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BMW Driving Experience

84 messages,  Last post on Jan 18, 2013 at 3:29 PM

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What is this discussion about? BMW 3 Series, BMW 5 Series, BMW 7 Series, BMW X5, BMW Z4, Car Comparisons, Performance Mods, Scheduled Maintenance, Motorsports, Coupe, Convertible, Sedan

Messages Page 8 of 9

#69 of 84 Re: Remembering my first BMW experience. [robr2] by andres3

Sep 22, 2011 (2:55 pm)

Replying to: robr2 (Sep 22, 2011 2:22 pm)
I think that's true to a certain point. I really didn't become a driving enthusiast until I got my A3. The Audi inspired me to want to drive for the sake of driving alone. Before that, I used to hate driving and dealing with "traffic" and CA drivers.
 
I even had a 2003 Accord LX V6 Coupe, which was pretty fast and handled "above average." That being said, I never took the Honda out onto the back roads of San Diego county unless I had a destination to go to for another reason, because it just didn't inspire me to. Once I got the 2006 A3 that all changed. I started to study maps and seek out the best twisty roads. I autocrossed for the first time, I visited a track for the first time, all thanks to Audi. I would drive without a reason to drive other than enjoying the drive itself.
 
When gas went north of $4/gallon, I saw the bright side of things; less slow drivers on the road.

#70 of 84 Re: Remembering my first BMW experience. [robr2] by andres3

Sep 22, 2011 (3:07 pm)

Replying to: robr2 (Sep 22, 2011 2:22 pm)
Don't forget - it's more fun to drive a slow car in a spirited manner than a fast car the same way.
 
Also, if that were completely 100% true then there would be more enthusiast drivers in enthusiast clubs for slow cars like double decker buses, food trucks, and Camry's than for fast BMW's and Audi's, and Porsche.

#71 of 84 Re: Remembering my first BMW experience. [robr2] by roadburner

Sep 22, 2011 (9:11 pm)

Replying to: robr2 (Sep 22, 2011 2:22 pm)
Don't forget - it's more fun to drive a slow car in a spirited manner than a fast car the same way.
 
Exactly. My Club Sport goes from 0-60 in 7.8 seconds, while my MS3 only takes 5.4 seconds. Both are fun to drive on the road and on the track, but you can thrash the Club Sport on the street without the fear of attracting unwanted attention.

#72 of 84 Z4 as an "all-year round car" by anandks

Dec 17, 2011 (11:24 pm)

hi all,
i live in Minnesota (dont ask me why), has bad road conditions during snow. i love sports cars but cant afford summer and winter cars. so if i get this car, i will end up using this the entire year. how is the performance of this car in snow... can this be used all-year around. the dealer tells me that i can change to snow tires...
 
comments???

#73 of 84 Re: Z4 as an "all-year round car" [anandks] by roadburner

Dec 18, 2011 (8:11 am)

Replying to: anandks (Dec 17, 2011 11:24 pm)
Just get a set of good winter tires- or better yet get a set of winter tires with wheels to simplify the changeover. Tire Rack has several good options. With the proper rubber a Z4 will handle everything but really deep snow.

#74 of 84 Re: Z4 as an "all-year round car" [anandks] by kyfdx HOST

Dec 18, 2011 (10:11 am)

Replying to: anandks (Dec 17, 2011 11:24 pm)
Minnesota? Your biggest problem will be ground clearance.. The winter tires will be fine on a slick road, but you won't be able to get around in heavy snow..
 
As much as I am an advocate for driving RWD cars year-round (with proper tires), I'd think a Z4 would be poor choice for an only car in Minnesota..
 
Look at this way... would you buy a Miata to be your only car? If not, then write off the Z4..

#75 of 84 My BMW history by rayainsw

Dec 27, 2011 (6:26 am)

I was not really even aware of BMW [ as a brand or individual models ] until I met a guy in my college dorm that had one.
[[ I was quite smitten with the then current E-Type Jaguars. ]]
 
Sometime in my freshman year, he took me for a ride in the 1964 or 1965 BMW sedan he was driving at the time. [ The car would probably have been 3 or 4 years old at the time – an 1800 TI, I think. ]
 
Given my driving experience to that time, the driving dynamics [ even from the passenger seat ] were quite a revelation. I had driven only a few cars at that point – primarily my Mom’s big station wagon, my Dad’s VW Beetle – and the sense of refinement and responsiveness I noted at the time in that BMW was very, very different than anything I had been in before.
 
Though it was ‘For Sale’, I was not in the market.
 
Fast Forward to 1975. We were leaving the military and looking for a good sized sedan, a few years old, for the trip back across country, from Arizona to New Hampshire. BMW had introduced a larger and much more sophisticated sedan that had evolved into the Bavaria – 6 cylinders. That was what I wanted. I ‘settled for’ a 1972 Volvo sedan. It served us well, was generally reliable – but uninspiring – for several years and many, many miles.
[ sigh ]
 
But I really did want a BMW.
 
In the late 1970s, a friend bought one almost exactly as I would have selected. I rode in it several times and drove it once. It was sooo much better in every way than the Volvo.
 
Now [ over 35 years later ] I have one.
I picked it up in Munuch, with my Daughter, in September.
I have now driven 3,333 trouble-free miles and very enjoyable miles – 1,000+ in Germany, Austria, Italy and Switzerland – 2,000+ in Georgia and Florida.
 
- Ray
No regrets . . .

#76 of 84 There are those of us by cannon3

Dec 27, 2011 (7:27 pm)

Sorry, no, I'm not sorry. In fact I feel sorry for those who get roped into the "BMW experience". Frankly, I have driven them and I just cannot justify paying the premium just to drive a status symbol. In fact, I don't. I could afford one, but prefer to spend my money on other investments that MAKE money. I don't need a car to tell people I make money...

#77 of 84 Re: There are those of us [cannon3] by fintail

Dec 27, 2011 (9:15 pm)

Replying to: cannon3 (Dec 27, 2011 7:27 pm)
To each his own. Some feel sorry for those who work and save and never indulge their passions. You can't take it with you

#78 of 84 Re: There are those of us [cannon3] by busiris

Dec 28, 2011 (11:55 am)

Replying to: cannon3 (Dec 27, 2011 7:27 pm)
Understood and accepted.
 
If we all agreed on what a car should be, we'd probably still all be riding around in black Ford Model Ts.
 
I personally like the feel of a BMW 3 Series, but I would never expect everyone else to like it just because I do.
 
Other manufacturers need customers, too!

Messages Page 8 of 9

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