E90Post
 


 
BMW 3-Series (E90 E92) Forum > BMW E90/E92/E93 3-series General Forums > General E90 Sedan / E91 Wagon / E92 Coupe / E93 Cabrio > The Ultimate E90 Test Drive



Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
      05-01-2005, 07:22 PM   #23
CaptJack
Mach 1 in a BMW
CaptJack's Avatar
United_States
9
Rep
94
Posts

Drives: 2019 BMW X3 M40i
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: SoCal

iTrader: (0)

Garage List
Interior/exterior sounds

Quote:
Originally Posted by bimmerphreak
best and most comprehensive review I've read yet. Many thanks. CaptJack how did the car sound from the outside/inside?
The car is so quiet inside with the windows closed it's almost eerie. 95mph on the Interstate and almost NO wind noise at all. I mean REALLY quiet! You do get some nice feedback from the exhaust note though. I'm sure they did that on purpose.

Outside the engine/exhaust sound is really sweet. They have developed a slightly deeper and louder growl under acceleration. On the outside listening to one pull away under heavy acceleration it sounds more like something the Italians would have built.
Appreciate 0
      05-01-2005, 07:58 PM   #24
BMWAustin
Private First Class
3
Rep
135
Posts

Drives: e90 330i
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Austin, TX

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by CaptJack
The car is so quiet inside with the windows closed it's almost eerie. 95mph on the Interstate and almost NO wind noise at all. I mean REALLY quiet! You do get some nice feedback from the exhaust note though. I'm sure they did that on purpose.

Outside the engine/exhaust sound is really sweet. They have developed a slightly deeper and louder growl under acceleration. On the outside listening to one pull away under heavy acceleration it sounds more like something the Italians would have built.
That wasn't the case with me, it was quite noise at 60mph. It was not that responsive, not quite and I am like what the ****? Not a single bimmer fan from Europe mentioned anywhere on any fourms...
Oh well we'll see
Appreciate 0
      05-02-2005, 06:58 AM   #25
thedocmoz
Enlisted Member
4
Rep
33
Posts

Drives: 2000 323i
Join Date: Mar 2005

iTrader: (0)

Now that's what I call a test drive! Without even test driving the car, I've got a good sense of what to expect. I've learned much about the car from everyone's review, especially this one. Thank you all.
__________________
best regards,

moz
2006 M Coupe, Imola Red/Black, bone stock <for now>
2000 323i, titanium silver, black interior, sport+premium package. 18x8.5 Hamann HM2
Appreciate 0
      05-02-2005, 07:53 AM   #26
Robin_NL
S0THPAW
Robin_NL's Avatar
8680
Rep
7,846
Posts

Drives: HS M2 Competition
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: The Netherlands

iTrader: (0)

Excellent writeup and beautiful pics.
Appreciate 0
      05-02-2005, 09:59 AM   #27
SoCalS2k
Major
SoCalS2k's Avatar
450
Rep
1,035
Posts

Drives: S2K!
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: LA

iTrader: (0)

Garage List
2001 Honda S2k  [8.50]
Sweet event! How many people get to "test drive" the e90 with helmets on? You lucky dog.
Appreciate 0
      05-02-2005, 10:22 AM   #28
CaptJack
Mach 1 in a BMW
CaptJack's Avatar
United_States
9
Rep
94
Posts

Drives: 2019 BMW X3 M40i
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: SoCal

iTrader: (0)

Garage List
Test Drive

Quote:
Originally Posted by SoCalS2k
Sweet event! How many people get to "test drive" the e90 with helmets on? You lucky dog.
I'm not really sure. I heard later that over the entire day (9 AM till 6 PM) over 400 poeple had participated in the main event. There were a LOT of people, mostly the elderly, that opted NOT to do the "Hot Lap" event. That meant that those of us with a death wish had the opportunity to do extra laps.

Are you currently attending SoCal?
Appreciate 0
      05-02-2005, 02:45 PM   #29
Mark
Administrator
Mark's Avatar
6676
Rep
4,201
Posts

Drives: 1M
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: USA

iTrader: (1)

Garage List
wow, what a sick way to start the week. by far the best review i've seen yet, and i love those pix !!! titan silver all the way !

thanks jack!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!
__________________
Appreciate 0
      05-03-2005, 05:35 PM   #30
slashmatt
Enlisted Member
5
Rep
38
Posts

Drives: NSX (330 soon)
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Houston, TX

iTrader: (0)

Yep, Fort Lauderdale. I live in Boca and threw away the flyer.
Appreciate 0
      05-03-2005, 10:31 PM   #31
CaptJack
Mach 1 in a BMW
CaptJack's Avatar
United_States
9
Rep
94
Posts

Drives: 2019 BMW X3 M40i
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: SoCal

iTrader: (0)

Garage List
The Ultimate Road Test Part III

OK Brother & Sister Bimmerphiles here it is. the third and final (whew!) installment to the “Ultimate E90 Road Test.



I pretty well covered the event as well as my impressions of the car in the first two installments so let me get into some of the smaller issues I had a chance to discuss with a few of the reps there.



Run-Flats and Rims



The consensus from all the performance guys and BMW reps was that the run-flats are GREAT tires. At least on the 330 series with Sport Pkg. It seems, according to them that ALL the cars coming in so far, are equipped with Bridgestone Potenzsas. They feel that these we are now well into the second generation run-flats and the technology has improved to the point to where there should really be no complaints about ride quality and that the stiffer sidewalls actually improve the handling performance of the car.



There are two types of run-flat rims on the market; one does not allow you to replace run-flat tires with non run-flats due to the design of the inside lip of the rim. The other type does allow non run-flats to be replaced with regular tires. If the info I got is correct the E90 comes equipped with the later. However, having said that, there was absolutely NO ONE that thought swapping them out was a good idea. The reason…as we have already heard, the E90 suspension has been specifically tuned for run-flat tires. I got the impression that they were going to let the “after market” deal with that issue. For a number of rather obvious liability reasons I don’t believe BMW will EVER support swapping out he run-flats. Remember there’s no spare and bad things can happen to people who have flat tires in bad places and have no spare.



Bluetooth



I had a chance to spend a bit of time with Ken Brock, Product Manager of the 3 Series, in one of the E90s in the display tent. He was kind enough to give me a fairly detailed briefing on Bluetooth and “Phone Pairing” in the E90.



Everyone is concerned about the compatibility of different phones with the E90. A lot of discussion is floating around to make one believe that the E90 has its own proprietary issues when it comes to Bluetooth compatibility. Well, it doesn’t! The E90 is no more or less picky than any other car out there when it comes to compatibility issues.



There are, as it was explained to me, basically two different standards out there that define Bluetooth phones. One of those is referred to as “Mobile” which means it has the ability to transfer data (Phone Lists and numbers) to automobiles and other devices that are also Bluetooth capable. The other standard simply exchanges voice data to another device such as the wireless earpiece units that are sold for Bluetooth phones.



Soooo.., that means that virtually ANY “Mobile” standard Bluetooth phone out there SHOULD work. The real issue is will all of the features work or not. These are the same issues with any Bluetooth equipped vehicle. Nothing unique to the BMW. If you know of a phone that you like that works well on another car it should work equally well on the E90 (Or so I’ve been told).



Once “paired” the system works great. Very much the same as the voice command phone system on my 745i.



Aux Audio Input



The Aux input, located inside the center console is absolutely outstanding! I brought along my Napster (Samsung) MP3 player just in case I got a chance to try out the interface. So while I had Ken with me I thought I’d grill him on it’s use as well. He showed me couple features I thought were really great. For example, if you happen to plug your iPod or MP3 player in when its volume is quite low you might turn the cars volume control up significantly to compensate. Well if you later unplug your player you might just blow the roof off your brand new E90 because you failed to lower the volume when returning to radio mode. Not a good thing to do. So the fine engineers at BMW set the system up the readjust the volume for you automatically should you forget.



Perhaps an even nicer feature is the ability to play CDs with MP3 content. The readout on the radio face will scroll through all the track info, if you saved it with the musical track, and display it just like on your computer. The system works so nice you will probably just burn all your MP3s onto CDs and leave the iPod at home.





Cruise Control



On one of the other threads in this forum there was a picture I think Jwocky posted of a lighted E90 instrument cluster. On the edge of the speedo at about the 10 o’clock position was a cool little bug or tick mark. A number of poeple noticed it and commented on what it might be. Well, that bug is the speed reference for the cruise control. On my 745i it’s a graphic band that extends from 0 to whatever I have selected for the speed. Believe me, this is way cooler! Wait till you see how cool it rotates around the bezel as you engage and disconnect the cruise control. Between the Angel Eyes and the Cruise bug this car far “out tricks” anything on the road! :rocks: :rocks:



Well that’s it boys and girls. I’m sure I have forgotten a few things since Sat. If anything else comes to mind I’ll be sure to post it.



Here’s a few more pics from the event.



“Hail to Caesar, Hail to the E90”
Attached Images
         

Last edited by CaptJack; 05-04-2005 at 06:46 AM..
Appreciate 0
      05-03-2005, 10:51 PM   #32
ogrady
Lieutenant
ogrady's Avatar
88
Rep
473
Posts

Drives: AW 09 335
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: Rhode Island

iTrader: (0)

Hail to CaptJack for sharing all this information with us. I don't even have the patience to type that much Thanks, really.
Appreciate 0
      05-04-2005, 01:24 AM   #33
haroldho
New Member
4
Rep
21
Posts

Drives: 1987 schwinn
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: US

iTrader: (0)

CaptJack,

In a previous post you said that you were expecting to receive your E90 on the 2nd. Did it not come after all? Just wondering because I'm waiting for my E90 to be delivered from the port.
Appreciate 0
      05-04-2005, 04:08 AM   #34
a3ndy
Banned
a3ndy's Avatar
225
Rep
260
Posts

Drives: E90 330i SE
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: UK

iTrader: (0)

Garage List
2006 330i SE  [0.00]
Wow

The last two pictures of Arctis are beautiful. Now why can't it look stay that colour permanently?

Thanks again for the pictures. Beautiful as ever.
Appreciate 0
      05-04-2005, 04:33 AM   #35
kchika
Lieutenant
55
Rep
532
Posts

Drives: E36 M3 Evo, E46 M3
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Hong Kong

iTrader: (0)

That is a great review, CaptJack!

Nice pics btw.
Appreciate 0
      05-04-2005, 06:04 AM   #36
CaptJack
Mach 1 in a BMW
CaptJack's Avatar
United_States
9
Rep
94
Posts

Drives: 2019 BMW X3 M40i
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: SoCal

iTrader: (0)

Garage List
Quote:
Originally Posted by haroldho
CaptJack,

In a previous post you said that you were expecting to receive your E90 on the 2nd. Did it not come after all? Just wondering because I'm waiting for my E90 to be delivered from the port.
No, it's been loaded onto a transporter truck ever since the 28th just sitting in Spartanburg, waiting for them to open the gates. The dealer said he thought it would have bee here a couple days ago but, apparently, BMW is determined, not to let these cars get onto the roads until the 6th. They know the dealers will turn them loose to customers as soon as they get their hands on them.

Last edited by CaptJack; 05-04-2005 at 06:48 AM..
Appreciate 0
      05-04-2005, 12:09 PM   #37
abpatel
New Member
abpatel's Avatar
2
Rep
7
Posts

Drives:
Join Date: Apr 2005

iTrader: (0)

I agree with a3ndy. When Arctic is in "gray-mode" it looks the best, when in "blue-mode" it looks like it could be better.

Thanks for the great write-up CaptJack. Its good to know most of us will have the best performing car out on the road without spending tons of money.

Nice pics, too.
Appreciate 0
      05-04-2005, 03:01 PM   #38
spikes111
Lieutenant
288
Rep
432
Posts

Drives: M4
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: USA

iTrader: (0)

Thanks for your hard work (I mean typing the review, not the getting to drive the E90 in excess of 110mph part )
__________________
Appreciate 0
      05-04-2005, 03:30 PM   #39
RedStripe
Captain
RedStripe's Avatar
United_States
96
Rep
649
Posts

Drives: 2006 BMW 325i
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Texas

iTrader: (1)

Garage List
2006 BMW 325i  [0.00]
I agree. I've been leaning toward the Arctis, and when I saw those two picture yesterday, I think it helped me make up my mind.

Absolutely Beautiful.



Quote:
Originally Posted by a3ndy
Wow

The last two pictures of Arctis are beautiful. Now why can't it look stay that colour permanently?

Thanks again for the pictures. Beautiful as ever.
Appreciate 0
      05-04-2005, 04:59 PM   #40
quackman
Lieutenant
quackman's Avatar
United_States
27
Rep
436
Posts

Drives: '08 M3 6mt
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Hempstead, NY

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by CaptJack
Cruise Control



On one of the other threads in this forum there was a picture I think Jwocky posted of a lighted E90 instrument cluster. On the edge of the speedo at about the 10 o’clock position was a cool little bug or tick mark. A number of poeple noticed it and commented on what it might be. Well, that bug is the speed reference for the cruise control. On my 745i it’s a graphic band that extends from 0 to whatever I have selected for the speed. Believe me, this is way cooler! Wait till you see how cool it rotates around the bezel as you engage and disconnect the cruise control. Between the Angel Eyes and the Cruise bug this car far “out tricks” anything on the road! :rocks: :rocks:
Do you know if the tachometer does this as the car is warming up?
The gauge looks like it can move it's redline point too similar to the cruise control.
Appreciate 0
      05-04-2005, 06:51 PM   #41
CaptJack
Mach 1 in a BMW
CaptJack's Avatar
United_States
9
Rep
94
Posts

Drives: 2019 BMW X3 M40i
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: SoCal

iTrader: (0)

Garage List
Speedo bug

Quote:
Originally Posted by quackman
Do you know if the tachometer does this as the car is warming up?
The gauge looks like it can move it's redline point too similar to the cruise control.
I don't think so quackman. I can' t say for sure but I didn't notice anything on the tach. However I never got into a car that cold.
Appreciate 0
      05-05-2005, 01:10 AM   #42
EVO_S4
Colonel
EVO_S4's Avatar
117
Rep
2,232
Posts

Drives: 2016 M3
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: TN

iTrader: (28)

Garage List
2016 BMW M3  [0.00]
2009 BMW  [8.24]
Nice review and great pics, the wait is killing me
__________________
2016 M3
2016 Audi Q5 3.0T
Appreciate 0
      05-05-2005, 11:46 AM   #43
CaptJack
Mach 1 in a BMW
CaptJack's Avatar
United_States
9
Rep
94
Posts

Drives: 2019 BMW X3 M40i
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: SoCal

iTrader: (0)

Garage List
Cruise Control

I told you I'd forget something:

The cruise control system is literally taken from the 7 series. A stalk on the left side of the steering column that is far more sophisticated that that on the e46. This car is LOADED with high end features taken from the 5 & 7 series vehicles. BMW has clearly elevated the 3 to a new, higher level of sophistication. I assume, to define it further from the upcoming 1 series. Marketing - Marketing!!
Appreciate 0
      07-21-2005, 06:40 AM   #44
davinet78
Lieutenant Colonel
28
Rep
1,832
Posts

Drives: bmw e90 320d
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: gibraltar(europe)

iTrader: (0)

Garage List
you people must have had the time of your life
wish i was there.
Appreciate 0
Reply

Bookmarks

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off



All times are GMT -5. The time now is 07:15 AM.




e90post
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
1Addicts.com, BIMMERPOST.com, E90Post.com, F30Post.com, M3Post.com, ZPost.com, 5Post.com, 6Post.com, 7Post.com, XBimmers.com logo and trademark are properties of BIMMERPOST