.

shipo

As far as the sedans are concerned, it is my understanding that the 330i has power seats regardless the package(s) chosen. The 325i has power seats with the Premium Package; however, I do not know if combining both the Premium and Sport Packages generates a vehicle with power seats. So, we need a second opinion on this one.

I cannot give any advice regarding the Coupe, Convertible or Wagon. I hope this helps.

Best Regards,
Shipo

shipo

Unfortunately, my wife is a "Garmento", so we are currently living in northern New Jersey. I would LOVE to move back to Michigan, but it is not in the cards for at least several years. I still have family there and we get back a couple of times a year. And yes, here in NJ, the weather is becomming quite nice, we are currently living up to the state slogan "The Garden State"

What's a Buckeye?

Best Regards,
Shipo

bmwvadriver

Brave1heart -- Thanks for the apologizes, but there's no need. It's hard to say if the problems I'm experiencing are the result of the place where the car was built, or just a fluke. Like I said, I love the car overall. I did call a different dealership yesterday about a 330i. Curiously,I have someone interested in buying my current car but I'm afraid to sell it because I don't know if I'll be able to find another one without ordering it. Turns out the dealer I called yesterday has a few on the lot, including a brand new leftover 2000 328i Orient Blue/Sand leather. I may take a look at it. And if my car's not fixed today, I definitely will be calling BMWNA.

Akwon -- I did not buy my car from BMW of Arlington. It's being serviced at the other Northern Virginia dealership. I'm curious to know what BMW of Arlington offered as a deal. I went there several times when I was looking to buy a car, and nobody bothered to even acknowledge me. So I went somewhere else. I've heard, though, that they don't offer very good deals.

On a general note, does anyone know what the proposed differences are for the 2002 3 Series? I've read indications that the cars may be longer, with more interior room and a redesigned back seat. Is this true?

gr8st8

Ahhh, The Garden State....sorry for the confusion on my part. It's rather ironic I almost considered moving there.

What's a buckeye?
Buckeyes are my main rivals....:)

veekay1

Hi all! Its great fun following the posts here, and very informative too.

burrsr: great post, very original and reflective of your true feelings! I especially commend you for not making a single spelling mistake on such a long post!

denright: congratulations on your order; i am not sure if May end/June production will result in June delivery; have you checked with your dealer? I ask because I am May end production too (Week 22)and was told maybe June/possibly July.

shipo: I am not sure where in India that speed (25mph)refers to; In Delhi, I was regularly driving at 70-90kmph (45-55mph) on the major (4 lane) roads (there are typically no "freeways" within city limits there); I feel, having lived in NY/NJ, that that is also my average speed on the daily commute here. But yes, there is no comparison when you are on the NJ turnpike, for example!

Best regards!
veekay1 (325xi/Blk Sapphire Metallic/Gray lthr, week 22)

brave1heart

Well, I'm absolutely incoherent with joy this morning. I even put on my navy blue polo shirt with white stripes on the collar and trim. I'm going to pick up my car around 3:30 today. I thought about a name long and hard and I can't come up with a great one yet. The best one I've come up with so far is Strumpf - it means Smurf in German. Don't ask me why; I can't explain - I just like the way it sounds and it strikes feelings of joy and playfulness in me.
Well, I just got off the phone with my dealer - she's saying the car is prepped, it has the plates on, and all it needs is an inspection sticker and a full tank of gas.

Good news for those of you who have not finalized their deal yet. The dealer told me that the new rate (after the 5.9% that expired) is only 6.7% - still a great rate!! Not too many (if any) other luxury car manufacturers have a rate that good.

As far as changes for next year, I have not seen anything in the automotive press and I expect only minor cosmetic changes, if any at all. For 2003, though, BMW is planning on using the new continuous variable timing VANOS engine technology across the board, which should improve engine performance, smoothness, and fuel efficiency. It's amazing - back 5 years ago or so I thought the 3-series could never be ANY better than the E36 models. Oh, I almost forgot - the M3 is getting a 6 spd SEQUENTIAL manual for next model year - just like F1!! Bring it on, BMW!!

denright

My dealer told me end May/first week of June build, with last week of June delivery. This is directly from his mouth after he got off the phone with Germany. Might it have to do with the models we are buying (me a 330xi) or our respective geographical locations in the US (me in Washington, DC)??

hkiliccote

Where did you read all that?

add123

Just my 2 cents. I ordered a 3301 with a May (week 22) production and was told that it would arrive in July. I will have to call my dealer to confirm reference the posts that I've been reading. Sooner would be great.
add123

thedeepdarkblu

I ordered a 325Ci Metallic paint, Sport Pkg, Xenon, leather, HK, CD Player, Moonroof for $34,633 OTD, including floormats. Granted, they are not the most customer savvy, nor is their building very posh, but my sales rep, Susan Gundry, seemed very nice. I am concerned about their level of service once I get my car, but I'm basing my assessment on perception, not on anything of substance.

shipo

Most of the folks that I work with are from somewhere around Bombay.

Best Regards,
Shipo

add123

Just my 2 cents. I ordered a 3301 with a May (week 22) production and was told that it would arrive in July. I will have to call my dealer to confirm reference the posts that I've been reading. Sooner would be great.
add123

burrsr

kashchei -- I would think again before purchasing the 318ti if I were you, even if it was in perfect condition. One of BMW's hallmarks is its inline-6 engines, which is flagrantly missing in the 318ti. I don't believe the Germans, in general, do 4-cylinders particularly well (the Audi/VW 1.8T being an exception), and the 318's engine is certainly no exception. The Japanese do 4-cylinders much better, IMHO, if that's what you're looking for. Also, if memory serves, the 318ti is one of the ONLY BMWs that was not received favorably by the automotive press, and it's been a bit of a reliability dog to boot...

brave1heart -- hope all goes well with delivery today. I am anxious to hear your perspective on the steering modifications/differences once you are able to back-to-back test.

bmwvadriver

Okay, now I'm getting angry. My 3-month old 325i with 3,000 miles has been in the shop for 3 days straight with major brake mechanical problems. I have not heard from anyone about when my car will be repaired and returned to me, and it's now 12:30 p.m. the day before a weekend.

What's worse, I called BMW North America this morning and spoke to Lauren, supposedly a customer service representative. I told her I had a major problem with a car that now is undriveable for which I spent nearly $35,000 just 3 months ago, and don't even have a loaner in the interim. Rather than being helpful, she tried to put me on the defensive. She asked "Well, what exactly is it that you want BMW to do for you." I responded that at the very least, BMW needed to provide to me a loaner vehicle at no charge given the fact that the reason I'm without transportation is because BMW sold me a defective car. I further told her that truth be told, I want another car because had I known that the car I purchased was manufactured in South Africa, I would not have accepted delivery of the car. Her response was (1) the issue of trading your car is between you and your dealership and we can't help you; and (2) as for the loaner car, she would have to speak to her manager because she was not sure if they would be able to provide one for me. She said she'd call me back, but it's been over 2 hours and I've yet to hear anything.

I know a few things. The car came from a Maryland dealership. Maryland has a lemon law that for most problems allows the dealership/manufacturer 4 opportunities to correct problems within the warranty period. For brake and steering-related problems, however, they typcially get ONE shot. If it's not fixed right this first time, I'll be demanding a full refund.

As for trading the car for another BMW, I have serious reservations now given their apparent lack of response to legitimate customer complaints. I'm seriously considering switching loyalties to Mercedes. Although the C Class is not nearly as exciting as the 3-Series, perhaps I'll be able to drive it longer than 3,000 miles before a major mechanical problem surfaces.

I'm surprised at BMW, especially given what seem to be people's positive experiences with respect to customer service from BMW of North America.

ec_creative

Sorry to hear about your situation.

Put the pressure on the dealership to give you a loaner car (at no cost to you). That's the least they can do. Talk to the sales person who sold you the car, and get them to do this for you, afterall, they did get your business, and there should be a certain degree of customer service follow through here, especially on the part of your sales person.

Is it worth a try calling BMW NA again, you'll probably get a different customer service person, see what they say, you may get a better attitude than the previous one.

All car makes and models have there problems, even Bimmers. Hopefully you won't lose faith in BMWs because of this.

Hope it works out for you.

drcr

Hello all. I started like most of you. Reading since ~ Jan, order car, then ultimately post.

Mine: 325i, Sport, TitanSlvr, 5-spd, moonrf, gray lthr, wood.

When: Order on 4-2-01, due to who knows what, I got a week 18 prod. Munich build per the VIN

Current stat: 153 status to be completed today (dealer expects delivery end May/beg June)

Cost: $32,475 OTD w/mats + 5.9% (that's ~1600 over invoice)I feel pretty good about the deal considering no add on fees.

How: work w/ one larger dealer to test and inquire, read boards and ~ $500 worth of mags. Then sent an email to several in the area and ultimately went w/ one ~ 50 miles out

hippo168: I had the same confusion with the SP. Are seats pwr? The dealer lit says 8 pwr 2 man, edumunds says pwr but BMWNA and the dealer say manual unless PP or separate pwr seat opt ~ $900. no thanks

General:

Sport: for me a no brainer. If there had to be one option this would be it (C&D). Come on- those seats, the wheels (someone posted "everytime I see the Sport, I find myself looking back" - me too, and the suspension! Harsh ride and tire wear - true but small sacrafice IMO

Moonroof: Nice - could go either way but the MRS liked it and may impact resale. No question - it will get used.

5-spd: Ultimate Driving Machine - enough said (and I live in ATL)

The armrest? $400!! thats mad. I plan to order and install my self for ~ $160. I think it looks incomplete w/o

Wood grain- I would have preferred the aluminum or even black but I thought that gray or wood were my only options so I went with the wood. I think the gray looks sub BMW (trying not to step on toes) - no offense to anyone I hope

Leather: too much $ but I felt I had no choice w/ Slvr. Black would have to be too hot.

Wheel locks: a must. $25 for peace of mind.

Alarm: not sure yet - I mean you need the key to start it right?

Tint: nice here in Atlanta but man in 5-6 years it may look like crap (I plan to keep till ~75k miles)

CD: None: I will install changer but in retrospect, I would have gone w/ indash. I wanted the tape for books and learning Greek. A changer will run min $350 with proper connections. I've learned that to upgrade that sys will cost a fortune. Any suggestions on for little more base?

Xenon: wanted them but didn't want to pay $500. I think the halogen lights illuminate the road fine. Then I read a post about them drawing attention to cops (makes sense) and that did it for me - no xenon

Interest rate: Changed 5/1 and my dealer said you had to be APPROVED by 5/1 in order to get the 5.9. If it's 6.7 now? the difference is something but not too bad.

Question: Why can BMW build the thing in 1-2 weeks but it can take as long at the SC center? Don't they just do minor things, manual, checks, video? At least that's what BMWNA tells me.

Oh, what the heck does BTW mean? haven't figured out after 5-6 mos

Point: Since we don't use a front plate in GA, I didn't want them to put the front plate mount on the car (or drill the holes) so I just asked and the dealer says no prob. If you have it and don't want it you can order the replacement black strip for ~ $16 p#51-11-8-195-304

Thanks for all the advice. Counting the days just as I did b/4 Christmas as a kid. I promise the next post will be shorter.

DRCR

veekay1

Denright:

Well, all xi models are being built in Munich as of now (may change later according to some posts earlier, as and when BMW decentralizes production), as opposed to the regular (325i) models that are being built in SA (longer delivery times). So, that doesn't count.
And, I live in NJ, so, technically, the car arrives first at the port in NJ as per my info. I should still be getting it before you do!
However, just following the posts here for a month, I have realized that there are a lot of apparently arbitrary variables that are involved in this whole business : for eg: there was someone about 10-12 days ago who posted that his week 21 was in production already at that time; I asked one of my friends (week 20) if his was in production too, but, even as of today, his is still status 111(on order). So, who knows what the real deal is! But, hey, if you were told June, then good luck and pray for me too!! Sooner is definitely better!!

ec_creative

"by the way"

veekay1

drcr:

BTW=by the way!

drcr

Check out this sight for the E46 3 series compact for 2002. I hope they don't make this change here. Don't like the nose.

http://www.bmw.com/e46_2/d/0_2_uebersicht.html

DRCR

derprofi

bmwvadriver, I frequent some Mercedes message boards and I haven't heard the best things about Mercedes' corporate customer service either. I suppose that's not a big surprise when you consider how many Benzes require getting on a waiting list AND good luck finding one for anything under MSRP. And I think Germans still just don't understand the whole "customer is always right" attitude that we Americans prefer.

I would agree with the others who are suggesting you work with the dealer as much as possible, particularly on the loaner car.

ds2k1

I would strongly advise against this car. I have a friend who owns a '95 318ti and it's been nothing but trouble for him. He just got a really nice promotion and is very much looking forward to unloading it. As someone else mentioned, BMW is known for their amazing 6-cylinder engine. Their 4 just doesn't cut it. In that price range, I'd highly recommend the Acura Integra. I had a '94 Integra GSR and that car was a blast to drive. Very quick, excellent handling, good ergonomics, attractive styling - excellent in almost every regard and absolutely bullet proof. I didn't have one single problem with my car and Consumer Reports highly recommends it every year. Additionally, Acura's coming out with a new body style for the Integra (I think they're calling it the RSX?) for MY '02, so you can probably get a pretty good deal on used Integras since an old body style usually equals a lower resale value.

That's my $.02.

ds2k1

I've been very surprised to hear about the negative experiences some are having with BMW dealerships and with BMWNA customer service. In my experience, they've been amazingly responsive and helpful. Certainly every manufacturer is going to have a few a-holes working for them, but by and large I think BMW's known for being pretty good to their drivers. The dealership I dealt with was wonderful, and I've received no less than 3 calls from BMWNA asking me how I like my car, how my dealership experience was, whether I was comfortable with my steering, etc. I have a few friends with Bimmers as well, and they've all raved at one point or another about how well their dealerships treat them. Being the owner of a Jeep Grand Cherokee, I can tell you that the kind of attention given me by BMWNA is unique. Jeep-Chrysler absolutely sucks in comparison and the poor treatment I've received by virtually every Jeep-Chrysler dealership I've had the displeasure of working with is enough to prevent me from ever considering another Jeep. I had hoped that Daimler would have some positive effect on Jeep-Chrysler (under the assumption, of course, that Mercedes treats their customers better), but if they have, I haven't noticed it. Just try taking your Jeep in for warranty repair and you'll be singing the praises of BMW's customer service from the highest mountain tops. Trust me on this one.

burrsr

I purchased a new (then) '95 Integra GS-R right out of grad school and was smitten with it as well...it was a great car and was as reliable as the sun for the ~42k miles I had it. I remember one of the reviews (C&D, I believe) referring to it as a "starter 325" -- pretty accurate, I'd say! I'm happy to have been able to "graduate" to the 3er...