Me530
11-12-2007, 07:03 PM
Way back in 2005 when I posted my European Delivery writeup (http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/showthread.php?t=104976), I said:
Overall, the trip was a great time, I can't imagine buying a car any other way.
Finally, I imagined another way to buy a car, or at least BMW did, and this way is Performance Center Delivery. Overall, the trip was a great time, and I can only imagine one other way to buy a car... ;)
I'd like to start out by thanking Adrian Avila at BMW/Mini of South Atlanta for helping out with all this, as usual the experience was great and the price was right.
This whole trip was born out of the need to get my wife an appropriate milestone birthday gift- and of course the top thing on her list was a sparkling new BMW 335i coupe! :thumbup:
Long story short: I called my buddy Adrian and he ordered it, and we decided that now was the time to experience BMW's "other" delivery program. Fast forward a few months, and we found ourselves waiting for a plane to fly down to the performance center.
Arrival at GSP - The plane was only slightly delayed, but GSP is a great small airport. I called the hotel immediately after arriving and within 10 minutes, a nice white 530 wagon had pulled up to take my wife and I to the hotel.
Greenville Marriott - quite a nice hotel. Room was well appointed and clean. Internet is an extra $9.95 / day, which I felt was a bit excessive considering the posted room rates. Therre wasn't even the option to roam with IPASS or something similar. The restaurant (Giatu) was quite nice (although I thought the music was a bit weird), and the food was quite good. The bier selection was also quite good, although it was all in bottles.
Okay, on to the delivery day. We were in the lobby at 7:45 AM and the Marriott shuttle bus took our group over to the performance center. The delivery team was waiting for us in the lobby of the performance center, and we were brought right into a classroom for some quick theory. As entertaining as Donnie made it, we were all anxious to get behind the wheel, and of course soon we walked out to the track area and entered BMW Nirvana. M5's, M6's, M Coupes, BMW Bikes, you name it, were sitting there waiting to be flogged around the track.
We went off to our column of cars and split into two groups (both groups do the same thing, they just alternate)- My group started out with the ABS exercises. We flew down the track and slammed on the brakes at different speeds, learning how to steer the car through a panic stop- it was quite exhilarating. Next came the autocross course- even more exhilarating! After that - 360's on the skid pad...err..I mean a demonstration of the wonders of DSC- obscenely fun.
Once again we split up- one part of the group was going to get their cars, the other group (my group) went off with Ray and did the X5 off road course. We went up hills, through water, all over some cool terrain. I came away extremely impressed with that car...err..SAV.
Next came the visit to the Zentrum (sorry, no factory tours while they are getting ready for the X6). Since the Zentrum is separate from the Performance Center, we had to drive over there, so what better way than in 650 coupes!
After the tour came lunch - and it was a fine lunch- but we all know what was coming next: the Donnie Isley M5 hot lap!! What fun!!!
Finally, all the fun was over....or was it?? It was our turn to take delivery!! We met Willie in the gift shop, and she took us to the delivery bay and introduced us to the Coupe! The delivery process was fantastic, Willie knew everything about the car, helped us set up bluetooth and Assist, and treated us quite well all around. Finally my day as a BMW Rock star came to a close, and I was left with a potent need- the need to come back for more!!! :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:
Overall, the trip was a great time, I can't imagine buying a car any other way.
Finally, I imagined another way to buy a car, or at least BMW did, and this way is Performance Center Delivery. Overall, the trip was a great time, and I can only imagine one other way to buy a car... ;)
I'd like to start out by thanking Adrian Avila at BMW/Mini of South Atlanta for helping out with all this, as usual the experience was great and the price was right.
This whole trip was born out of the need to get my wife an appropriate milestone birthday gift- and of course the top thing on her list was a sparkling new BMW 335i coupe! :thumbup:
Long story short: I called my buddy Adrian and he ordered it, and we decided that now was the time to experience BMW's "other" delivery program. Fast forward a few months, and we found ourselves waiting for a plane to fly down to the performance center.
Arrival at GSP - The plane was only slightly delayed, but GSP is a great small airport. I called the hotel immediately after arriving and within 10 minutes, a nice white 530 wagon had pulled up to take my wife and I to the hotel.
Greenville Marriott - quite a nice hotel. Room was well appointed and clean. Internet is an extra $9.95 / day, which I felt was a bit excessive considering the posted room rates. Therre wasn't even the option to roam with IPASS or something similar. The restaurant (Giatu) was quite nice (although I thought the music was a bit weird), and the food was quite good. The bier selection was also quite good, although it was all in bottles.
Okay, on to the delivery day. We were in the lobby at 7:45 AM and the Marriott shuttle bus took our group over to the performance center. The delivery team was waiting for us in the lobby of the performance center, and we were brought right into a classroom for some quick theory. As entertaining as Donnie made it, we were all anxious to get behind the wheel, and of course soon we walked out to the track area and entered BMW Nirvana. M5's, M6's, M Coupes, BMW Bikes, you name it, were sitting there waiting to be flogged around the track.
We went off to our column of cars and split into two groups (both groups do the same thing, they just alternate)- My group started out with the ABS exercises. We flew down the track and slammed on the brakes at different speeds, learning how to steer the car through a panic stop- it was quite exhilarating. Next came the autocross course- even more exhilarating! After that - 360's on the skid pad...err..I mean a demonstration of the wonders of DSC- obscenely fun.
Once again we split up- one part of the group was going to get their cars, the other group (my group) went off with Ray and did the X5 off road course. We went up hills, through water, all over some cool terrain. I came away extremely impressed with that car...err..SAV.
Next came the visit to the Zentrum (sorry, no factory tours while they are getting ready for the X6). Since the Zentrum is separate from the Performance Center, we had to drive over there, so what better way than in 650 coupes!
After the tour came lunch - and it was a fine lunch- but we all know what was coming next: the Donnie Isley M5 hot lap!! What fun!!!
Finally, all the fun was over....or was it?? It was our turn to take delivery!! We met Willie in the gift shop, and she took us to the delivery bay and introduced us to the Coupe! The delivery process was fantastic, Willie knew everything about the car, helped us set up bluetooth and Assist, and treated us quite well all around. Finally my day as a BMW Rock star came to a close, and I was left with a potent need- the need to come back for more!!! :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup: