I am a BMW Driver and I am indeed, a douchebag. In fact I douched on a Toyota SUV this morning in traffic. I don't think a stuck accelerator would have helped him either.
jessica FTW
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
I think the Chrysler Crossfire should come back...
- Thread starter waloshin
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I am a BMW Driver and I am indeed, a douchebag. In fact I douched on a Toyota SUV this morning in traffic. I don't think a stuck accelerator would have helped him either.
jessica FTW
Funny you put those 2 sentences together in your post.
I own an original Miata (R-package). For you BMW lovers it's a lightweight, well-balanced sports car, something a BMW hasn't made since the E30. Uberfast it maybe not but it doesn't need to be. I remember BMW's take on the subject - the Z3. It was so awful, expensive and underpowered that in the last year I've seen maybe 2 or 3 around here and we have quite a few BMWs around here. Your pos BMW will never handle or feel as light and awesome as say a Lotus Elise. It can't. It's has so much luxury crap in it that it needs much more horsepower just to not feel so sluggish.
You missed my point. I'm sure your MX-5 is a nice little corner carving roadster, but that's not what we were talking about in the general sense.
BMW makes a full line of passenger cars that are considered the standard in driving dynamics. If you'd like to argue that, name the manufacturer that comes close.
Dude, if we're going to compare apples and oranges, might as well bring Caterham Super-7s and Ariel Atoms into this discussion.
I find the logic interesting: "My MX-5 is better than your BMW because your BMW isn't as good as a Lotus"
Synchromesh get's the "Haaah?" of the day award.
You're telling me that the oranges that Lexus and Infiniti make don't compare to the fruit imitation named BMW? Last time I checked some of them were within spitting distance of BMW and usually for less money. They also tend to be far more reliable in the long run. I hear nightmare stories about late 90s - early 00s BMWs all the time. In fact, a coworker at my previous job had a nice E39 540i with not that much mileage and it snapped the timing chain which would cost him around $4K if his Father-in-law wasn't a mechanic and did all the labor for free. Mind you, that car was automatic and this guy has a family so it's unlikely he drove it very hard. And that's just one of many.
On Miata.net where I go often there are quite a few BMW owners who are Miata owners as well. You know what's the most common complaint? It's that BMW stopped making ultimate driving machines. The E30 ('82-94 3-series) is often considered the 4-door Miata. It's light, has adequate performance, looks decent and is very easy to work on by yourself. Absolutely everything that new BMWs aren't.
Different school of sports car thinking. Lightweight and tossable without gobs of power (Miata, most other British sports cars) versus heavy and a lot of power (most American and German sports cars). I've seen the new Z4 upclose. Yes, it does look very pretty. But it's very heavy and can never feel as light as a Miata in corners. Won't even mention Lotus here.
I'm used to car enthusiast sites where people will usually instantly recognize such pattern of logic. It's my bad for forgetting this isn't one of them, so I'll try to be more detailed in my comparisons from now on therefore making more sense to everybody.
Now you're just moving the goalposts because the argument has gotten away from you.
You claimed BMWs were overweight, overpowered, overengineered (???) and overpriced.
Overweight for what? For what they're meant to be? But no, you compare it to your MX5. Guess what, I think your Miata is overweight because the only 2-seaters that I take seriously are motorcycles. Apples and oranges, friend.
The Crossfire does have one thing going for it in my opinion. It's different. And for those who criticise it's looks, I'd personally opine that the Z3/Z4 is not any better looking.
Lotus. Everything they touch turns to automotive gold. Lotus Carlton FTW.
Plus BMW, like every company, have come up with a few turkeys...the entire X-Series for starters. I also think that some BMWs I've driven have very harsh ride quality. Which is fine if you are just looking for performance but inappropriate in a luxury sports sedan IMO.
BMWs chief claim to fame, along with Mercedes (and rightly deserved) is that they've stuck with RWD.
But at least you'll admit it.
My personal preference would be to buy a new Golf and a used Elise. One is cheaper and more economical than a BMW (but still fun to drive), the other is sexier and more performance-oriented. Best of both worlds.
Signal-11 said:
Lotus. Everything they touch turns to automotive gold. Lotus Carlton FTW.
Plus BMW, like every company, have come up with a few turkeys...the entire X-Series for starters. I also think that some BMWs I've driven have very harsh ride quality. Which is fine if you are just looking for performance but inappropriate in a luxury sports sedan IMO.BMWs chief claim to fame, along with Mercedes (and rightly deserved) is that they've stuck with RWD.
But at least you'll admit it.
My personal preference would be to buy a new Golf and a used Elise. One is cheaper and more economical than a BMW (but still fun to drive), the other is sexier and more performance-oriented. Best of both worlds.
I actually like the way the Crossfire looks, but I still wouldn't buy one.
I used to install car stereos and alarms, a LOT of alarms. There is a BIG step in complexity in the '97+ Chrysler products. That is when they decided that there needs to be a computer to control everything. That was about the same time that the Germans did the same thing with their cars. To me this extra complexity just means more costly repairs when it fails in the future, and it eventually will. I'm the kinda guy who keeps a car for well over 10 years so this is something I take into account when selecting a car.
But I drive a 25 year old Ford, so what the hell do I know. I'm also seriously looking at military surplus truck for my next purchase
I used to install car stereos and alarms, a LOT of alarms. There is a BIG step in complexity in the '97+ Chrysler products. That is when they decided that there needs to be a computer to control everything. That was about the same time that the Germans did the same thing with their cars. To me this extra complexity just means more costly repairs when it fails in the future, and it eventually will. I'm the kinda guy who keeps a car for well over 10 years so this is something I take into account when selecting a car.
But I drive a 25 year old Ford, so what the hell do I know. I'm also seriously looking at military surplus truck for my next purchase
At the risk of descending into silly subjective digressions, I'd say that the Yuppie BMW drivers and the SUV/Truck drivers are equally bad. Both are aggressive, rude and arrogant. In the case of the BMW drivers, they suffer from an overgrown sense of self worth and overconfidence in their own capabilities as a driver and that of their car (i.e. "I took a driving class and do SCCA Solo, I know I can cut into that lane safetly even if it scares everyone else to death").
In the case of the truck drivers, it's a feeling of physical invincibility and selfishness ("If I get in a wreck, I'll survive, screw everyone else").
Again, let me emphasize these are just stereotpyes, I'm not name-calling anyone here, but there are enough "douchebags" out there that fit the mold to make the stereotype recognizable. I'd drive a BMW if I could afford one, but I can't so I bought a Subaru. Which makes me a granola-eating, kayak toting, sandal-clad, REI shopping wannabe outdoorsy type I suppose.
At least if you bought a Crossfire you wouldn't fit either stereotype.
I find pretty much all drivers to be equally horrible. It is scary that people put less thought into their driving than what their next TV set will be.
I'm not claiming absolutely all BMWs are overweight. I don't follow 7-series specs, neither do I know what the equivalent Lexus weighs. What I means is that their sports and sporty cars used to be lightweight vehicles that were very tossable. Now they weigh much more compared to even their own predecessors. How much does the new 3-series weigh compared to the 3-series of 20 years ago? The difference is sizable. Weight is the enemy of sportiness. Yes, you can add more power but it's still not the same thing.
This happens to many cars nowadays. In fact, I've driven the new Miata and found it to have more power but being larger and more bulky not nearly as much fun in the corners as the original one. But most cars don't claim to be "ultimate driving machines", while BMW does. So that makes it unforgivable imho.
The whole argument about BMWs is starting to get mostly pointless & isn't much more than a pissing match. If you think BMW drivers are douchbags and don't like BMWs, don't get one. If you think the MX5 is better, get that instead and be happy.
I drive a MINI JCW right now, but I expect my next car will be a BMW 135is. I love the cars. I love how they drive, how they feel, the great fit and finish, and I love tracking them at CCA and PCA club HP track events. I've had 4 BMWs ranging from a 323i to a 5 series to an M3 and none have had poor reliability and two have been every bit as reliable as a Honda, et al. I don't really care if the MX5 is lighter and "more tossable." I'm just not interested in having one. If I decide to go racing or build a dedicated track car, my MINI will most likely be used for that.
I drive a MINI JCW right now, but I expect my next car will be a BMW 135is. I love the cars. I love how they drive, how they feel, the great fit and finish, and I love tracking them at CCA and PCA club HP track events. I've had 4 BMWs ranging from a 323i to a 5 series to an M3 and none have had poor reliability and two have been every bit as reliable as a Honda, et al. I don't really care if the MX5 is lighter and "more tossable." I'm just not interested in having one. If I decide to go racing or build a dedicated track car, my MINI will most likely be used for that.