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#4074 of 12571 BMWFrevr by shipo Jun 07, 2002 (9:47 am)
Hmmm, I don't ever recall saying "I am not crazy to be the first one to drive the new BMW in the block".   That said, I was one of the first on my block to drive the (then) new E46 328i, and other than a couple of $1.00 taillight bulbs, the car never had a single bit of problem. Of course, one can contrast my experience with my 12/1998 build E46 with the early 1996 E39 (5-Series) owner’s experiences, which by many accounts were fairly bad.   Just to set the record straight, I am not all that leery of a first year car, I have had several over the years, and they have all been great. My primary reason for getting a new 2002 E39 530i was because I really like the look of the current car, that and the look of the new car seems to be fairly "Butt (as in Bangle Butt) Ugly" and I am not sure that the styling will ever grow on me.   Regarding the "turbot charged 3.0L", ummm, it seems to me that that would attract LOTS of bugs (and maggots and such) if left out in the hot sun for a few hours. In all seriousness, a "Turbo Charged" 3.0-liter engine sounds wonderful to me, and if, sometime in the future I decide that I can live with the new E60 styling, that's what I will want to drive.   Best Regards, Shipo
#4075 of 12571 Patelli by dabimmer Jun 07, 2002 (9:52 am)
Don't know if this is what you are after, but here goes: 3 M company makes a product called ScotchCal which is a protective laminate 3mm thick which can be applied to the leading edges of your car to protect against bugs, stones and other flying debris. It is supposed to last 3/4 years without yellowing. I have no personal experience with it but I did read a post by Dave222 a long time back describing his application and at the time he was very satisfied with it, would be interesting to find out if he is still happy. BMW applies a material very similar to leading edges of car for approx. $100. Cheers.
#4076 of 12571 Wurth by nyca Jun 07, 2002 (9:52 am)
www.motorhead.net (not .com) carries all the Wurth stuff. This link should work: http://www.motorhead.net/cgi-bin/viewproduct.exe?1014908&pdetail.htm I really like all these Wurth products, the cockpit cleaner is great, etc....
#4077 of 12571 sorry-shipo by bmwfrevr Jun 07, 2002 (10:26 am)
I am sorry my memory let me down again!! the phrase was said by "nyccarguy". anyways thank you for your opinion in which I respect alot. waiting for more opinions.
#4078 of 12571 RE: Patelli by snagiel Jun 07, 2002 (10:44 am)
There are several "clear bra" materials out there, all of which are manufactured by 3M (but not all the plastics are the same type). BMW dealers sell one type, the material of which is the same as what a company called XPel (www.Xpel.com) uses. BMW's price is actually cheaper, but their cuts--surprisingly--aren't as good, and the hood protection requires 3 pieces, whereas XPel's is only one (better). There's also another company called StonGard, and their version of the 3M material is thicker and therefore probably offers even better protection, but it's more difficult to install and they therefore recommend against any self-installs. Personally, I went with the Xpel system. Let me know if you have other questions. Good luck.
#4079 of 12571 Shipo's 530 by indylowflyer Jun 07, 2002 (11:54 am)
Well, now that you have had your 530 stateside for a couple of weeks, any additional comments/thoughts? How many miles have you driven on this side of the pond versus the other side?
#4080 of 12571 4,000 message by mod62 Jun 07, 2002 (12:37 pm)
I justed wanted to be the one to get 4,000!
#4081 of 12571 530 front license plate by dman11 Jun 07, 2002 (2:52 pm)
To remove the front license plate, it looks like it also removes a two foot strip of the front bumper. Is that right or am I missing something? Anybody know the part number for a replacement strip without the license plate frame?
#4082 of 12571 DSP Upgrade by tigger33 Jun 07, 2002 (5:40 pm)
A few weeks after I place my order (and while the web site was still showing my car as "order received"), I decided to splurge and get the upgraded DSP stereo. However, when I called my dealer, they told me that my car was at stage 151 and that I could not add anything at this point. Is the DSP that comes with the 530 available in the aftermarket, and who would install, the dealer?
#4083 of 12571 IndyLowFlyer by shipo Jun 07, 2002 (5:44 pm)
Hmmm, well, I have only managed about 700 miles on it since the 23rd of May. In that time, I have been able to drive it on many of the same roads that I used to frequent in my 328i, so I have a number of observations that are relative to how my E46 behaved in similar circumstances.   1) The 530i is faster than the 328i at virtually all speeds. 2) Given that my 530i is equipped with SP and the 328i was not, I have noticed that the 5er is substantially better in the twisties and in fast transients. 3) The 530i is so quiet that it is difficult to shift smoothly by ear, even when the audio system is turned off. The 328i only had that problem when the audio system was too loud. 4) Even though the official measurements don't show it (officially, the E39 5-Series has only 0.1" more legroom than the E46 3-Series), the 530i is a much larger car, both inside and out. 5) If anything, the steering is even better (both heavier and more communicative) on the 530i than the 328i. 6) My wife is always cold, the dual climate control rocks! 7) The premium DSP audio system totally blows the HK system of the 3-Series away. Of course, one would hope so for the extra $1,200 in cost. 8) The Type 42 Composite II two-piece wheels of the 530i SP have been rated as one of the two best looking wheels on the 5-Series over on the Bimmer.org boards. What they did not say was that these wheels are a total pain in my hindquarters to clean and polish (hopefully the Klasse application will help). 9) With the non-SP 328i, I was able to cause the DSC with relative ease by accelerating around a corner, no so the 530i SP, where I really need to stand on it to get the DSC to light up. 10) With the extra power of the 530i, SP wheels and tires not withstanding, if I make a full RPM shift from first to second, I can break loose the rear tires enough to cause the DSC to cut the fuel to the engine, which makes for a very wierd sensation. On the 328i (tuned for more low end torque and less high end HP) I was barely able to chirp the rear tires, even though I had narrow(er) All-Season tires on the rear. 12) I cannot think of any other car (other than the 911) that in its seventh year of production (sixth model year) that looks as fresh and exciting to peoples eyes that I get non-stop compliments on it. Oddly enough, my 328i was one of the first around (I leased it in January 1999), and I never got anywhere near as many compliments on it as I do on the 530i. Go figure. 13) If BMW does end up totally hosing the E60 5-Series, I could EASILY see myself keeping this car until the E60 replacement comes along.   Best Regards, Shipo

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