Have you looked at the BMW information on Euro Delivery? It answers some of the questions you're asking and more. Go to http://www.bmwusa.com and click on the "Virtual Center" menu bar item near the top of the screen. Then select European Delivery from the next level menu bar.
Silly? I think you are right - I'd do anything to have fun, especially on a slow Friday before a long weekend. I just did a write-up on one of my colleagues' CD compilation attempt and now everyone is asking for his second CD. Here it is if you want more silly stuff:
DJ Enrico (his name is Eric)
"Enrico,
The CD compilation wasn't bad, I enjoyed it. Some of the songs sound a little too whiny for my taste, I have to admit, but Led Zeppelin ads a bit of balance to the overall mood. The ballads are surprisingly mushy, although Cindy Lauper is always a treat. I'd recommend against recording two in a row from her, though - it gets monotonous. And what, you ended the CD with a RAP song?!? You can only slap those somewhere in the middle, they make me too hyper and I would've liked to see the end of the tape ease off with a ballad. Not a bad attempt considering you did it all in your lunch break, right? I'm sure Enrico II will be a significant improvement over Enrico I :O)"
Anyone going for the Ulimate Drive events in MA? I just signed up.
Braveheart - As for real estate in the Boston area, I hope it comes down to 'realistic' levels, I'll probably be in the market for a starter home next year.
Have you looked at the BMW information on Euro Delivery? It answers some of the questions you're asking and more. Go to http://www.bmwusa.com and click on the "Virtual Center" menu bar item near the top of the screen. Then select European Delivery from the next level menu bar.
I didn't say I knew the answer ) Do you think that Regis knows all the answers every time he asks a question? I skipped right over that part and went straight to the car chase action - LOL... In all honesty, I really enjoyed it and I'm sure the rest of the board did too. As you can see by ED questions on the board, you are the undisputed expert on ED.
Have you looked at the BMW information on Euro Delivery? It answers some of the questions you're asking and more. Go to http://www.bmwusa.com and click on the "Virtual Center" menu bar item near the top of the screen. Then select European Delivery from the next level menu bar.
Platypus : dont wait another 3-4 weeks ! grab you a cheap flight and enjoy a nice cool ride before you get back to the 100f Texas heat !
Getz1 : because of the holidays i won't wake it to the dealer until tuesday , however i just expected that the parts dept where i DID NOT purchase my car would try and charge for the light. my next scheduled service is less than a month ! rats, i don't have enough miles but for those who don't know , if its been a year regardless of mileage you will get your service.
When is the next Ultimate Drive? I haven't missed one in the past two years. I never got any brochures in the mail. Is the info on BMW's web site?
Yep, we are planning on buying a house in two years. This may be a topic for another discussion but I think we are not going to be able to avoid a deep recession. What we are currently getting is too much optimism that interest-rate lowering by the Fed will work but I think that consumer debt level is too high and we already have a negative saving rate in the economy. Japan is not coming out of recession any time soon and Europe (esp. Germany) are having a lot of problems. In other words, consumer spending is not sustainable and tech infrastructure is already bloated, so '02 and '03 will not be great years. The stock market hasn't factored it in yet and I think it will keep going up for a few months but I'm scaling out of it and plan to be out completely by the end of the year at latest. Good things come to those who wait. Real estate (especially high-end) will be down significantly in two years.
When I spoke with BMW this morning, I asked about the possibility of changing the delivery location. They said the only possibility I had was to have it delivered to my purchasing dealer in Maryland. And they said that such a change was not certain, only possible. In any event, I'll need to decide quickly if I want to do this. How long would it take me to drive from Maryland to Austin? 2-3 days?
While I am no longer professionally involved with cars, I used to turn a pretty fair wrench back in my twenties. When somebody starts talking about grinding something on a axle my BS meter starts heading into the red zone. Under normal (or even most abnormal) circumstances, the ONLY thing anywhere near the suspension of a car (much less the axle) that should EVER be machined is the brake surfaces (for us that means the brake rotors).
To the best of my knowledge, there are precious few changes between the 1999 and the 2000 E46 cars, and most if not all were simply cosmetic. Were I in your shoes, I might be inclined to call BMWNA and ask what a typical 45K service costs. Then if the numbers are too far from what you were quoted, I might have a little talk with the service manager of your local dealership. The other option is to start using another dealership or an independent shop that you trust more.
Regarding the two burned out bulbs, given that they were (most likely) manufactured in the same factory, installed on the same car, subject to the same on/off cycles, weather conditions and same voodoo that general driving subject the bulbs to, it is not at all surprising that they failed after a similar amount of time. I just finished replacing two taillight bulbs within a few weeks of each other as well. So far they are my only squawks since I have had the car (mine too is a 1999 vintage).
I was just wondering, do you download free MP'3's and then burn them onto blank CD's? I do. I use "File Navigator", it's a program where you can add as many MP3 servers or "Napsters" as you want. I also use "Lime Wire", they have more than just MP'3s, video, movies, etc.. I download all of the latest movies that are out in the theaters, watch them for free, then I delete them later because of the huge file size. When I download music I always go for the highest bit rates 192K to 320K. HUGE difference in sound quality since most CD's in the retail stores are at 128K to 192K bitrates. 320K bit rate is awesome! I was banned from Napster because I downloaded a Metallica song, so I went to File Navigator, 10 times better because it's expandable. )
We did Boston - N'Orleans (about 1,700 miles) in 21 hours flat while back in college. We were in a rush to make it on time for Mardi Gras and it was all worth it. There was three of us taking turns driving, though.
Make sure and post about the TD of the cobra, I have only heard good things about that car. At 28 grand it represents one of the best buys with regard to pure performance. My very first car was an 86 IROC Z with cross-fire fuel injection and several mods. You could bark the tires at 55 mph with a satisfying downshift, unfortunately I totalled it after 7 mos (oops). Probably a good thing considering such a car inevitably would have lead me down a path to trailer park living, a pregnant girl friend named Brandine, and a Billy Ray Cyrus hair cut (just describing the typical person still driving an 1986 IROC-Z, but I have to admit the power was intoxicating for a 16 yo). I am seriously considering trading in my 00 Accord coupe for a WRX, I am a huge fan of AWD but felt the quattro audis a bit underpowered (except for the forty thousand dollar s4). Of course the new 3.0l six offered by audi should help considerably. But a WRX AWD with 0-60 times in 5.5 sec (per motor week) for 25 grand seems almost too good to be true. However, I think I just have an addiction to cars; I have owned 16 cars and I am barely twenty-five. -Getz
Brave1heart - Well in the Greater Boston area, the Ultimate Drive will be held sometime in mid to late June. All the major dealers will be holding it, I signed up for the one at Foreign Motors West. My wife still looks longingly at the Z3 parked across the street (she wanted to get that instead of the 325 but it just wasn't practical), so gotta let her work off the frustration.
I just signed up for the Z3 coupe manual. Had to be a manual and this seemed like the best choice. Foreign Motors was all booked so I had to go with a different dealership. Not sure why they have different dealerships this year - it used to be that we'd all go to the same event and drive all cars we wanted to...The autocorss was my favorite part, seems like they may not have it this year.
I am planning to install a clear bra on my car to protect against stone chips and such. I am trying to choose between InvincaShield or XPEL. Any advantages of one over the other? Which pieces should I order? How difficult is the installation? Are there any other companies out there offering a competing product that I should take a look at? Opinions would be greatly appreciated.
I never got into the downloading mania but I think it's pretty cool. Didn't know you could download movies too. New movies before they've hit the theaters?!?
My car appears to be a couple of weeks ahead of y'alls, and the following has been my experience:
My car was in 150 status for about 7-10 days. Changed to 195 "Produced-not shipped". Stayed in 195 status for about 5-7 days while it waited for the next ship to depart. Changed status to "In route to Transit Center" once it made it on a ship to Charleston, SC. This is the current status of my vehicle. Looks like the journey is going to take about 13 days From Bremerhaven to Charleston.
Once on the ship, you can call BMWNA to get the ship name. I think a common ship used is named the TELLUS. You can track that ships journey by going to www.wlna.com . You can select the ships name and see its schedule. The ship leaves from Breverhaven and makes a few more stops before arriving in Charleston.
My dealer told me that once the ship arrives, the time to arrival at the dealership can vary greatly. He said that a few weeks ago, sold cars were sitting in Charleston for over a week before they were transported to the dealers, which meant as long as 2 weeks after ships arrival! As a result, several dealers complained to the transport company. Now cars have been taking from 3-7 days to arrive at Texas / Louisiana dealerships. Other factors impacting delivery time are: how many cars are on the ship, how many other ships have arrived, etc.
The transport company may wait until they have several cars an route to the same dealership, but I am guessing if y'alls cars are on the same ship etc., they would transport them out asap. Obviously, it is to BMW's advantage to get you in those cars as quick as possible! I hope all this info helps. Good luck.
Semester ended, but I am now in the process of studying for first step of national boards (June 6). Unfortunately I can't keep off of Edmunds so if I don't pass my licensing exam the fault lies with everybody contributing to this board and in no way encompasses my own incompetence. I had been fervently reading posts over the last mo. but had been to busy to write. Sounds like you are having a blast with your 325; I am jealous, an extra 14 ponies would make a welcome addition to my 323. I think I convinced the wife that upon completing my residency (many years from now) that it would be entirely unfair to refrain from purchasing an M5 until after paying of the $200,000 worth of student loans. Heck, they give you thirty years for a reason don't they? Oh, and I don't want to hear about interest compounding, I get that enough from my CPA wife. -Getz
Although the numbers on the WRX seem intoxicating, you need to test drive and rev its engine. Although Subaru engine cylinders are horizontally opposed and have the potential of being smooth, they are (or used to be) very rough at speeds over 4000rpm, vibrate a lot (keep your hand on the gear shift lever) and don't last all that long (the fiberglass timing belt). All these impressions compared to a BMW (and Honda to some extent). The sound of the WRX on TV confirms that their basic design has not changed much since an older one I owned. What Subaru has done to the Impressa(sp) reminds me of the old Datsun 2000 engine. Datsun (aka Nissan) bruted forced that engine (5 main bearings but poor balancing) to 7000 rpm but you could hardly grab the gear-shift lever between 6000 and 7000 because it vibrated so badly. For that reason and it's very peaky torque curve (high resonance intake and exhaust tuning around 4500), it lost its fun factor over time. I'll be interested in your impressions after you test drive one.
I know, I remember I always used to enjoy the things I did NOT have to do much better than the things that I HAD to do. We used to get a case of beer and get together for studying. We learned a lot, just not what we were asked to. Once the beer was over at like 4 AM, I'd go for one of those monstrous cups of strong coffee that I used to make and start really studying. I did all right - could have always done better grades-wise but we sure had a lot of fun. I was an Econ major, though, I doubt if you can get away with that pattern of studying in medical school. I sure hope my doctor wasn't drinking cases of beer when he was supposed to study for that surgery he's just going to perform on me, you know ) Yeah, the 325 has some extra power and a flatter torque curve but lower max torque. Not sure if there would be a significant difference in acceleration - I think C&D tested them very close (within 1/10 of a second). Oh, one more thing that may help you convince your CPA wife about buying the M5. Tell her that 80K for an M3 is nothing compared to the 200K student loans and most important, it is a small percentage of your total liability ) See, and we complain that liability is bad when there's too much of it on the balance sheet.
Glad to see others are participating in the Ultimate Drive, too. I polled the board a few weeks back as to who was signed up but got minimal response (surprising for this group). I'm signed up for 6/9 weekend here in Cinti. Have a 530i and 740i reserved. Figured it would give me a chance to sample both the 3.0l engine in a larger car and the 4.4l V8 (540i's were not available, however -- boooo).
Not looking forward to getting on the highway this afternoon with about 6 trillion other Memorial Day travelers. At least I will have Gretl to keep me company.
Semester ended, but I am now in the process of studying for first step of national boards (June 6). Unfortunately I can't keep off of Edmunds so if I don't pass my licensing exam the fault lies with everybody contributing to this board and in no way encompasses my own incompetence. I had been fervently reading posts over the last mo. but had been to busy to write. Sounds like you are having a blast with your 325; I am jealous, an extra 14 ponies would make a welcome addition to my 323. I think I convinced the wife that upon completing my residency (many years from now) that it would be entirely unfair to refrain from purchasing an M5 until after paying of the $200,000 worth of student loans. Heck, they give you thirty years for a reason don't they? Oh, and I don't want to hear about interest compounding, I get that enough from my CPA wife. -Getz
I actually love the way the engine sounds and I've had the opportunity to hear it live, as one of my neighbors bought a WRX a couple of months ago. I think there will be a lot of NVH but it should be bearable. I suspect the car will be pretty dead below 4k RPMs, though, and there will be a significant turbo lag from such a big turbo. At any rate, it's a great package for the money but I do prefer more refined cars. It is refreshing to see so many new driver's cars to choose from. I'd rather see more new choices in the sport sedan segments than in the gargantuan, butt-ugly, Ex-this SUV segment. Most manufacturers seem to agree.
The folks at the delivery center will ask when you take delivery if you know your drop-off date and location. If you do, they'll call and confirm with Harms. If you don't, it's not an issue. Just call Harms a few days before you're coming to let them know. They'll want your VIN number and expected arrival time.
Thanks for info...just checked the Owner's Circle even though I know that it's most likely still in 150 status, which it has been this entire week. Hopefully, you're right about several dealers complaining to the transport company and that the delay between SC and TX is 3-7 days. Yes, I try not to think about it much, but it's pretty dificult when you see a few on the road zipping past you...
I suspect that most of the guys posting in here are around 30 and we probably all grew up listening to the same stuff.
Personally, I am a huge fan of the heavier side of music. Everything from Led Zep, AC/DC and Black Sabbath to Iron Maiden, Metallica and the Misfits. Some good more recent stuff includes Disturbed and White Zombie.
I find it interesting that so many folks in here share my taste for the heavier stuff. Haven't heard of any R.E.M. fans in here so far...
Just keep in mind that you'd better be one very confident and good driver if you are planning on driving in Paris. Traffic is excruciating, the otherwise-polite French people seem to be taking out all their anxieties on other drivers, the lanes are narrow and those rotaries are something else. I spent half an hour just looking at the traffic on the Champs Elycee (spelling?) and Place De Concord. Those rotaries have about 5-6 streets merging into them and 7-8 lanes running. Sometimes you need to make 4-5 circles before you can take the street you want. There was a person driving around there for 10-15 min and couldn't get out - it's a lot of fun to watch... Ok, ok I'll pretend Tour Eiffel was more fun...
The only thing I've liked about R.E.M. is the "Losing My Religion" video - the images were interesting. Other than that it is one very whiny band that never grew up and I've never bought any music from them. I like everyhing except for country - from Diana Krall to Black Sabbath. Why limit yourself to just one music style? I gravitate towards hard rock but all the heavy stuff I like is stuff I liked back when I was a teenager (Judas, AC/DC, Led Zep, Black Sabbath).
thinking probably drop off the car in paris on friday, then stay there for a day or two (subway then, eh?)still need to check with the airlines, see if we can board on the plane in London instead of Munich. (the airline rep. here said no, said to ask people in the airport in London or Munich.)
Is there any way to track a car without knowing the production #? My salesman is refusing to give me the production #! Is there any way I can force him to give it to me, or can I call BMW NA, or can you suggest another course of action?
It's a week 25, steel gray metallic 325xi, SP, PP, Xenons, business CD, black leather. Ordered at BMW of North Haven in New Haven, CT. My last name is Cerio (but they may have misspelled it "Ciero" on the order - at least that's the way it looks based on the report I have which the salesman crossed out the production #).
Ouch! If you are right about the typical age here being about 30, I am feeling very old indeed at 44. Maybe ya'll are keeping me young, I think that is a better way of looking at it.
Within a week it was in 150 status. Originally it was scheduled to be week 23, now within few days I am expecting it to be completed. I have read some posts here with some of you having 111 status for weeks. It seems just too long. If I was you I would check if the dealer knows what they are doing, it does not sound right.
I'd strongly recommend the Metro over any type of ground transportation, esp. driving in Paris. It is safe, clean and believe it or not, they have free entertainment all the time in every cabin. They have these street musicians that would play in the middle of the cabin while the train is moving at, what - 60-70 mph? Not only do they keep their balance very well at that speed but some of them are very good musicians. They'll walk around for money before the next stop comes up but they'll never harass you or anything. It's fun.
Going on 32 and life just keeps getting better. I wouldn't want to be younger - not unless I can be younger with the same level of maturity, experience, knowledge, and, well, resources :0) Can't wait till 44. M6 anyone?
Ok, since everyone is jumping in, lately I've been listening to Linkin Park, Pat Metheney, Van Halen's 1st thru 4th albums, U2's Actung Baby, Carribean Jazz Project, Andy Narell, and various 80's hits. I don't listen to AC/DC too much because I used to play those songs into the ground with my old heavy metal band, but I still love to hear them, especially on a saturday night! For those about to rock! Great stuff!:o)
My car is in production right now (it better be) and I started questioning myself about the choice. I have selected a 330i with most of the options. I came across a 2001 A6 2.7T and it looks decent enough to consider. Personally I always thought Audis are VWs and their quality to be worse than VW, considering the cost. I live in NJ and have a 20 month old child. Quattro and extra space are tempting, however I am somehow afraid I would regret some day this change of mind to go with A6.
I know A6 vs 330 is a strange comparisson(apples vs. oranges), but cost is close, I am just not sure if it's worth long term. I am an enthusiast and love driving, but the question is long term practicality of a 330i.
Stay the course. Audis are still better quality than VW's - just had the opportunity to compare the Passat to the A4 4 months ago and I have to say the Passat is still an economy car compared to the A4. The new ones seem more upscale but so will the new A4's. Stay with the 330, you'll be happy you did long-term, especialy if you are the enthusiast you claim to be.
If the new M6 is really going to happen (hopefully we will know more next year) I may just hang on to my 328i and wait for it to come out, I would *LOVE* to have an M6. Hopefully by then, my youngest child will be old enough to climb in and buckle herself in. Me and an M6, OOOOOHHH! what a lovely thought.
Sandecki,
This is no time for second thoughts. I highly suspect that in a few short weeks when your butt is firmly planted in your 330i, all thoughts of "What might have been" will simply fade away. Speaking from experience, a 330i is more than spacious enough to accommodate a toddler (or in my case two). My children had just turned 5 and 2 when I got my 328i, they survive just fine in the back, and I have no problem getting them into their booster seats (especially now that my son can get in and buckle himself).
Miscellaneous thoughts about using an E46 as a family car:
When you have family (in-laws or otherwise) and friends who need to be toted around as well as the kids, get a Mini-Van as the a second car, the E46 is not big enough to put two car seats in the back and still have room for a person in the middle. Somehow it seems more acceptable to have the ubiquitous Mini-Van when the other car is an E46.
With the kids in the back, the front passenger seat empty, all of the windows rolled up, the moon roof opened and rolling along at ~40 mph, pull down the wind deflector for the roof and the interior of the car develops a medium speed WUP-WUP-WUP... compression/decompression cycle that is very entertaining for those in back. When they talk to each other it sort of sounds like talking into a window fan, they are ALWAYS requesting it when Mommy is not in the car.
I was adamant against getting a mini-van. Then she said if we got one, I could have any car I wanted...little did she know at the time I wanted a BMW! Lucked out on that one.
Comments
DJ Enrico (his name is Eric)
"Enrico,
The CD compilation wasn't bad, I enjoyed it. Some of the songs sound a little too whiny for my taste, I have to admit, but Led Zeppelin ads a bit of balance to the overall mood. The ballads are surprisingly mushy, although Cindy Lauper is always a treat. I'd recommend against recording two in a row from her, though - it gets monotonous. And what, you ended the CD with a RAP song?!? You can only slap those somewhere in the middle, they make me too hyper and I would've liked to see the end of the tape ease off with a ballad. Not a bad attempt considering you did it all in your lunch break, right? I'm sure Enrico II will be a significant improvement over Enrico I :O)"
Braveheart - As for real estate in the Boston area, I hope it comes down to 'realistic' levels, I'll probably be in the market for a starter home next year.
In all honesty, I really enjoyed it and I'm sure the rest of the board did too. As you can see by ED questions on the board, you are the undisputed expert on ED.
Getz1 : because of the holidays i won't wake it to the dealer until tuesday , however i just expected that the parts dept where i DID NOT purchase my car would try and charge for the light. my next scheduled service is less than a month ! rats, i don't have enough miles but for those who don't know , if its been a year regardless of mileage you will get your service.
Have a safe holiday weekend !
DL
Yep, we are planning on buying a house in two years. This may be a topic for another discussion but I think we are not going to be able to avoid a deep recession. What we are currently getting is too much optimism that interest-rate lowering by the Fed will work but I think that consumer debt level is too high and we already have a negative saving rate in the economy. Japan is not coming out of recession any time soon and Europe (esp. Germany) are having a lot of problems. In other words, consumer spending is not sustainable and tech infrastructure is already bloated, so '02 and '03 will not be great years. The stock market hasn't factored it in yet and I think it will keep going up for a few months but I'm scaling out of it and plan to be out completely by the end of the year at latest. Good things come to those who wait. Real estate (especially high-end) will be down significantly in two years.
When I spoke with BMW this morning, I asked about the possibility of changing the delivery location. They said the only possibility I had was to have it delivered to my purchasing dealer in Maryland. And they said that such a change was not certain, only possible. In any event, I'll need to decide quickly if I want to do this. How long would it take me to drive from Maryland to Austin? 2-3 days?
To the best of my knowledge, there are precious few changes between the 1999 and the 2000 E46 cars, and most if not all were simply cosmetic. Were I in your shoes, I might be inclined to call BMWNA and ask what a typical 45K service costs. Then if the numbers are too far from what you were quoted, I might have a little talk with the service manager of your local dealership. The other option is to start using another dealership or an independent shop that you trust more.
Regarding the two burned out bulbs, given that they were (most likely) manufactured in the same factory, installed on the same car, subject to the same on/off cycles, weather conditions and same voodoo that general driving subject the bulbs to, it is not at all surprising that they failed after a similar amount of time. I just finished replacing two taillight bulbs within a few weeks of each other as well. So far they are my only squawks since I have had the car (mine too is a 1999 vintage).
Best Regards,
Shipo
-Getz
Here's the link to the event http://www.bmwusa.com/news_events/udsk/intro_udsk.html.
My car was in 150 status for about 7-10 days.
Changed to 195 "Produced-not shipped". Stayed in 195 status for about 5-7 days while it waited for the next ship to depart. Changed status to "In route to Transit Center" once it made it on a ship to Charleston, SC. This is the current status of my vehicle. Looks like the journey is going to take about 13 days From Bremerhaven to Charleston.
Once on the ship, you can call BMWNA to get the ship name. I think a common ship used is named the TELLUS. You can track that ships journey by going to www.wlna.com . You can select the ships name and see its schedule. The ship leaves from Breverhaven and makes a few more stops before arriving in Charleston.
My dealer told me that once the ship arrives, the time to arrival at the dealership can vary greatly. He said that a few weeks ago, sold cars were sitting in Charleston for over a week before they were transported to the dealers, which meant as long as 2 weeks after ships arrival! As a result, several dealers complained to the transport company. Now cars have been taking from 3-7 days to arrive at Texas / Louisiana dealerships. Other factors impacting delivery time are: how many cars are on the ship, how many other ships have arrived, etc.
The transport company may wait until they have several cars an route to the same dealership, but I am guessing if y'alls cars are on the same ship etc., they would transport them out asap. Obviously, it is to BMW's advantage to get you in those cars as quick as possible! I hope all this info helps. Good luck.
-Getz
What Subaru has done to the Impressa(sp) reminds me of the old Datsun 2000 engine. Datsun (aka Nissan) bruted forced that engine (5 main bearings but poor balancing) to 7000 rpm but you could hardly grab the gear-shift lever between 6000 and 7000 because it vibrated so badly. For that reason and it's very peaky torque curve (high resonance intake and exhaust tuning around 4500), it lost its fun factor over time.
I'll be interested in your impressions after you test drive one.
Yeah, the 325 has some extra power and a flatter torque curve but lower max torque. Not sure if there would be a significant difference in acceleration - I think C&D tested them very close (within 1/10 of a second).
Oh, one more thing that may help you convince your CPA wife about buying the M5. Tell her that 80K for an M3 is nothing compared to the 200K student loans and most important, it is a small percentage of your total liability
Not looking forward to getting on the highway this afternoon with about 6 trillion other Memorial Day travelers. At least I will have Gretl to keep me company.
-Getz
It sounds like a good idea to drop off the car in Paris. Do you know when we need to decide the drop-off location (I mean how soon)?
brave1heart -
Are you an ACDC fan? remember you said something about them. (i'm not into music or something, my husband is)
Personally, I am a huge fan of the heavier side of music. Everything from Led Zep, AC/DC and Black Sabbath to Iron Maiden, Metallica and the Misfits. Some good more recent stuff includes Disturbed and White Zombie.
I find it interesting that so many folks in here share my taste for the heavier stuff. Haven't heard of any R.E.M. fans in here so far...
Is there any way to track a car without knowing the production #? My salesman is refusing to give me the production #! Is there any way I can force him to give it to me, or can I call BMW NA, or can you suggest another course of action?
It's a week 25, steel gray metallic 325xi, SP, PP, Xenons, business CD, black leather. Ordered at BMW of North Haven in New Haven, CT. My last name is Cerio (but they may have misspelled it "Ciero" on the order - at least that's the way it looks based on the report I have which the salesman crossed out the production #).
Thanks for your help / advice in advance.
- MCC
Best Regards,
Shipo
I have read some posts here with some of you having 111 status for weeks. It seems just too long. If I was you I would check if the dealer knows what they are doing, it does not sound right.
I know A6 vs 330 is a strange comparisson(apples vs. oranges), but cost is close, I am just not sure if it's worth long term. I am an enthusiast and love driving, but the question is long term practicality of a 330i.
Any opinions?
thanks!
If the new M6 is really going to happen (hopefully we will know more next year) I may just hang on to my 328i and wait for it to come out, I would *LOVE* to have an M6. Hopefully by then, my youngest child will be old enough to climb in and buckle herself in. Me and an M6, OOOOOHHH! what a lovely thought.
Sandecki,
This is no time for second thoughts. I highly suspect that in a few short weeks when your butt is firmly planted in your 330i, all thoughts of "What might have been" will simply fade away. Speaking from experience, a 330i is more than spacious enough to accommodate a toddler (or in my case two). My children had just turned 5 and 2 when I got my 328i, they survive just fine in the back, and I have no problem getting them into their booster seats (especially now that my son can get in and buckle himself).
Miscellaneous thoughts about using an E46 as a family car:
When you have family (in-laws or otherwise) and friends who need to be toted around as well as the kids, get a Mini-Van as the a second car, the E46 is not big enough to put two car seats in the back and still have room for a person in the middle. Somehow it seems more acceptable to have the ubiquitous Mini-Van when the other car is an E46.
With the kids in the back, the front passenger seat empty, all of the windows rolled up, the moon roof opened and rolling along at ~40 mph, pull down the wind deflector for the roof and the interior of the car develops a medium speed WUP-WUP-WUP... compression/decompression cycle that is very entertaining for those in back. When they talk to each other it sort of sounds like talking into a window fan, they are ALWAYS requesting it when Mommy is not in the car.
Best Regards,
Shipo