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I second that bet. Thank you Tag! I am obviously one of the those that does not care about spirited driving. The more comfort and technology the better as far as I am concerned. I am no longer a young lad like lilengineerboy, but I felt this way even when I was young. I could care less about feeling the road. "Give me comfort or leave me at home" . Oh yes! I'm sure that lilengineerboy doesn't know this, but I love my LS460L. And even though the Prius is probably not as comfortable as my car, I truly believe I would enjoy driving the Prius as well since it has SO many high tech toys. Dewey is making a smart decision in my opinion.
I'd be willing to bet that what you saw was not "RS" but "S-line". When you get the S-line sport/appearance package on the A5, that's exactly where the badges go. The A5/S5 is indeed a stunner. So far the best looking one I've seen on the road was in the Deep Sea Blue pearl finish. I'm not normally a fan of blue cars, but WOW.
I wouldn't worry about it. The RS5 is going to be a M3 killing monster, but it's also going to be very expensive - figure $75K+. Fortunately the only thing really new about the '09 S6 is the taillights, so I have no issues with buyers remorse.
When the next one comes along on the new platform, with the twin turbo V8 and presumably QuattroSport, then I might have something to think about
This is the perfect example of...
"They all come around eventually, it just takes time".
So let's see...
First GS turned in his 328i for the IS350, then Dewey is going to replace his 335i with the Prius and now Tag is putting the 135i up for sell?
What is happening here!!
Maybe louiswei should trade his IS350 in for the new A4 just to keep things in balance here...
:P
When the time comes, I'm going to ditch my 550i Sport for either a new Mustang GT or a Civic Si sedan! :surprise:
It's the new level of Luxury, don't you know!
Regards,
OW
Crisis is deep. Two semesters into recession and fearing that deflaction might be approaching. I try to keep my usual 'style' as much as possible. I still feel that one should not enclose him/herself in a aurtarchy shell if unnecessary. Anyhow I am worried, but still enjoying my 335d in spirited driving.
Do you by chance get the tv shows that feature the `old` cars, like Bugatti etc. and the Pebble Beach car shows??
No, or at least I have not payed enough attention to international tv channels.
more `winter` then it starts to have a break
I am enjoying the ski season (congrats to Lindsey Vonn and Michael Janyk, by the way). But I have to retile my roof as a consequence of the last gale.
Thanks for asking,
Regards,
Jose
Regards,
Jose
Regards,
Jose
Still a bimmer
It cannot be more true!
Regards,
Jose
As ditto above, here still remains a rare bird named Jose
By the way,
Hpowders,
How are you and your Rabbit? You were the precursor of our current succinct mood.
Regards,
Jose
There's no question the American consumer is hurting in the face of a burst housing bubble, financial market meltdown and rising unemployment.
But "the worst is yet to come," according to Howard Davidowitz, chairman of Davidowitz & Associates, who believes American's standard of living is undergoing a "permanent change" - and not for the better as a result of:
* An $8 trillion negative wealth effect from declining home values.
* A $10 trillion negative wealth effect from weakened capital markets.
* A $14 trillion consumer debt load amid "exploding unemployment", leading to "exploding bankruptcies."
"The average American used to be able to borrow to buy a home, send their kids to a good school [and] buy a car," Davidowitz says. "A lot of that is gone."
Going forward, the veteran retail industry consultant foresees higher savings rate and people trading down in both the goods and services they buy - as well as their aspirations.
The end of rampant consumerism is ultimately a good thing, he says, but the unraveling of an economy built on debt-fueled spending will be painful for years to come.
Regards,
OW
Five years of fighting in the trenches about this flushed right down the toilet by a short paragraph from Tag. Somewhere Pat must be smiling.
LOL... thank you, Len.
And gosh... if I actually put a smile on Pat's face, after years of giving Pat a difficult time now and then, I will certainly be glad about that smile.
TM
Cyclone, it was definitely not my intent to judge the automotive decisions of others, its all about performance, and if your yardstick for performance is creature comforts and technology, I think that you made a great choice in vehicles. I didn't mean to make it sound as if my personal measures of performance were the only ones to evaluate a vehicle.
And even though the Prius is probably not as comfortable as my car, I truly believe I would enjoy driving the Prius as well since it has SO many high tech toys.
I think its the execution of some of those toys, like the big high mounted touch screen (great) gets washed out in sunlight conditions (not so great), the tiny knobs for radio volume and audio controls...etc that erode my enthusiasm. I also found it hard to get a pack-n-play (a modern-day porta-crib), a stroller, and a weekend's worth of gear for myself, wife and toddler in the back (while the Fusion's trunk swallowed 2 weeks worth of baggage plus the stroller & pack-n-pay).
In my understanding the current generation was designed with very little US input, while the 2010 has more suggestions from this continent. My guess is they will incorporate a shroud over the display to help the washout issues, but that might make it more challenging to activate the touch screen. I think the Lexus they had at NAIAS in Detroit had a i-drive type concept and touch sensitive controls on the wheel combined with a HUD.
What I really wanted was to shift some gears. I wanted to be in a smaller car. I wanted to be driving my BMW 135i.
So... effective immediately, I will start driving my BMW for a while, and see if the magic is still there.
To be continued...
TM
I figured I'd get a little ribbing... and I'm OK with it, or else I wouldn't have posted it.
Y' know, Phil... you are one guy here that I KNOW understands all this... as you drive that awesome S5 of yours.
Think about it... could you ever turn it in for a huge luxurious 4-door sedan, that could just as easily be driven by a chauffeur?
When I was in a position to have numerous cars, I was able to have a luxury sedan and a performance/fun car, and sometimes even a third or fourth vehicle. But now I've made the determination that there should only be one vehicle per driver in the household, and I've got to narrow it down to one vehicle.
For me, that's apparently the definition of a dilemma.
TM
That's where a car like the S6 comes in. It's a great balance of luxury sedan and sports car. The AMG E-class is a little bit to cold, and the M5 is a little bit too hot. I'm still happy with the XK and plan to keep it for quite awhile, but I could also be content with just the S6.
If I had younger kids, sure I could change to a luxo barge, - the 'L' versions (it was my original intent a couple years ago). But, since my son is 20 & in school, I smartly realized a useable back seat was not needed.
If you can get you're younger one's accustomed to not having the rear seat entertainment of the Jag, & you have another ride that accommodates them, then I root for you keeping the 135I, as long as you are happier driving that sweet ride!
My wife & I are early empty nesters, & since I made up my mind first, I got the S5 with the rear seating for show. ;-)
It's up to her when she picks a new ride to decide if we want to be able to carry passengers. :-)
& go figure, our son has 1/2 our fleet! I guess we fall into spoil the only child! But, neither were brand new. :-)
Yes, I am no shutterbug, but the pics looked much better in their original resolution of 8 mil x 6 mil, or whatever the wife had set. The conversion down to fit the page did dull them some.
& thanks to all for the well wishes. Thank De Silva & co though, I'm just a [non-permissible content removed] lucky enough to bag one. :-)
A couple things eliminated it. For one, the chance to test drive one in my small market was nil.
Second, almost every review I read referred to harsh & tight ride other Audi's avoided.
Well, having an S5 without adaptive suspension, if this is reviever's idea of too tight a ride, I suspect I put too much weight in the reviewers' opinions.
Or my butt just isn't refined enough. :-)
Second, almost every review I read referred to harsh & tight ride other Audi's avoided.
Indeed there were no testers in my area either, so I went to Riverside Audi and tried one of theirs. My wife and I are often in the NYC area anyway, so it wasn't really too out of the way to go take a look. I too had read the reports of the harsh ride, and I wanted to make sure I could live with it and see whether I should opt for the 18" wheels.
Frankly I don't really see what all the fuss is about. The ride is on the firm side, but no more so than a 550i Sport.
But couldn't you keep the XJ as your beater car??
Regards,
OW
Hello, Jose!
Thanks for asking about me and one of my vehicles.
The Rabbit is fine-absolutely no problems. However, it is a front-driver. I am reminded of that every time my right foot gets a bit heavy at a traffic light and the tires squeal upon "take-off". :shades:
Not surprisingly, I prefer the extra stability of my 328i sedan. In addition, the BMW has a bit more front legroom and of course, more comfortable sport seats and a much better stereo system. So far, no problems with the 328i. Now that I own the BMW, I will be doing oil changes every 5000 miles; not the 15,000 miles that BMW recommends. :surprise:
I must say, that in driving BMW 3 series from 1993 and 2002, this one is a bit of a disappointment. It is simply too heavy and not as tossable as my other 325i's. The Bridgestone run-flats certainly do not help. Also, compared to the wonderfully user-friendly VW, the dash layout and other control locations (side windows) of the BMW are a freakin' nightmare!
These days, it seems like BMW is more interested in providing sophisticated technology and a few more luxurious touches at the expense of pure driving pleasure. This is disturbing to me. Next time around, I will be looking at the smaller 1 Series in an attempt to re-capture what those wonderful 325i's from earlier years provided me.
The wife has made the VW her own and I was glad to give it to her-although I can do without some of her more recent VW-induced shopping mall bills.
Jose, you have the 335d? The reviews here have been quite favorable-terrific V8-like power with great mileage. The problem here is the price of diesel fuel costs significantly more than high-grade premium gas and unfortunately, what one achieves in getting better mileage, becomes offset by the more expensive fuel. Also, one pays more here for a 335d than a 335i. I'm not interested, but for those folks who are, the 335i is the smarter buy in the USA at this time.
I see the resignation of Chris Bangle as BMW's chief designer a positive, even though I supported him. It's always exciting when a new guy comes in (Adrian von Hooydonk) with fresh ideas. I can hardly wait to see the next generation 3 and 5 Series designs!
The trend on this board has been away from BMW vehicles. This is not surprising to me. Unless BMW gets back to what they do best and stop caving in to the status seekers, they will continue to lose previously loyal customers. We already have Mercedes Benz. We don't need BMW to follow them down that road.
Regards,
hpowders
Yes.
A hybrid Toyota Highlander
A hybrid Lexus RX450h
A hybrid Insight
An ICE alternative?
Oh man that is just so 20th century.
Regarding that picture: Is your S5 parked in your living room or dining room :surprise:
Lack of trunk space for trips, visibility of touch screen being shined out by sunlight, and tiny knobs would greatly annoy me.
Also I read some complaints about Prius traction in snow. Seat cushioning is not that great.
A Hybrid Highlander and the Lexus RX looks like a more compelling alternative to me.
follow your heart and keep the garage inhabitant you love most: The BMW 135i. But show some sensitivity when you break up with your Jaguar.
These are definitely heart-wrenching decisions but what has to be done has to be done.
So why did I buy a 99 BMW 323i?
Back in those days clients and colleagues had sugghested that my MB300D would scare the hell out of many potential clients. So my MB 300D became a professional liability. Image and optics in the investment world is important. I thought of buying a 98 Honda Insight but that had even had less image than my old clunker Benz. Back in those days I couldn't give a damned about performance nor did I want to spend a lot of money on a marque and that is why I bought a 99 BMW323i versus a 99 BMW 328i. As long as it had that damned badge on and wouldn't scare the hell out of potential clients then that was all I cared about .
About 8 years later I became performance obsessed. My wife needed a bigger car so I got a BMW 530xi Touring that was a far better performer and handler than any SUV back then. I wanted the best performance sedan for my money and that is why I bought a 07 BMW 335i with sport package and a manual tranny. I had redeemed myself from those poseur days during the 90s and became a auto mag reader who was obsessed about performance specs. Unfortunately this particular car was the most disappointing transaction I did in my whole life (except for certain financial transactionsn).
My horrific BMW 335i experiences with reliability, snow driveabilty and a whole slew of traffic tickets has turned me into an anti-enthusiast who views any car above a Honda Fit with cynicism.
A few weeks ago I was about to buy a Honda Fit. Whenever I told anybody about selling my BMW for a Honda Fit the first question that arose was:
"Wholly **** your business must be going down the tubes."
Such an image is not an asset for my business. So here I am buying a hybrid instead of a sensible smaller cheaper funner to drive ICE car that I would prefer .
A Prius is not a luxury car but it is a car that does not have economy status since many affluent people drive them. This may sound like a cop-out but that is precisely why I may buy a Prius or a hybrid Highlander or even better a Lexus RX450h.
Optics, optics, optics that's what it is all about. In truth I am still in love with the idea of driving my MB300d for the rest of my life. It certainly drives better in the snow than my BMW though not as well as a FWD Honda Fit.
Thank God you did not waste over $3K on 17' Bridgestone run flat snow tires like I did. Big Money Wasted
The indoor pics were in the dealer showroom the night I picked her up. I guess I should have been more clear about that.
She came off the truck late afternoon, they prepped her, & by that time it was dark, so they pulled her inside under the lights for me to do my inspection. They even stayed open a little late until I was satisfied to take her home. :shades:
As a follow-up to my post:
Just paid an unannounced visit to several petrol stations: the average price for diesel is a whopping 46 cents above premium petrol fuel. Yikes! Add on the typical $2000 purchase premium over a 335i...so who the heck here in the USA would buy a 335d?
One must seriously question BMWNA's corporate "mentality" in deciding to bring the 335d over here. What they should be concentrating on for the USA IMO is a practical, small hot-hatch built on the 1 Series platform with the terrific inline 6 (128i)-something light, practical and fun....a vehicle more reflective of "our times".
If my experience is typical, it becomes obvious to me why BMW is so out of touch with its customers: having had BMW vehicles in my garage (four of them) since 1993, not once have I been asked for any feedback/ideas based on my hands-on experiences.
I don't know of any BMW drivers who would vote for bigger, more complex vehicles with confusing controls and run flat tires. BMW will lose a lot of folks if this trend continues.
My 328i is a good vehicle but I don't consider it a lot of fun to drive; something that previously was always a given.
I may be loyal, but even I am close to reaching my threshold of pain with BMWNA.
Look for folks like me to turn more often to manufacturers like VW/Audi out of bitter disappointment for what was once a great, proud company.
So true.
Here's a quote from the Wall Street Journal that I find quite amusing:
"In its latest submission to Washington, Chrysler calls itself "the quintessential American auto company." America can but pray that this particular claim is wide of the mark."
link title
That decision was made when gas prices were sky-high and diesel fuel was closer to the price of premium. Now, of course, that has changed.
If (or when) gas prices rise substantially, and if the 335d was NOT here... people would then be questioning BMW's corporate mentality in deciding to not bring the 335d to our shores when they had the chance. In this case, BMW is damned if they do and damned if they don't.
And...other manufacturers are in the sme boat. Diesel could have been an amazing alternative, but the price of a gallon of diesel is mysteriously too high. If the price of gasoline and diesel should ever get closer to each other again, diesel would be a fantastic alternative, but it will all be too late anyway, as the hybrid will continue to gain momentum.
Personally, I have abandoned my desires for a diesel, and am now a hybrid and EV advocate.
TM
My goodness Tag, you are on a roll!!!
That's another great example of:
"They all come around eventually, it's only matter of time".
Regards,
OW
Let 'em think whatever they want. Heck, I personally don't think that is the case any more anyway. The world's perspective on cars has shifted a lot. Frugal cars make more sense to most people now.
Besides, would most of your clients really know what you drive? And would they truly make some kind of judgement based upon your car? Personally, I prefer an investor that is conservative, as opposed to one that is wasteful or needs to show-off.
TM
TM
If / when that hybrid Honda CR-V shows up, I'd sure consider one... best of both worlds.
TM
That's a bold-faced lie! That designation goes to the infamous American Motors Corp.
R.I.P.
Regards,
OW
LG... what's your take?
TM
Regards,
OW
That rear quarter looks great, Blue is really her color!
She looks great... and, oh yeah... so does the Equus.
TM
Granted. And it is because of the fickle nature of human organisms that a mandatory federal gasoline tax must be implemented; the sooner, the better.
The only way car manufacturers can build some stability in their projected future inventory is for the federal government to tax gasoline so the price never fluctuates above and below say, $3.50 a gallon for regular gas. That will take inconsistent human behavior out of the equation, so manufacturers don't have to worry about tooling and building a new fuel efficient vehicle today which may become obsolete by its release date of 2012 if gasoline sells for $1.25 a gallon.
The government can give generous tax breaks and/or rebates to middle income people for whom this gas tax will prove to be a burden.
It's time to get smart and finally stick it to Chavez and the Sheiks for good!
Of course this would require oxymoronic political fortitude, which means it will probably never happen.
Now, about that 1 Series BMW inline 6 hot hatch.....