The BMW Question?

JRS · 24 Jan 2007 at 20:55

[TW]Fox said:
Besides I think we all established on this forum long ago that a 1983 Chevette is more fun to drive than a 330Ci Sport, according to JRS.

Hang on a moment, when did I ever say that an '83 Chevette is more fun to drive than a 330i?

And hell, just because I ddn't find a BMW 330i a particularly exciting drive doesn't mean that other people wouldn't find it fun. See, that's the great thing about people - we each have a different frame of reference to compare stuff to. I find stuff like small Fiats with approximately the same horsepower as a horse fun to drive. I find big, slushy American station wagons fun to drive. I find horrendously powerful muscle cars fun to drive. I find '60s sports cars with no PAS, no brake servo, no driving aids and a fairly unsophisticated chassis fun to drive. When I came to drive a BMW 330i which has been praised to the hills by several people on here, 99% of the world's motoring press and most of my friends I just felt....underwhelmed. It was very competent, very fast, very comfortable, gave good feedback and bored me to tears.

All of which is great, of course. It means that there is one more BMW out there for people like you who like them, and it means I can save money on a car since I can buy something that I would consider fun for a lot less cash than BMW want for one of their cars.

Morba · 24 Jan 2007 at 20:59

Phate said:
I can afford one and I don't drive one.

I don't like them but I won't say they are rubbish, infact they are very good cars but I just don't see the appeal at all.

if you could afford one (and the running costs of) then you would have bought one instead of a cheap car to limit the cost of insurance.

Jez · 24 Jan 2007 at 21:01

Morba said:
if you could afford one (and the running costs of) then you would have bought one instead of a cheap car to limit the cost of insurance.

We did all this on the first page

Dave77 · 24 Jan 2007 at 21:02

I recently had a E90 320d SE for the weekend and can safely say it was the best car i've ever driven. The cabin is well designed, all buttons all within easy reach, engine was smooth and returned 55mpg+.

Normally if I do say a 300 mile trip in my Focus i'd get out feeling sore and tired at the other end, in the BMW I got out feeling refreshed and wanted to do another 300 miles

Now that i've experieced it I need to get one for myself, not a E90 but probably a E46 if I can find a decent one for 11.5-12k.

Morba · 24 Jan 2007 at 21:04

Jez said:
We did all this on the first page

oops, i had only got down to that part, didnt want to read a whole 3 pages until I could reply, i'll carry on reading

Conscript · 24 Jan 2007 at 21:06

Quick question while were here; I see numbers like "E36" and "E39" thrown around a lot in reference to BMWs. I understand their model numbers (i.e., 330 means a 3-series with 3.0 litre engine) but what do the E numbers relate to? Are they just trim levels?

Jez · 24 Jan 2007 at 21:07

The E-numbers designate the shape. www.bmwinfo.com is a very good website for general BMW history and information on various models.

For example the 3-series from the early-mid nineties (as in morba's sig above) is an E36 model 3-series. These came in lots of engine sizes, which are referred to by the 318i/325i etc part

Conscript · 24 Jan 2007 at 21:09

Ta muchly.

gurusan · 24 Jan 2007 at 21:57

MrLOL said:
just that

Subaru Impreza

for all its boxyness, poor spec and tacky interior

i love. It just does it for me. Same goes with the Audi A4 S line.

3 series on the other hand, doesnt appeal. Dont care how well it handles/ fast it goes / well speccd it is

just doesnt appeal to me. Maybe its their image, but i just dont like them. If i was given one, i'd sell it and buy something else instead.

ok yeah I understand. 99% of American cars just dont "do it" for me. Although honestly most of it is the styling.

BigT · 24 Jan 2007 at 22:33

Well when I was growing up my father had a series of quasi-prestige cars; an Audi something or other before they made decent cars followed by an XJ6 and then he settled on a couple of S-Classes which he loved. He always detested BMWs (not sure why) and loved his mercs and those values were instilled in me.

When I got my first decent job I was adamant that I would get a CLK320 or even a 430 if I could find one in my budget. My old workplace even bought me a model of one as a leaving present I'd been banging on about it that much. I went down to my local independent prestige place with a view to buy a nice silver CLK I'd seen. Got down there and took it out but for some reason a 330Ci on the forecourt caught my eye. Didn't like the look of it as much particulalry but took it out none-the-less. About 2 minutes into the test drive and I knew I had to have the BMW instead. I had two great years of ownership and thoroughly loved it. For one reason and another I have come full circle and turned into my Dad and now drive a Mercedes (not a CLK though), but the BMW was a terrific car and I'd have another one in a shot. In fact, having tried one out, I think an M6 is hopefully going to be next in a few years.

As an aside, am I the only member to have owned a Chevette, MkII Escort and BMW330Ci? :cool:

Chabsy · 24 Jan 2007 at 22:58

They've come along way since the bubble car aint they

The_Dark_Side · 24 Jan 2007 at 22:58

IainB said:
Never had any problems with mine, wet or dry prefered the back end stepping out @ 80 in that, than in the brother in laws 328 @ 40

i know what you mean, the Rover was definitely "old skool" chuckable...but it could be very lairy if you didn't know what you're doing.
i know a guy who use to run an SD1 in competition trim and he once joked with me that the trick was to make sure that at NO time should the car be even remotely pointing in the direction it was travelling.

Dandle · 24 Jan 2007 at 23:26

Chabsy said:
They've come along way since the bubble car aint they

The bubble car was a very well engineered car and without it BMW wouldnt be around now to produce any car. It saved them without a doubt.

volospian · 25 Jan 2007 at 08:50

Lopéz said:
Only driven old sheds.

Loved every one of them.

Lopéz, I completed your post for you

I know it's not exactly what housemaster was talking about in his OP, but one thing that does put me off BMW ownership is the arrogance of some of the owners. I don't think there's anybody in these forums that are like it, but a perfect example happened this morning on my way to work.

I was on a roundabout, not a huge one, just a town sized thing, when a 56 BMW 520d approached from my left. The driver (some guy in his 50's by the look of him) looked over at me, slowed down, then decided that it was actually his right of way and just pulled out in front of me, forcing me to brake hard to let him through, if I hadn't braked, I'd have hit him.

I then followed him for a few miles (both going in the same direction!) across a few more roundabouts and through several junctions. At no time did Mr BMW see fit to use his indicators, even at a very busy roundabout when he was turning left (which, had he indicated, could have meant that somebody on that road could have got out).

It was a breathtaking display of sheer arrogance. It's not only BMW drivers that display such arrogance, but it still gives these cars a bad name and, as some people have said, makes others take one look at you and think "****"

Rojin · 25 Jan 2007 at 09:01

volospian said:
Lopéz, I completed your post for you

I know it's not exactly what housemaster was talking about in his OP, but one thing that does put me off BMW ownership is the arrogance of some of the owners. I don't think there's anybody in these forums that are like it, but a perfect example happened this morning on my way to work.

I was on a roundabout, not a huge one, just a town sized thing, when a 56 BMW 520d approached from my left. The driver (some guy in his 50's by the look of him) looked over at me, slowed down, then decided that it was actually his right of way and just pulled out in front of me, forcing me to brake hard to let him through, if I hadn't braked, I'd have hit him.

I then followed him for a few miles (both going in the same direction!) across a few more roundabouts and through several junctions. At no time did Mr BMW see fit to use his indicators, even at a very busy roundabout when he was turning left (which, had he indicated, could have meant that somebody on that road could have got out).

It was a breathtaking display of sheer arrogance. It's not only BMW drivers that display such arrogance, but it still gives these cars a bad name and, as some people have said, makes others take one look at you and think "****"

If you're a BMW owner and you don't indicate it makes you arrogant? I thought it just made you a bad driver!

I think because the offender is in a nice car you just pick up on it more and instantly think "pfft just because you've got a nice car you think you own the road!" sort of thing. I know I'm guilty of this with Mercedes drivers! The last year I have spent a lot more time on the road and I've mellowed a bit, bad drivers abound in any type\marque of vehicle, just don't get me started on white vans!

I've currently got an E46 330d with the steptronic box which is a lovely car, sadly the box went just before Christmas so with the bills for it being rebuilt it's going to have to go

I'm not a fan of the new 3 series, looks kind of bland to me, but the E46 I think is a good looking car that just looks right. I must confess to being underwhelmed with the handling but with an auto box in a diesel I wasn't ever going to get the full experience. Fun can still be had with DRC turned off and in manual mode though

Jonny69 · 25 Jan 2007 at 09:02

Edited

mrk · 25 Jan 2007 at 09:19

volospian said:
Lopéz, I completed your post for you

I know it's not exactly what housemaster was talking about in his OP, but one thing that does put me off BMW ownership is the arrogance of some of the owners. I don't think there's anybody in these forums that are like it, but a perfect example happened this morning on my way to work.

I was on a roundabout, not a huge one, just a town sized thing, when a 56 BMW 520d approached from my left. The driver (some guy in his 50's by the look of him) looked over at me, slowed down, then decided that it was actually his right of way and just pulled out in front of me, forcing me to brake hard to let him through, if I hadn't braked, I'd have hit him.

I then followed him for a few miles (both going in the same direction!) across a few more roundabouts and through several junctions. At no time did Mr BMW see fit to use his indicators, even at a very busy roundabout when he was turning left (which, had he indicated, could have meant that somebody on that road could have got out).

It was a breathtaking display of sheer arrogance. It's not only BMW drivers that display such arrogance, but it still gives these cars a bad name and, as some people have said, makes others take one look at you and think "****"

I will set a good example in my town by letting "every" one that wants to pass pass and give way at every opportunity

I always do anyway!

volospian · 25 Jan 2007 at 12:21

Rojin said:
If you're a BMW owner and you don't indicate it makes you arrogant?

Meh, it wasn't the indicating on its own, it was the driving onto the roundabout like the road was his own that made him arrogant.

It was not simply a case of "giving way", I actually had to brake hard to avoid an accident, and he looked right at me before he decided to pull out, so it's not as if he could say "Oh, sorry, didn't see you there, old boy!"

I think because the offender is in a nice car you just pick up on it more and instantly think "pfft just because you've got a nice car you think you own the road!" sort of thing.

No, it's because I thought "what a **** for pulling out in front of me and nearly causing an accident".

Personally I'd rather have my car than a 520d anyway.

Rojin · 25 Jan 2007 at 12:32

...but the point I was trying to make is that I get that everyday from people in all makes of cars\vans. Your statement was "but one thing that does put me off BMW ownership is the arrogance of some of the owners". I see this behaviour from drivers of all types of vehicles...

Siliconslave · 25 Jan 2007 at 13:04

Rojin said:
...but the point I was trying to make is that I get that everyday from people in all makes of cars\vans. Your statement was "but one thing that does put me off BMW ownership is the arrogance of some of the owners". I see this behaviour from drivers of all types of vehicles...

it is true there are other very bad drivers on the road. But because of the image beemers have, or the abundence of bad fleet drivers that have some kind of superiority complex BMWs appear atleast to be the more common culprit for bad driving. No one would argue that white van men aren't bad drivers on the whole - however there are loads of very safe van drivers all over the place, its just they don't feel overly enamored with their form of transport so don't generally try and fight its corner.

The BMW Question?

Man of Honour