Hey guys,
I finally joined the 1M club from the land of Oz last week
, but from reading the forums it looks like people are already all partied out after 3 years and are off chasing newer cars...
[Incoming wall of text
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Anyway for those interested, I got myself a reasonably low mileage 31k km (19k miles) AW June 2011 car in reasonable condition. Most of it was highway miles, as the previous owner did long commutes, but not every day as he had other cars. It is still on its original Michelins! (must be a record for PS2s?) I looked at a more-abused car with double the mileage and lots of nicks and scrapes and much cheaper, but I am the fussy type who would not have been happy with that, so decided to splurge a bit more for this one.
I actually had an R33 GT-R for the last 10 years, and loved driving it. When I got rid of it, I bought my first BMW, an auto E90 N54-engined 335i thinking it would be a welcome change to have a comfortable ride and luxurious interior while still having some grunt and a reasonably responsive flappy-paddled transmission. I remarked to the salesguy that the era of manuals was at an end, it was going to be DCT and autos in the future!
And it was a welcome change. For a month. I even put in an MFactory torsen-type LSD which makes a world of difference to the traction (should be standard on all BMWs, IMO!!). But in the end, I missed DRIVING the car! I missed the steering response and grip of the GT-R. Heel and toeing. Rev matching. So when a family member liked my car and wanted to buy one, I sold them mine instead. And started looking for a proper replacement. Considered the R35 but it is still crazy expensive here, and very expensive to run and insure. Considered the Lotus Evora S 2+2 coupe (would have preferred the Exige, but having no back seats, no matter how small, is too much of a compromise) but they are very rare (even moreso than the 1M!!) and quality control seems a bit iffy. Cayman? Fuhgetaboudit. P cars seem to attract double the (already outlandish) Aussie Price Premium, which means they are 4x the price here instead of "only" 2x.
In the end, the 1M ticked all the boxes:
- Compact body (although heavier than the R33!!)
- Rear drive and good weight balance
- direct hydraulic steering (2 turns lock to lock!)
- M3 suspension bits
- reasonably economical (one of the things that dissuaded me from getting an E9x M3)
- N54 engine which I was already familiar with and can be tuned for more power down the road
- surprising amount of carrying capacity inside
- insurance was dirt cheap (they think it's just another 1-series, whereas Porsches, Lotuses, and GT-Rs had huge risk premiums)
- All mod cons with bluetooth phone and nav (a must nowadays)
- relatively rare which slows the depreciation (although at 300 cars for our small population, not exactly hard to find)
- Not too attention grabbing (most people think it's just another 135i, and the AW helps)
- One of the few cars in Australia where the Aussie Price Premium is not as much, so it's a bit of a moral victory. (BTW, you know how much your new USD$60k M3 is in Australia? USD$158k.
Buy 3 and get just 1! Hurry Hurry Hurry!)
- surprisingly comfortable and quiet ride (much better than the GTR33)
- I must admit, the car is not a great looker, but muscular stance helps and it's growing on me. I wish it came in Space Grey, my favorite color.
I don't intend to mod the car much (no more money!) but here are a few things I'm planning on doing:
- Dimple magnetic plugs for engine, transmission and LSD
- Nitto NT05 tyres 245/35R19 and 275/35R19 (could not find Hankook RS3s in the right size for cheap)
- 3M tinting
- DrColorChip (to fix a few paintchips)
- RB Turbo PCV valve and cap
- Storage nets (can never have enough)
- Lower wheel covers (to solve rubbing issue)
- Blackvue Dashcam
- Fire extinguisher with OEM bracket under seat
- Schroth harness
- Cobb (maybe later)
- I really should stop reading the forums if I want to save money...
In my short time of ownership though, I have found a few observations and annoyances:
- You sit really high up and upright in this car. The car also feels very tall compared to other "sports cars".
- Footwell is a little small, I keep catching on the footrest or the sidewall beside the accelerator. Don't Germans have big feet??
- Quite a bit more buzzing around the interior (not talking about the exhaust) than the 335i.
- The "suggested" gear is always way higher than I expect! It seems want to drive like a big block V8, revving at just 1500 rpm! A huge change from the GTR33 where I'd need to be at 3000 just to get anywhere. (Having said that, redline was 8000...
)
- Car does not have dynamic cruise control! (only S540A, not S544A) <rant on> This is highly annoying, I have it on the 335i and it's great for when you just want to cruise at mind numbingly low speed limits. Australia has become insanely fixated on speed as a strategy of imposing a hidden tax to plug their budget holes while convincing the sheeple it's all about safety. I was caught 7km/h over the limit in the other car... that's 4 mph. Half walking speed. Barely even noticeable on the speedo. </rant off> Bottom line is, I need my Dynamic cruise control (with braking function). I had a quick look with NCS expert, but I don't know if the M1DSC module can be coded for DCC... If anyone knows about this subject please PM me!!
Anyway, glad to be part of the L33T club. Here's a picture of the car we all know and love.
(Needs a good detailing, coming soon!)