First Week Review

[burnsniper]

Now that I have had my BSM 1M for a week, I thought I would give a quick review. In its first week of use the car has seen duty carving mountains in the Blue Ridge and transversing I-95 from Central Virginia to Maryland.

Pros:
1. Intoxicating power in the middle rev range - I have never owned or driven a car that puts on speed or pushes you into your seat like the 1M.
2. Magnificent handling and ride - the 1M has marvelous turn in and the M differential is really noticeable while powering out of sharp turns. Going 50 mph through many curves feels like going through the same curve at 20 mph in my Honda Prelude (which is no slouch when it comes to handling). Also, the ride never seems punishing.
3. Extremely comfortable seats - love the thigh extensions.
4. Great lights at night and great ambient lighting with the premium package (love the door handle lights).
5. iDrive - I lucked out and got Nav and iDrive for free (included with the Premium package). Now that I have it, I couldn't imagine the car without it.
6. Exhaust note and turbo sound - the exhaust note is just loud enough to give the car a sporty feel without being obnoxious and the occasional turbo whine is awesome.
7. Looks - this car in BSM just looks plain evil.

Cons:
1. Automatic windshield wipers - why can't I just pick my own speed?
2. Break dust - wtf is up with the break dust on BMW's?
3. No dipstick.
4. The engine is not quite as responsive as the high revving Honda four bangers that I am used too (this is my first turbo car). This is most noticeable when trying to accelerate downhill (M Button helps).

Overall:
I love this car!

[SNOOPY11]

I took the BRP in the way home from PCD. Perfect road for the 1M... I wish it never ended..

Enjoy your car, she is a beauty!

[1SerieStud]

It seems to me like you don't know how to use your car's wipers.

EDIT: Forgot to mention - no offense to anyone and I've had my share of cheaper cars so I am not intending to belittle anyone's passion, but comparing a Honda Prelude to this car is like comparing Whoopi Goldberg to Alessandra Ambrosio - night and day!

[burnsniper]

Originally Posted by 1SerieStud

It seems to me like you don't know how to use your car's wipers.

Lol - I didn't have time before I got caught in a storm!

[ozinaldo]

Congratulations with the car, BSM looks good.

And yes, check the manual, you can arrange the speed of the wipers.

I agree with the dipstick.

I don't agree with the response issue, for me it is amazing for a turbo engine and really good for any engine. It might be better for you to wait till run-in period ends and you change the fluids to really comment on that.

Brake dust is normal for this type of brakes, this is the price you pay, just clean the wheels more often.

Mine is without Nav, and idrive and I am thanking God every day that I did not opt for that, it is a matter of preferance I guess, I don't think it fits with the rawness and simple yet functional style of the car, plus it is the most outdated item in 1 series. But it is just me.

Enjoy the car.

[Milligan]

All high performance cars have brake dust. Awesome car, enjoy it.

[burnsniper]

Originally Posted by 1SerieStud

It seems to me like you don't know how to use your car's wipers.

EDIT: Forgot to mention - no offense to anyone and I've had my share of cheaper cars so I am not intending to belittle anyone's passion, but comparing a Honda Prelude to this car is like comparing Whoopi Goldberg to Alessandra Ambrosio - night and day!

I just read the manual and you can only change the speed of the wipers based on the following:

1) Intermittent or Automatic Sensor Speed
2) Manual - Normal or Fast

To me this still seems limited because there are other cars that have more options for manual speed.

Also, I totally disagree with your comment that a Honda Prelude is like Whoopi Goldberg. While everyone will agree that the 1M blows a Prelude out of the water, the 5th generation of the Prelude was a fantastic car for its time. Simply compare some of its specs to the E36 M3:

Prelude SH vs E36 M3
Power: 197 hp (2.2L 4 cylinder) vs 240 hp (3.2L 6 cylinder)
Curb Weight: 3,042 lbs (2,900 for a Base) vs 3,219 lbs
Price: $23,000 vs $32,000
Both on Car and Driver's 10 Best List Multiple Times
0-60 mph: 7.5 sec (around 6.9 seconds for a Base) vs. 5.5 sec
Skid Pad: 0.89 g (0.86 for a Base) vs .85 g

Just because a car is not rare or it doesn't cost a fortune doesn't mean it lacks performance. Late nineties Hondas, Acuras, and Miatas are a great example of this.

[burnsniper]

Originally Posted by ozinaldo

Congratulations with the car, BSM looks good.

Mine is without Nav, and idrive and I am thanking God every day that I did not opt for that, it is a matter of preferance I guess, I don't think it fits with the rawness and simple yet functional style of the car, plus it is the most outdated item in 1 series. But it is just me.

Enjoy the car.

This is why i didn't order Nav if the first place. However, it is much better than I expected.

[tjm129]

Turn the dial on the wiper stock, you can adjust the intermittent speed of the wipers.

As for the break dust, get some armoral wheel protectant, spray it on after you wash you rims and they will say clean for a few weeks. you can also use some wheel wax to accomplish the same thing.

Nice car, Congrats!

TJ

[burnsniper]

Originally Posted by tjm129

Turn the dial on the wiper stock, you can adjust the intermittent speed of the wipers.

As for the break dust, get some armoral wheel protectant, spray it on after you wash you rims and they will say clean for a few weeks. you can also use some wheel wax to accomplish the same thing.

Nice car, Congrats!

TJ

Thanks for the wheel tip!

[Vrumpkin]

Originally Posted by burnsniper

This is why i didn't order Nav if the first place. However, it is much better than I expected.

I agree, its a great feature!

On a side note having a nav or not shouldnt determine the enjoyment of the car, nor detract from its rawness if its there. This isnt a Lotus Exige S purpose built for track, its an all around driver oriented sports car that can be highway driven or tracked on any given day.

[1SerieStud]

Originally Posted by burnsniper

I just read the manual and you can only change the speed of the wipers based on the following:

1) Intermittent or Automatic Sensor Speed
2) Manual - Normal or Fast

To me this still seems limited because there are other cars that have more options for manual speed.

Also, I totally disagree with your comment that a Honda Prelude is like Whoopi Goldberg. While everyone will agree that the 1M blows a Prelude out of the water, the 5th generation of the Prelude was a fantastic car for its time. Simply compare some of its specs to the E36 M3:

Prelude SH vs E36 M3
Power: 197 hp (2.2L 4 cylinder) vs 240 hp (3.2L 6 cylinder)
Curb Weight: 3,042 lbs (2,900 for a Base) vs 3,219 lbs
Price: $23,000 vs $32,000
Both on Car and Driver's 10 Best List Multiple Times
0-60 mph: 7.5 sec (around 6.9 seconds for a Base) vs. 5.5 sec
Skid Pad: 0.89 g (0.86 for a Base) vs .85 g

Just because a car is not rare or it doesn't cost a fortune doesn't mean it lacks performance. Late nineties Hondas, Acuras, and Miatas are a great example of this.

I don't know what more functionality you want out of wipers. They can be adjusted, and they also work great on automatic mode. If it bothers you that much, I honestly think you're focusing on the wrong sections of the car and probably purchased it for the wrong reasons.

Regarding the Prelude, sure, decent looking car, but nowhere near the performer we drive today. Even when compared to an e36 M3, I'd pick the M3 every single time. The understeer (and imbalance) of fwd is difficult to live with. I never said a car had to be rare or cost a fortune to be a good performer...if you wanna talk about great performers built by Honda, one of the cars that comes to mind is the S2000 - I've owned two of them and they were truly built with performance in mind: near perfect 50/50 weight distribution, rwd, lsd, outstanding suspension/chassis, and one of the most efficient NA motors ever built, with the first generation producing 120hp per litre, which was a record until Ferrari broke it.

[Powerbeast]

Glad to hear that overall your happy with her.

[Beemer22]

Before this I had an E46 M3 which I loved and before that I had the AP1 S2000

9K RPM was really nice but this car has 3 times the torque that the S2K had and that is why I don't miss the S2K or the M3

[///1M]

Originally Posted by ozinaldo

Mine is without Nav, and idrive and I am thanking God every day that I did not opt for that, it is a matter of preferance I guess, I don't think it fits with the rawness and simple yet functional style of the car, plus it is the most outdated item in 1 series. But it is just me.

+1

The car is so perfect with the classic BMW dash setup.
I love this car!

[1SerieStud]

Originally Posted by ///1M

+1

The car is so perfect with the classic BMW dash setup.
I love this car!

All a matter of preference. Mine is both raw AND sophisticated at the same time, depending on which personality I want it to have

[///1M]

OP: brake dust comes with the territory.
We have extremely powerful, yet compliant brakes that don't squeal under everyday driving conditions.

[///1M]

Originally Posted by 1SerieStud

All a matter of preference. Mine is both raw AND sophisticated at the same time, depending on which personality I want it to have

Agreed. I don't mind admitting that I'm more "old-school" in that regard ;-)