rickps | B-EH-MW

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.