f1anatic Posted January 29, 2013 Share Posted January 29, 2013 Watch how the 3 Series gets built... http://www.youtube.com/embed/libw1rV2McY?feature=player_detailpage I am surprised there still are some people involved... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gire Posted January 29, 2013 Share Posted January 29, 2013 This practically belongs in Octain's Germany pic-gasm thread. It complements it like gravy with mashed potatoes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishbone Posted January 29, 2013 Share Posted January 29, 2013 Don't care it's BMW, I think the video is very educational on its own merits. Thanks for sharing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssbtech Posted January 29, 2013 Share Posted January 29, 2013 The NatGeo channel was showing different car factories the other night, one being where the X3 was made. Pretty neat to see how cars are made start to finish. I wish they'd do a Subaru factory tour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diggerdan11 Posted January 29, 2013 Share Posted January 29, 2013 Very Nice, Thanks for Sharing I have a huge BMW Fan, the only reason I dont have one is that the closest dealership or BMW mechanic is a 2 hour drive away and I did not want to deal with that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mega Users paintpollz Posted March 22, 2013 Mega Users Share Posted March 22, 2013 just drove a 550i last night. yaaaaa don't think the leggy is sticking around too much longer...... "Remember Danny - Two wrongs don't make a right but three rights make a left." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators BarManBean Posted March 22, 2013 Moderators Share Posted March 22, 2013 just drove a 550i last night. yaaaaa don't think the leggy is sticking around too much longer...... 8-series or bust. "Bullet-proof" your OEM TMIC! <<Buy your kit here>> Not currently in stock Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mega Users paintpollz Posted March 22, 2013 Mega Users Share Posted March 22, 2013 8-series or bust. It was an 06' with 212,000 miles on the clock. Original motor/tranny. To say I stunned by the performance and ride would be an understatement and an insult to the vehicle. "Remember Danny - Two wrongs don't make a right but three rights make a left." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katalyst Posted March 22, 2013 Share Posted March 22, 2013 i wouldn't say i'm a fan boy but i do appreciate BMWs for the driving experience they convey. i'm always contemplating whether or not i want to pick one up. i am aware of the various reliability issues which has made me hesitate so far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mega Users paintpollz Posted March 22, 2013 Mega Users Share Posted March 22, 2013 i wouldn't say i'm a fan boy but i do appreciate BMWs for the driving experience they convey. i'm always contemplating whether or not i want to pick one up. i am aware of the various reliability issues which has made me hesitate so far. you can get a 550i with 100k on the clock and nav for 15k. The one I drove had 212k on it original motor,tranny, and suspension and pulled beautifully all the way until redline. Sold, can live with electric gremlins here and there for leather, a great sound system, and 360 ft lbs of torque. Not many cars with all of that for under 15k............. "Remember Danny - Two wrongs don't make a right but three rights make a left." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShrinerMonkey Posted March 23, 2013 Share Posted March 23, 2013 you can get a 550i with 100k on the clock and nav for 15k. The one I drove had 212k on it original motor,tranny, and suspension and pulled beautifully all the way until redline. Sold, can live with electric gremlins here and there for leather, a great sound system, and 360 ft lbs of torque. Not many cars with all of that for under 15k............. There is a reason they are so cheap used you know. It's MUCH more than just electrical gremlins. No such thing as a free lunch. Hope you have $7-8K in an account for maintenance and repairs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChaoticZen Posted March 23, 2013 Share Posted March 23, 2013 I had a E39 M5 before my legacy and yes there are more issues and maintenance is wayyyy beyond reasonable but do yourself a favor, own one in your life time... You will understand why :-) Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penguin Posted March 23, 2013 Share Posted March 23, 2013 As I have suggested to others if you want to own a BMW outside of warranty, just set aside a minimum of $5K in an account to be used only for repairs and maintenance. If you do this there are no real emergencies with a BMW or any other German car. Just pains in the ass as repairs and upkeep are needed. I would also recommend not living too far away from a dealership. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KartRacerBoy Posted March 23, 2013 Share Posted March 23, 2013 Penguin, I don't remember the BMWs of the 80s/90s being so unreliable. Is the unreliability mostly due to modern electronics? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penguin Posted March 23, 2013 Share Posted March 23, 2013 Yes. At least in my experience with BMW's when selling them and paying attention to our service department and service customers who would often trade a car in near end of warranty. Which should say something about the overall driving experience, that these people would put up with the needed periodic maintenance and occasional electronic issues and keep coming back to BMW. Generally speaking the German brands (all of them) started to have some issues in the late 1990's through the early-mid 2000's with electronics on cars. One brand can be blamed for this: Lexus. Lexus really started the widespread and excellent integration of electronic content in luxury vehicles. Once consumers started to expect this type of content the Germans felt compelled to try to match and exceed Lexus content, and each other. Problem is that the Germans, unlike the Japanese, have never really had a great consumer electronics industry, so their sourced parts have been less than stellar. So you have a lot of German luxury cars out there with frankly really bad electronic infotainment, and driver aid systems. For that matter some of the engine control and transmission control units are not that great either. Compounding things are the integration of all these systems with each other through various wiring harnesses and BUS systems. Cars just aren't strait forward anymore, and the more electronic shit you add to them the worse it gets. I have heard that more current cars are better, since there haven't been any really new electronic aids introduced in the last 5-6 years they are starting to catch up with quality on them. Then with BMW's you run into some other issues because of what they are designed to do. For the most part BMW builds cars to handle well, which is fine, except making a car that weights 3500-4000lbs (or more) handle well tends to be hard on suspension components, brakes, tires, and suspension attachment points on the body. So for long term ownership of a BMW I would make these observations of what to reasonably expect: The Good 1.) Body structure will typically be of excellent quality, and if not abused will remain nice, tight, rigid, and free of rust or other defects. 2.) Sheet metal will also usually be of good quality, and the cars seem to resist corrosion reasonably well. Fit lines, and other craftsmanship/manufacturing quality is usually high. Like any other car keeping it clean and as salt free as possible is really important here for the long term. 3.) Interior materials are also of good quality and hold up well if kept clean, leather is conditioned, and you don't abuse it by treating it like a trashcan. 4.) Engine, transmission, and running gear usually is well made and reliable. At least the actual mechanical bits are if maintained properly. Many of these parts are beautifully made, and function very well for a long time. If they are maintained properly they're great. The Not So Good But Not Horrible 1.) Paint quality on BMW's is sub par compared to other luxury brands. This is especially true where scratches are concerned. BMW paint of late is really soft, not sure why but it is, and is more likely to pick up fine swirl marks and scratches. It is annoying. If you buy one buy a car that is white or silver. 2.) Brake dust, lots of it. You will be cleaning wheels frequently if you drive stop and go traffic. BMW builds their cars to stop well, and that means the brake pads lead short messy lives. 3.) Shocks, you will be replacing them. Frequently if you want the car to ride correctly and handle correctly. That is the price you pay for having an otherwise hefty car handle like something that tips the scales 500lbs lighter. Replacing these shocks is much less expensive than the alternative which I'll get to here later. 4.) Tires, like the shocks plan on eating a lot of them not only due to the way you end up driving a BMW, but also because of the suspension geometry. Also the runflats on more current BMW's are rubbish. Plan to replace them. 5.) BMW maintenance schedules.... they are not realistic. Do not follow them, especially for oil change intervals on turbocharged cars. 15K on the oil and filter is just silly considering that oil and a new filter every 5K is cheap insurance. I personally observed one owner of an older V12 7 series (the old 5.0L V12) which were not known for high reliability, that did oil changes every 5K and kept up with other maintenance. His car had well over 200K on the odo and he had it since new. It ran like a damn sewing machine. I don't see this as a coincidence or freak occurrence. If you pick one up used it is probably not too late to start taking proper care of things, but plan on doing better than the factory OCI at the very least if you want to avoid problems. The Terrible Bad And Ugly 1.) Electronics on many BMW's are just plain bad, especially the more complex electronics. Ironically most of the worst offenders are the ones that you don't need and should avoid. Keep your car as simple as possible where the electronic options are concerned and you'll probably be happier. 2.) Suspension component mounting points on cars that have been driven hard and haven't had the shocks maintained are prone to cracking. In fact if the suspension had been maintained this can still happen, but it's worse with worn out shocks that have things bouncing off the bump stops and beating the shit out of everything. The shocks are supposed to soak up the hits, guess what happens when they stop doing that? 3.) High pressure fuel pumps on cars with direct injection have been prone to failure. I hear this has been addressed, but is still something to bear in mind. 4.) Bent wheels. Low profile tires are great for handling, but really bad at soaking up pot holes and hits. You'll need to be careful of pot holes, or get to know your local wheel repair shop really really well. 5.) Engine, transmission, and running gear that have not been maintained well. This will be a nightmare if you buy one of these. All those beautifully made parts that make up a BMW engine are expensive, and they don't like being subjected to lax maintenance or improper maintenance. You don't want to be in this situation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KartRacerBoy Posted March 23, 2013 Share Posted March 23, 2013 Thanks Penguin, but a simple yes or no would've answered my question. I personally hate having all functions centralized through one little LCD screen. I shouldn't have to go through a menu while driving to turn on the radio, AC, or whatever. Needless complication for no good effect. I was watching a top gear uk episode where they were testing the current M5 and they pulled the old 1970s M1 side by side to it. The M1 looked about the size of a Fiat X1/9 next to a F150, the M5 was so tall, wide, and long. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penguin Posted March 23, 2013 Share Posted March 23, 2013 Yeah, I was bored and wanted to write a dissertation on long term ownership of a BMW on a Subaru enthusiast forum. Admittedly not the most logical use of my time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheOneDoubleN Posted March 23, 2013 Share Posted March 23, 2013 Yeah, I was bored and wanted to write a dissertation on long term ownership of a BMW on a Subaru enthusiast forum. Admittedly not the most logical use of my time. In the words of Rick James..... "Cocaine is a hell of a drug" I found it an interesting read, but then I'm slightly biased..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penguin Posted March 23, 2013 Share Posted March 23, 2013 As time passes you can verify or refute my observations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssbtech Posted March 23, 2013 Share Posted March 23, 2013 BMW builds wonderful cars to drive because you wouldn't want to do all those frequent drives to the mechanic in a shitbox. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KartRacerBoy Posted March 24, 2013 Share Posted March 24, 2013 Good thing I'm in no postion to buy a BMW! Yay for me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penguin Posted March 24, 2013 Share Posted March 24, 2013 I could probably swing a new 335i if I wanted to have a bit less discretionary income each month (I'm not currently willing to make that sacrifice), but the closest dealer to me is every bit of 5 hours away. That's a deal breaker for a BMW. If it were a Lexus I wouldn't even hesitate since they don't seem to break or have issues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KartRacerBoy Posted March 24, 2013 Share Posted March 24, 2013 I would think of a 6 cylinder Z3. Personally, I have a fetish for the M Coupe version of the Z3. I'm sure it relates to my perverse love for the P1800 Volvo and my untreatable desire for an X1/9. The Z3 didn't have too much in the electronics dept, IIRC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penguin Posted March 24, 2013 Share Posted March 24, 2013 Nope, but the Z3 had a relatively crude rear suspension compared to later cars. It was about like an old E30 rear suspension, so the tail end was not as well planted as others. Then again that can be a good thing depending on your goals. If I were looking for one it would be the Z4 based M Coupe just for the real deal S54 I6 instead of the dumbed down US market 3.2L that the Z3 based M Coupe would have unless you can find one of the very rare ones to get the S54 that made it stateside. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheOneDoubleN Posted March 24, 2013 Share Posted March 24, 2013 If it were a Lexus I wouldn't even hesitate since they don't seem to break or have issues. My '01 Lexus GS300 that I had for 130,000mi never had a single issue, ever, and I beat the hell out of that car. Sure it handled like crap, but that silky smooth 2JZ-GE Toyota Supra 3.0l I-6 made up for it, sounded amazing too with some Blitz axlebacks on there! Had I not been rear ended in it (and had it not been totaled because of said rear-ending), I'd absolutely still be driving it. Now that the minor leaks and rattles have been addressed in the bimmer, it's been 100% reliable (for the past month ). Time will tell though for sure.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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