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Her gas Cooper is about to end leasing time. I have kept asking my wife what she would like for a change — fearing that she would choose some French compact or similar. (Have I said before she's half French? Yes, I did.) She has been very reluctant to speak about her plot.
So, this afternoon she came back from the BMW dealer with a nice proposal on a 116d: USA$ 6,000 discount below MSRP; no registration tax (no 17% added to MSRP) because 116d emits only 118 gr/kg of CO2 and therefore falls in the ecology cars category eligible for tax discount.
When I asked her why she choose another bimmer for us she replied: "Well, you know I extremely liked that 118d we rented a year ago, but I was afraid you would insist me to have the 123d instead. You are a fool when hp and torque are at stake, but I will content myself driving yours for fun". :P
122 hp, 260 lb/foot, in-line 4 cyl, combined 53,5 USA mpg, Efficient Dynamics, Brake Regeneration, etc., as in the brochure that can be downloaded from here and from curiosity.
download a brochure
Here is a link to bmw.uk for more information on diesel Series 1 (I am aware you frequent it, but just in case other member wants to visit it as well):
bmw.co.uk
Regards,
Jose
TM
That is nice that she took all the action on her own, and surprised you
I do not see brisk sales of this model here in the states.
Regards,
OW
Regards,
OW
This is why we dont get lower 5 and 7 series cars that are widely available in other markets.
It's not just BMW, all of the luxury brands do that here. There's no Infiniti G25, for example.
That's OK...give Hyundai some time. They will no doubt take advantage of them somehow!
Regards,
OW
I don't know if Hyundai will take real advantage of BMW but others will.
The only thing I can add is a 116d hatched which is ordered today will be delivered by BMW over here in June. They are selling these cars quite well, even in current crisis time.
Regards,
Jose
That's OK...give Hyundai some time.
Bingo.
Surprisingly, the Germans don't fuly grasp this. The Koreans do, and I think the Japanese are starting to get the picture. Too many SUVs from Toyota, for example... and Honda really should introduce a hybrid CR-X. And, meanwhile General Motors was full speed ahead on a Camaro. :sick:
So, out of touch.
The diesel revolution will die because the Germans decided to only hit a single or double, and not hit the homerun that they could have. Shame... and stupid.
It's all so shortsighted, as usual.
Oh... I must continue to give Ford huge credit for its Fusion. It's the right car at the right time... a big step in the right direction.
TM
All did not go quite as planned (and I know none here are surprised by this) as just a couple of hours before the meeting/judging our "Empire Cake Building" was more, "The Leaning Tower of Flour..." And only leaning as I continually tried to shore up the tower with Twizzlers. So, long story short the "Empire Cake Building" became (as described on the card attached as required by the rules:
CHA(K)OS!
A Father and Son's three day odyssey of brainstorming, design, purchasing, baking and building in an ultimately furtile attempt to create the tallest cake!
BEHOLD! CHA(K)OS
Yes, Chakos was just a pile of chocolate and vanilla cake rubble mixed with multi-hued Twizzlers and chocolate and vanilla icing. Mmmm, good.
Our award: Best Name! And, ironically, had we just not been so aggressive in our quest for the heavens and gone a bit more vertically challenged, we would still have been the tallest! But, dream big!
Oh, the Typical Father and Son Day... which will include luxury...
'21 Dark Blue/Black Audi A7 PHEV (mine); '22 White/Beige BMW X3 (hers); '20 Estoril Blue/Oyster BMW M240xi 'Vert (Ours, read: hers in 'vert weather; mine during Nor'easters...)
As promised, I took him to Red Robin (all the fries you can eat. I do not feel so well as I type this...) for post-swim meet lunch. (I "motivated" him to do well by threatening McDonald's instead of RR if he didn't perform as expected...
Stop 1: The Salvation Army where I donated a bunch of clothes, winter boots and toys. And explained to Flipper what we were doing, Mr. Altruism that I am. Young Mr. Phelps rather astutely (and quite surprisingly) noted that I would enjoy the tax benefits of my largess. Kids!
Stop 2: And now the luxury (yes, even more so than the TL). I surprised Aquaman with a visit to the Dodge Dealer! Well, make that the former Dodge dealer, now Ferrari and Maserati! The place was crawling with more exotic Italians than an episode of The Sopranos! Now, I had little Johnny Weismeuller's attention!
Initially, my plan was to wander the outside lot (a typical New England March day, 65 degrees, snow slowly dying...
Time to leave, but Buster Crabbe announces that he is going into the showroom! This is good news/bad news as I knew it would be much harder to avoid the well-dressed sharks that lurked within the glass walls, trolling amongst the high priced Italian steel and leather reefs within. The good news was that Red Robin excesses had caught up to me and I needed a little "alone" time...
In we went and were ignored by the pony-tailed gentleman behind what appeared to be the reception desk. Ignored as he stared at us. Sponge Bob made no note of this. And then my worst fears realized, a well-dressed young man with a head of hair that I haven't possessed since my salad (well, more pizza and burgers than salad) days greeted us. Oh, no...
But, he was quite pleasant. I noted we were just looking (yeah, he was surprised), but that I was fairly willing to trade young Gilligan here for a Gran Turismo. Mike the sales rep quickly told me he could get me into a new black on black GT for only $97k! I asked young Poseidon would he rather me have the GT or save the money for a couple of years of his college education! Bless his chlorine-soaked little heart, without hesitation he said, "Maserati!" However, young Captain Nemo did go glassy eyed as Mike explained the de-tuned Ferrari engine in the QP...
We spent about half an hour in the showroom, the folks there seemed to have no problem letting the tadpole jump in and out of Gran Turismos and Quattroportes. Nice. Mike and I exchanged stories of cars and fiscal irresponsibility (not selling tech stocks for zillions during the tech bubble, riding 'em right back to the penny stocks that they always were... :sick: ) and him,without naming names, telling me of his client list. Alas, unless there's another tech bubble PDQ, may name shan't be added to that list.
So, it appears that little Squidward is now a Maserati guy. For whatever reason, the Ferrari's didn't stir his soul other than announcing that he doesn't like "Spyders." (And Snakes?). He thought I would look good in a GT, Evil Mom in a QP, prices and mpg be of no concern.
We arrived to an empty showroom, but as we left there was actually quite a buzz of activity as (mostly young-ish) folks showed up in a MB ML, Honda S2000, Jeep Wrangler and a Range Rover. One father and son just as us, enjoying a somewhat anomalous March New England day among the glitterati of the car world.
Nice day. But, curse you Red Robin and your unlimited fries! :sick:
'21 Dark Blue/Black Audi A7 PHEV (mine); '22 White/Beige BMW X3 (hers); '20 Estoril Blue/Oyster BMW M240xi 'Vert (Ours, read: hers in 'vert weather; mine during Nor'easters...)
At 50 mpg, it's a no brainer to offer an upscale entry level premium car that is also a halo car in the efficient diesel arena in the mid-$20K range. The 335d would be the next step up which would then be more exclusive but still a model of efficiency. The target for the entry level cad no longer is a $50K vehicle in this market but rather an affordable variant to flood the market to gain acceptance.
Get ready to fail at diesel in the States, BMW....ala GM. Doomed for repeat of history.
Regards,
OW
Red Robin, fancy-ish burger joint. A la Fuddruckers, Chili's, Fridays... A few steps up from Mickey D's...
Real food Sunday Night, as I'm making the restaurant rounds of free birthday food offers...
'21 Dark Blue/Black Audi A7 PHEV (mine); '22 White/Beige BMW X3 (hers); '20 Estoril Blue/Oyster BMW M240xi 'Vert (Ours, read: hers in 'vert weather; mine during Nor'easters...)
"Audi steers managers towards optimism
By Daniel Schäfer in Geneva
Published: March 5 2009 02:00 | Last updated: March 5 2009 02:00
The head of Audi took a contrarian view to the pervasive gloom clouding the car industry yesterday, saying he expected a slow recovery by the end of the year and called on managers to stop "moaning" about the crisis.
Rupert Stadler, chief executive of Audi, the German premium carmaker, said the last three months of the year could see the first signs of a reversal in the downward trend.
"I do not give up my glimmer of hope, which is that we will see the light at the end of the tunnel by the end of 2009 or the beginning of 2010," he said in an interview with the Financial Times.
His words came as car executives around the world were bracing themselves for what could be the worst first quarter in decades.
Analysts expectalmost all large carmakers to incur losses after global sales dropped by about a quarter in the first two months of the year.
Volkswagen, Europe's largest carmaker and owner of Audi, has not ruled out a loss in the first three months of the year, though it is expected to report a profit when it announces its 2008 full-year earnings next week. Audi is also expected to be profitable.
Mr Stadler said it was time for managers to be more optimistic. "There is always light and shadow. We have two ways. We can all join in the moaning, or we say we can make a virtue out of the plight," he said.
"I am rather doing the latter, looking forward and taking care for some optimism," he said, adding that "moaning is not a management task".
Premium carmakers have been hit particularly hard by the sharp downturn.
Audi became the world's largest premium carmaker in February by volume, leapfrogging BMW even after its sales dropped 11 per cent in February to 63,000 units.
The carmaker aims to gain market share. Mr Stadler said global car sales could drop by 15-20 per cent in 2009. "If our sales fall by 10 per cent to 900,000 units, this would be a great achievement," he said.
Audi did not see the need for extensive cost-cutting plans because it had controlled its costs over the past 10 years, Mr Stadler said.
"It is obvious that in times of a crisis you look into every corner to find further cost-cutting potential. But if we found another €3bn [in superfluous costs], we would not have done our homework in the past," Mr Stadler said.
Daimler and BMW, Audi's main rivals, have pledged to spend less this year to compensate for the much lower level of capacity being used at their plants. Daimler recently announced a plan to reduce costs by several billion euros this year.
Mr Stadler said Audi would launch its small car model, the A1, early next year, aiming for sales of 100,000 units in the following year. He said there was a good demand for small premium cars.
"It is an illusion to think that customers only want to buy a Dacia [Renault's Romanian subsidiary] in the future," he stated."
It's not surprising to see a bit of optimism from Audi. They (and their parent company) aren't days away from running out of cash, and their German sales were flat last month while BMW and Mercedes both dropped by 25 percent.
The shame of it
FWIW, I spell out those letters in conversation to avoid cussing. Yes, I'm a recovering cussoholic.
Tony, you head to Miami right when it turns 80 degrees here? What The Heck? ;-)
Although I am offended that you are driving my S5!!! Please ship it to me. And continue to make the payments. It is, after all, my birthday...
Back from the ongoing free food Birthday tour '09. Yesterday, free burger at Red Robin, tonight a nice free steak dinner including desert at a nicer restaurant. Still to come: Fridays, 99 and Bugaboo Creek. Not to mention the free lift ticket I plan to get on Friday in New Hampster!
If only they gave out new ski boots free for birthdays, I'd be really good to go... Although I hate to part with the current black Nordica's (circa 1991) with the day glo green and purple accents. A cute lift op from Argentina commented on how much she liked my skis/boots almost every time I rode her lift during our ski vacation last month. Hey, maybe I shoulda worn the boots to the Auto Show, Infiniti display!!!
'21 Dark Blue/Black Audi A7 PHEV (mine); '22 White/Beige BMW X3 (hers); '20 Estoril Blue/Oyster BMW M240xi 'Vert (Ours, read: hers in 'vert weather; mine during Nor'easters...)
You probably wouldn't want my S5, unless you are okay w/auto. It's really a nice GT in this guise.
Right, wrong or indifferent, she's officially a full-fledged depreciating asset. I can't stand having a note over my head. ;-)
TM
No one was offended, as the smiley face indicated...I just think Dada is a good artist with words, and your question and his response just additionally funny..
As for my departure, life just seems to throw a curve just when you make a plan, so I am now thrilled to be back on schedule two months late...One thing about down here at this time, it doesn`t get cold at night, therefore whey I get up it is already warm, and for the last two months my feet have been cold all the time, not now...I`l be back up there in a few weeks to enjoy the season with you....Tony ps the depreciating asset is a good description....and I enjoy your humor---sly as it is
Luckily, I got married. Getting married has allowed me to learn so much (well, maybe not learn but be told) about myself, my likes and dislikes. Now that I'm married, I have been told that, yes Vermont is nice (in fact, that is where I met the EW) but I truly love New Hampster and want a second/future home there. Who knew! Had I not gotten married, I never would have come to realize that Vermont was just a mistress whereas New Hampster would be my wife.
No sales (or income ) tax in NH, I'm guessing that is one of the reasons that the EW has informed me of my misguided views of/plans for Vermont...
And, as for Wal-Mart? Not my store yet. But, hopefully if I can keep my job and maybe get a promotion in the next couple of years, I shall be able to become a patron of Sam's place! Until then, Building 19 and Ocean State Job Lot shall continue to fulfill all my needs... :sick:
(No WTF, store-wise. Phil. Try Google instead...
'21 Dark Blue/Black Audi A7 PHEV (mine); '22 White/Beige BMW X3 (hers); '20 Estoril Blue/Oyster BMW M240xi 'Vert (Ours, read: hers in 'vert weather; mine during Nor'easters...)
I do miss pucks, but not much else. I would be interested how my car would do there. Probably a tyre change in order...
As nice and beautiful as it is... you end up having to make excuses for the lousy weather... so, no thanks... just not my cup of tea... at least not right now.
But... you still didn't answer my question. I wasn't asking your opinion of Wally World... I was wondering how long ago New Hamsterites finally let 'em build any stores in your state. I could be wrong, but IIRC, NH residents had a bug up their butts about the world's largest retailer setting up shop in their state... or is that not the case?
TM
(As for the boots, may be it is time to get a pair of Lange's!
Regards,
Jose
I am actually down in FL with my wife this weekend, they have huge WM superstores here, I think you can buy everything short of cars at them.
Also Dada, I went to the Sox game yesterday, mostly young kids played but they looked good, get ready to pay scalper prices soon at Fenway.
Happy Birthday my friend!
Isn't it great to talk about sports instead of the stinking economy? Oh yes we are suppose to talk about luxury cars here, but a diversion once in a while makes it more interesting. Right Pat
What's the point of this car again (In USA at least)?
Agreed. You'd literally have to drive the spindles off both cars to see any return on the cost increase, if at all. Remember diesel costs more than premium now, so there's likely not to be any cost savings ever. And whether or not pee is injected into the exhaust, the reduction in the environmental impact apropos of the 335i is not that profound.
Now I'm off to read the other posts to see if I've only restated someone else. (Now you guys have dragged me into this talk!
Wal-Mart's own top brass spent years trying to figure out if they could make enough money in the NE to justify the much higher cost of building stores here. In the end, they decided that they could.
Tag, it appears your query has been answered by others here. There are WalMarts in NH, but I'm not sure of the history of said store. As noted, Vermont is a much tougher sell. McDonald's had a heck of a time trying to build in Stowe, when finally allowed, the architecture had to be of the anti-McDonald's type! You really have to be on the watch to find the MickeyD's on the access road as of my last visit there years ago.
Or maybe it's NH slogan, "Live Free or Die." Stuff in WalMart ain't free...!
And, lousy weather? As I tell my LA brother/father and Florida relatives, I'll take a bit of (expected and, for some, enjoyed!) snow over earthquakes (yeah, we have 'em once in a while. Usually unnoticed), wildfires, mud slides and hurricanes. Well, for now, at least...
'21 Dark Blue/Black Audi A7 PHEV (mine); '22 White/Beige BMW X3 (hers); '20 Estoril Blue/Oyster BMW M240xi 'Vert (Ours, read: hers in 'vert weather; mine during Nor'easters...)
Jim, lucky you enjoying Spring Training! Ah, yes, spring approaches and a man's fancy turns to trying to forget the ills of the past Patriots season, watching a too long NBA season hopefully culminate in a repeatin' o' the Green and (although not a hockey fan) hoping that the Bruins recent collapse isn't just that... As well as hoping for UConn to bring home both NCAA championships in the same season. Again!
I have brought my Sox apparel out of hibernation and look forward to triumphant returns to form of Papi and Lowell. Tek to show 'em they were all wrong, last year was due to "personal issues." Youngsters, known (Ellsbury, Lowrie) and as of yet unknown (pitchers!), to flourish. Pedroia to continue to amaze and get dirty each and every game. The intensity (the anti-Manny) of Youk. And the potential of the pitching staff! And, most importantly, ensure that the Yankees spend the season looking up at the Olde Towne Team!
And, of course, to use the sunroof in my TL. Which is a car of some luxury. Maybe find that barely used '08 Jag XKR in a barn somewhere that is being sold for a song...
'21 Dark Blue/Black Audi A7 PHEV (mine); '22 White/Beige BMW X3 (hers); '20 Estoril Blue/Oyster BMW M240xi 'Vert (Ours, read: hers in 'vert weather; mine during Nor'easters...)
a "bit of"?
Reality check translation...
You'd rather be saddled with a LOT of rain, snow, cold weather, short summers, Nor-easters and generally tempermental weather, as well as those nasty biting bugs, mosquitos, ticks, and lime disease as an ongoing lifestyle... instead of taking that slim chance that a natural disaster could actually show up on your own doorstep, and otherwise enjoying an amazing climate and lifestyle. :P
Oh... BTW... biggest earthquake in this country's history was on the New Madrid fault... an Eastern quake. And scientists now say the risk of serious Eastern quakes is very real. Sorry. LD.
But... at least you still have that wonderful fall foliage... and the Pats.
TM
Does Skip still do the Braves games? How about Chip, is he broadcasting anywhere these days?
The MSRP on the first 750 il (launch??) was $101,000 with HUD, Night Vision, Blind spot detection, lane departure warning, and cameras for the rear and front two sides. It did not have a sport package or distronic cruise.
Has anyone driven one ?
As ignorance is bliss, why yes. Yes I would. :P
Ignorance disclaimer: Never been to CenCal or NorCal. SoCal doesn't float my boat so much....
'21 Dark Blue/Black Audi A7 PHEV (mine); '22 White/Beige BMW X3 (hers); '20 Estoril Blue/Oyster BMW M240xi 'Vert (Ours, read: hers in 'vert weather; mine during Nor'easters...)
I went to summer camp up in Vermont, school in Mass, and although the winters went on forever, I was young and it didn`t bother me...Maybe sub mentally as I much prefer the warmth to the cold......The purpose of this message is to question how you think of the summer weather, June July and most of August...I don`t remember it being anything but sunny and regular rain...Cool at night, warm in the day.....Mass was very similar....Further after seeing the aftermath of WalMart and the other big stores taking over the N C mountains, and all the smaller hardware stores and others being forced out of business, I hope New England can protect their wonderfully quaint towns...and I would imagine New Hamshire to possibly be the last bastion of normalicy....Tony
Yes! Absoultely yes! Completely politically incorrect. Today whether you are in New York, California or where I live in Toronto it is politically incorrect.
No matter where you live we are all Iowans as of today:
In Iowa, this is a niche market. “I have friends who will not drive one of my cars because their neighbors will look down on them for being too flashy,” Gary says. “It’s assessed that if you’re driving a German car you paid too much for it. You have too much money and you’re rubbing people’s noses in it.”
This attitude reflects what my husband and I have come to describe as the “farm-based frugality” of many people here. It’s an unspoken belief that one shouldn’t pay an unreasonable sum of money for anything that could conceivably be made, grown or fixed at home.
link title
Graham, 61, was found amidst a row of a dozen fire-damaged vehicles on the lot of Graham Colonial Motors early in the morning on Feb. 17, and now police are confirming that the fire was due to arson – rolled up newspapers and a gasoline can were found on the scene.
link title
yes I remember that place. I had to drive 60 to 90 minutes to Burlington in order to find the nearest Starbucks. :sick:
Regards,
OW
Enhorabuena!!!!!
A his and her BMW family! That is the same arrangement I have with my wife and despite my BMW 335i it has not affected our matrimony at least not yet. Wish your wife the best with the 116d. It sounds very impressive indeed and it is truly a pity that they do not sell it here in Canada.
Your wife got a great deal.
A $6K discount on a car with a multi month waiting list due to shortages?
BMW business acumen sounds quite shaky in this case.
I have to respond to this Dewey since your post found me in what I now call home. As some of you may have guessed by some of my remarks about the weather or when you hear me talking about driving east for nearly 600 miles on I-80 to see our daughter and granddaughter in the Detroit area, my wife and I live in good old Iowa. In fact, we live in the middle of the State in Des Moines. I was transplanted many years ago from MA (thus my love for the Red Sox and Patriots) when I attended graduate school at Iowa State University. Here I met my lovely wife who is from St. Louis. I had never intended to make a living here but I am still here enjoying life after all these years. When I visit my brother and sister in eastern MA, it helps to support the decision I made years ago to make a living here. I now get uneasy and nervous with all the rush, rush, rush, people trying to cheat each other (there are obviously many exceptions like laurasdada, etc.
There is a lot of truth to the story you linked about Iowans. They are generally hard working, honest people who don't live in luxury. But Des Moines is a pretty large city (about a half million in metro area) and therefore you don't get that little town atmosphere. With this disastrous economic downturn, real estate has held up its value a lot better here than in other parts of the country. However, a lot of businesses are reducing their work force here in the city.
I obviously don't drive a German car, but I do feel a little uneasy driving a Lexus in these very difficult times. You do see plenty of BMW's and MB's around here as well.
I have always enjoyed the changing seasons as there is always something to look forward to! And, for some people, to complain about... Spring is probably my least favorite as it is the death of snow and the creation of mud! Fall brings All Hallows Eve ("I got a rock") and the feel, smell and taste of the coming of snow. Not to mention trees that signal the passage of time in a most spectacular way.
Without snow, I am no fan of winter. Without snow, winter is simply cold and gray. With snow, winter is Currier and Ives, Charlie Brown Christmas, my kids on sleds and, most important of all, SKIING! The only thing I really don't like about snow is paying Mr. Plow Guy. Yes, snow can occasionally gum up the works, but true New Englander's simply play it as it lay... Although, I don't think most play it as well as when I was younger. Man, when I was growing up, they NEVER canceled school.
I don't think much about the Walmartization of New England. The town in which I grew up, I saw the "Malling" happening in the (IIRC) late '70s, early '80s. I guess I became de-sensitized: The Mobil Gas Station on Main St. became, "The Limited" with ridiculously priced, small condos above. The small hardware store (loved the smell of the wooden floor) disappeared as did almost all the Mom and Pops, replaced by chains of flotsam and jetsam stores. Yes, a bit depressing, but I imagine that man has bemoaned change since the dawn of our curious little species.
'21 Dark Blue/Black Audi A7 PHEV (mine); '22 White/Beige BMW X3 (hers); '20 Estoril Blue/Oyster BMW M240xi 'Vert (Ours, read: hers in 'vert weather; mine during Nor'easters...)
I lived in Burlington for one warm, snowless winter.
'21 Dark Blue/Black Audi A7 PHEV (mine); '22 White/Beige BMW X3 (hers); '20 Estoril Blue/Oyster BMW M240xi 'Vert (Ours, read: hers in 'vert weather; mine during Nor'easters...)