Any BMW Owners/Fanatics?

[Lord Blackadder]

BTW, iDrive was created by Microsoft. Case closed.

<Wails and gnashes teeth>

I've read the same about the 5 series having peaked in the E39 generation, and then not really keeping it up with subsequent generations. The iDrive in particular is singled out for criticism.

 

[davidwarren]

I love them, I have an e46 325i and my wife has an e90 325i. I can't really see myself buy any other car.

 

[63dot]

<Wails and gnashes teeth>

I've read the same about the 5 series having peaked in the E39 generation, and then not really keeping it up with subsequent generations. The iDrive in particular is singled out for criticism.

I think what is sad is that so many cars are going to go all high tech as it is not only the future, but NOW in many makes and models. I like the fact that my windows in both my cars are crank up windows. Electric windows are a pain when they break down and expensive to fix.

 

[steve2112]

A few years ago (2005), I was in the market for a new (to me...I buy used) car. My poor Protege was knocking on 200k miles, and was slowly dying. I am a car enthusiast. I want to enjoy what I drive, not merely drive an appliance. I thought a BMW was out of my range, though. I was on one lot, and the sales droid showed me several models, none of which caught my fancy. Finally, he said "have you ever considered a BMW?". I laughed and said they were too steep, but he told me they had one in my price range. It was a 2000 325. For years, I had seen the BMW win almost every comparison test in the car mage, so I decided to see if they really lived up to the hype.

I agreed on a test drive, preferably a long one. The sales guy took me on some back roads. When I started flinging that thing around corners and hearing that straight six wind out, I fell in love. I instantly knew why BMWs got all the love in the car mags. At one point, I saw the sales guy with a white knuckle grip on the handle.

Sadly, I ended up walking away from the deal. The car was just too old, with too many miles for my taste. There were signs the previous owner had treated like I treated it on that test drive on a regular basis. I decided, though, that I will own a BMW one day.

 

[Lord Blackadder]

Sadly, I ended up walking away from the deal. The car was just too old, with too many miles for my taste. There were signs the previous owner had treated like I treated it on that test drive on a regular basis. I decided, though, that I will own a BMW one day.

This is why I've passed on used BMWs, Audis, Benzes and even one Porsche in the past. They might be in my price range (at the high end of it), but they are always older and higher mileage than I'm willing to buy. As much as I want one, I simply can't afford to keep one maintained and be able to rely on it carrying me across the country, day in and day out, in four seasons' worth of weather. It's not that I don't think they are reliable, but a used $6-10k BMW probably requires at least a thousand dollars' worth of work (and probably more) above and beyond the purchase price to ensure it will run reliably.

I've got 125k on my Subaru, and I'm planning to take it another 50-80k miles on it before I get rid of it.

 

[steve2112]

This is why I've passed on used BMWs, Audis, Benzes and even one Porsche in the past. They might be in my price range (at the high end of it), but they are always older and higher mileage than I'm willing to buy. As much as I want one, I simply can't afford to keep one maintained and be able to rely on it carrying me across the country, day in and day out, in four seasons' worth of weather. It's not that I don't think they are reliable, but a used $6-10k BMW probably requires at least a thousand dollars' worth of work (and probably more) above and beyond the purchase price to ensure it will run reliably.

I've got 125k on my Subaru, and I'm planning to take it another 50-80k miles on it before I get rid of it.

That's pretty much why I walked away. You can't take something like a BMW to just any mechanic, and the parts tend to be more expensive than something like an Accord. I ended up getting a Mazda 6S. The Protege I had before the 6 had 185k miles on it before I got rid of it. I would probably still be driving it if the AC hadn't gone out in July and made me almost have a heat stroke. (No AC in summer around here is not an option.) Sadly, I ended up getting rid of the 6 after someone did some free bodywork on it for me.

 

[andreab35]

Wow you all have very nice opinions and sayings about BMWs.

My Dad spent all day infatuated with the car. Inside the thing is spotless. It's like it just came out of the showroom. He vacuumed it all up.
Today he went to register it, but he didn't insure it yet. He went in the rain to go wash it, and he waxed it up in the garage.

I'll be taking it for a drive by the end of the week.

And for you cupholder people, I've heard a lot about cupholder breakage. I opened the cupholders in the car yesterday and I thought they were going to break. They are very flimsy.

But with all the high tech stuff like iDrive, etc. There's no wonder why cars today are malfunctioning. They are so over-engineered. And that's why it costs more to fix! With the 1999 BMW I have, I'm saying to myself, "Jeez, even in 1999 this thing is over-engineered!"

But I have attached a photo of the BMW I have now. It's actually the photo from my Dad's friend that he took of the car. I couldn't take a very good picture in the garage.

So, you guys like it? I'm not very favorable of the styling, but it's ok.
Can this car fly?

 

[Lord Blackadder]

So, you guys like it? I'm not very favorable of the styling, but it's ok.
Can this car fly?

That's actually the last generation of the good-looking 5s IMO.

If there was any realistic way that I could own a car like that, I would have one. Sadly, it is not to be, at least for a few more years.

Love the car, though silver would not be my first color choice.

 

[bassism]

I'm pretty fond of my 1988 325. Cheap, easy to work, not too much to go wrong with it... And for all you guys complaining about the cup holders, the E30 doesn't even HAVE cupholders!

All the same, if I were to go for a new car today, BMW would be the first place I'd look. I really like the idea of the 335d. I also quite like the 6 series, it seems to suffer less from the generic styling in the rest of the lineup.

I don't know about reliability of the new cars though... The newest car I've ever owned was a 94.

 

[kellen]

That's actually the last generation of the good-looking 5s IMO.

Agreed, but I love the silver. Plus make mine a 540i please.

Love that body style much more than the newer style. I think its because I grew up seeing them when they were new and wishing I could have one.

Now I see them around here for 10-15k, not bad. However I would dread repairs on that thing. Even being one who likes to turn a wrench on my own stuff I don't know where I would source cheap parts.

New or CPO for me. 2.5 years until I am out of PA school and can get rid of my 2000 Jeep Cherokee. Love that car though, perhaps it will be a winter vehicle.

 

[macJC50640]

I really like BMWs, the overall feel of them and all. The first car I rode in (getting back from the hospital when I was born) was my dad's white '86
325i coupe. My dad still has that vehicle...but now it has a blown engine and is sitting on the side of the road. In the late '90s, my dad bought a used black '92 325i, and I really enjoyed that car. He used it up until a few years back.

My teacher drives a 2001 525i wagon, and a 1995 325i coupe. Just thought I'd add that in there.

P.S. I really dont post that often, but I really wanted to post in this one as I really enjoy BMWs, and I have a little history with them.

 

[Lord Blackadder]

Now I see them around here for 10-15k, not bad. However I would dread repairs on that thing. Even being one who likes to turn a wrench on my own stuff I don't know where I would source cheap parts.

One of my dad's friends does paintwork on luxury cars. A guy brought a 1996 7 series in for $2000 worth of maintenance (this was happened in about 1998) and failed to pick up the car. Turns out he had been arrested and imprisoned for some drug-related offense...long story short, my dad's friend had the opportunity to buy the car for the cost of the work plus a little - something around $3k!

He got rid of it after about a year, saying that maintenance and insurance was killing him.

Luxury cars are just like yachts in the sense that buying them is the cheapest part of ownership.

 

[andreab35]

Love the car, though silver would not be my first color choice.

One of my dad's friends does paintwork on luxury cars. A guy brought a 1996 7 series in for $2000 worth of maintenance (this was happened in about 1998) and failed to pick up the car. Turns out he had been arrested and imprisoned for some drug-related offense...long story short, my dad's friend had the opportunity to buy the car for the cost of the work plus a little - something around $3k!
.

I'm not a big fan of the silver either. Usually for a car like this, I'd prefer a jet black or a dark midnight blue. But my Dad shined this baby up today, and it looks like a charm. Apparently some moisture got in the headlights and we fixed the little seal, but we're currently drying them out. So it should be all set soon.

But I was actually chatting with my Dad again this evening and we were discussing how much people like the older styled BMWs more than the newer models because the older ones give that "true" BMW feel and design.
But he said, "Andrea, that thing is like a tank. It kicks butt on the street."

^^ But man, a BMW back then for that cheap? Sweet deal! But I do agree, that maintenance and other costs can be a pain depending on your financial situation.

 

[mgguy]

I was obsessed with MG's for several years and owned 2 MGBs (a coupe and a GT). However, I always wanted a BMW model 2002 (the model name not the year) tii. Like the early MGs, the early BMW's had simple, clean lines and were uncluttered with unnecessary design frills. Not as sexy as the newer cars, but very appealing and addicting nonetheless IMHO. Someday I'm going to buy an original '67 MGB coupe with overdrive and a 1968 BMW model 2002 to keep it company in the garage.

 

[Superman07]

I took the cupholders out of my M3.

 

[sysiphus]

Argh, overengineering is a term that is being thrown around here as if it's a bad thing--let's get something straight--overengineering is building to a higher spec than is necessary, to make things work and last beyond expectations. Overengineering is a 80s Mercedes. Overengineering is NOT loading a car with gadgets and gizmos like iDrive and navigation and GPS (useful,working, stupid, or broken--doesn't matter). Overengineering is something that hasn't been commonly seen on the car market since the W124 E-Class, the W140 S-Class, the Volvo 240, the BMW E32 and E34...

 

[IJ Reilly]

Argh, overengineering is a term that is being thrown around here as if it's a bad thing--let's get something straight--overengineering is building to a higher spec than is necessary, to make things work and last beyond expectations. Overengineering is a 80s Mercedes. Overengineering is NOT loading a car with gadgets and gizmos like iDrive and navigation and GPS (useful,working, stupid, or broken--doesn't matter). Overengineering is something that hasn't been commonly seen on the car market since the W124 E-Class, the W140 S-Class, the Volvo 240, the BMW E32 and E34...

From Wikipedia:

Overengineering (over-engineering) is the result of a design for high-end or specialized market criteria. Over-engineering results in a product that is more complicated or robust than necessary, and can decrease productivity of the design team. As a design philosophy it is the opposite of the less is more school of thought (and hence a violation of the KISS principle and parsimony).

So yes, it can be a bad thing.

 

[arthursiew]

I got a 2001 BMW 740i and a 2002 BMW 325ci. They are both great cars and my parents say that the cars feel a lot better to drive compared to the other. I'm 14, so I'm not sure why they think they feel better.

 

[andreab35]

Well you all, I took the Beemer out for a drive today, just a quick one around the neighborhood.

Overall, it's good! It accelerates nicely, the engine sounds very nice. Two things I don't like about it is that because it has side airbags, I have a huge blind spot when I'm trying to look to the left of me because of the corner post being in my way.
The other thing I'm not a fan of is the deep throttling. When I step of the gas to coast, the BMW just slows down tremendously. I'm guessing just a luxury/European thing?

My Dad took it for a bigger spin today. It loves to hug the roads and curbs. Smooth drive. However, it doesn't have that satisfying and powerful takeoff that I like because it is in fact a heavy car. With the other '01 3 series I tried out, that thing flew because it was lighter which I liked. (But I'm not a speed demon on the roads).

That's my insight! Maybe in the future I'll consider a newer BMW.

 

[southerndoc]

Make sure you get the sport package if you're buying new. The active roll stabilization is awesome. The car will hang corners like a race car.

 

[xraydoc]

The lease on my 2006 330xi just ended. It was a very nice car, for sure. Spent a lot of time on what to drive next, but needed room for my 3 kids, so it was going to be a 5 series or larger, like an X5.

Finally settled on an '09 Porsche Cayenne.

Couldn't be happier.