B-EH-MW

[rickps]

Another infrequent dinner last night with my friend Dan, the 'car pusher'.  Very good Mexican food consumed, lots of chatter.  And then there was driving of his vehicle-of-the-day, a 2006 BMW 330i sedan.

















(The above is not quite the car I drove but close)

After some environmentally unfriendly driving to/from the restaurant, I began to speculate as to exactly when BMW elected to exorcise all sporting fun from their vehicles.  Pry off the propeller logo, slap on one from a Buick and you'd be hard pressed to know that something was amiss.  Sitting relatively low in the cabin, looking at a wide expanse of charcoal dashboard studded with knobs and dials that should be important, I began to believe I was in a high tech bathtub.

BMW cars have always been about driving.  This was one about getting there.  Acceleration, even with the automatic in 'sport' mode, was leisurely until you got the revs way up.  Handling was secure and precise, but totally unexciting.  I had to stifle a yawn several times.

And then there are the legendary BMW quirks.  The directional signal lever's in the same place as on any other car but when moved, it snaps back into its original position having registered your request in its electronic brain.  Signals will then start blinking until such time as the car decides they're no longer needed.  Better?  Smarter?  No. 

Another example of change for the sake of change...  Want to start the engine?  Take the key fob, unlock the door, shove the entire fob into a hole in the dash, step on the brake, push the start/stop button and the engine reports for duty.  Shutdown is similarly complex.  Step on the brake, push the start/stop button until the engine stops, gently push the key fob deeper into its little dashboard cave and it pops back out and into your hand.  And this is better than a key because???

I give the car one star.  The A/C worked quietly.

Comments

[theoctothorpe.livejournal.com]

Word!

and WTF is up with their styling?? It's just getting worse! Hell, Mercedes is even kicking their arse in that area!

I believe BMW is just turning into Mercedes + Lexus, rather than the proud "ultimate driving machine" they once were.

[ricksf.livejournal.com]

I was going to stay away from styling comments. This one's prettier than the butt-ugly Z4 but it still looks like a carved brick.

I'm curious about the newer Mercedes. Dan's just gotten in an E55 AMG and has promised a drive. Stay tuned!

PS - I'm going to be in NYC August 2-5 if you're going to out and about.

[teelo.livejournal.com]

Um, what? The Z4 looks great! It'll just take y'all 10 years to realize that. I used to hate the Z3 Coupe and now I think it is probably one of the prettiest cars out there.

[ricksf.livejournal.com]

Hmmm, I wonder if when you put a cute man in a Z3/Z4 convertible, they become cuter....

[squalidbear.livejournal.com]

Could otterpop58 be any cuter?

[ricksf.livejournal.com]

I suppose we could plunk him into a Z8 and see.

Or maybe just spread him decoratively over the hood...

[squalidbear.livejournal.com]

How is BMW's reliability these days? Mercedes used to be a class-leader and now they are trailing the pack, way behind Lexus/Toyota and Honda. I remember Andi's M3 cabriolet had lots of little electronic gremlins and I seem to remember that the windshield washer low-fluid warning light (cos you really need one of those, you can't just tell it's empty because no squirty stuff comes out when you pull the doodad) ever worked properly on ricksf's M3.

[ricksf.livejournal.com]

Ugh, you bring back such horrible memories (no, not of you naked). My M3 was a service bay nightmare. I'd drive by a dealership and the damn thing demanded to pull up the ramp for one reason on another. And then there was the surly service 'advisors' none of whom were even borderline cute...

Friend Dan seems to think that neither BMW nor Mercedes have improved when it comes to reliability. With a few rare exceptions, dealers want to sell cars, not service them. BMW appears to have lost the battle with the Pacific Rim on clever technology and so is going for quirky innovations like the directional signal/key fob bizarrities I mentioned. And then there's the cursed iDrive (insert sign of the devil here)...

[squalidbear.livejournal.com]

I was talking to one independent garage who said they liked servicing Japanese cars because they were simpler. Presumably he meant mechanically rather than electrically. I know I got bored of replacing things like the $600 engine re-breather valve for "CA emissions" that was not covered under Mercedes fabulous (read 'shite') 'bumper-to-bumper' (read 'firewall-to-gas-pedal') warranty.

[ricksf.livejournal.com]

I can believe that. When, at 45,000 miles the M3's 'innovative new design' fiber water pump crumbled and required an $800 replacement, all I got from BMW was a blank stare.

My tendency is to say that Japanese cars aren't much simpler, they're just better engineered and understood by service folk. It's the whole 'ownership experience' philosophy thing, I think.

You keep your Lexus, I'll hold onto my Infiniti. We won't feel exotic but we'll start in the morning!

[squalidbear.livejournal.com]

I'm trying to persuade Chuck to buy an Infiniti FX35, as, at 58,000 miles, I think the Chevy's days are numbered...

And even though it's unreliable and horribly expensive, I still want an SL55!

[ricksf.livejournal.com]

The FX SUVs are rumored to ride like coal cars but they have a fascinating, slightly bizarro look. But they're loaded with lots of Infiniti goodness. I should ask friend Dan if he runs across them at auctions...

As I mentioned in a comment to theoctothorpe, Dan's got in an E55 AMG Mercedes that I'm itching to drive. 460+ German horses, wahoo!

[squalidbear.livejournal.com]

I want the E55 AMG wagon... just as fast but with slightly better weight distribution and the amusement factor of blowing away someone's pride and joy sportscar in your station wagon. Just need to add some wood panels down the side...

[ricksf.livejournal.com]

Oh, I'd suffer and take either the sedan or wagon. Besides, I think the wagon comes standard with two screaming urchins and a lollipop permanently glued to the headliner.

[theoctothorpe.livejournal.com]

BMW reliability seemed to always be a bit spotty... They'd usually cover up "big" problems, such as the endemic faulty fuse problem with my old 325e. The car was just fine, then all the sudden, the power fluctuated, the car stalled, and then would refuse to turn over. The battery was fine, but it turns out one of the relays *behind the dashboard* was faulty.... as in built improperly... so everytime it would "go", they'd have to rip out my entire dashboard, and put in another faulty relay. After two of these, the car got totaled when a drunk driver in a giant Ford 350 ploughed into me. I was unharmed, thanks to a jillion lbs of iron and steel between me and the "missile".