Part 1***8230;Intro and M5 review
Now that I have been back home here in the OC for a couple weeks (and caught up on work - got to pay for the car and vacation) I've had the chance to get my European Delivery documentation complete. What a trip! I must start by saying a couple things right off the bat***8230;
1. If you are hesitating about doing a European Delivery because of driving in [insert country with small roads here] do not sweat it, and go for it! It is not all that bad, and, your insurance covers damage to your beloved BMW.
2. The people here on this board are some of the most well spoken and versed people regarding travel planning around. Fantastic knowledge base and I very much thank all of you that helped with advice and guidance on our itinerary.
Now, one more shameless plug. Jon Shafer at Santa Barbara BMW is a rock star. Bought a few cars in my time and I have to say this was the most painless and professional experience I have ever had. Considering the market conditions around the new car I was purchasing there was much room for a CA to pull some stunts, especially someone who you were working with remotely over the phone and email. Thanks Jon.
Disclaimer***8230;this is LONG with many pictures. Feel free to flame me for it! Our trip took us from Munich, to the Berner Oberland in Switzerland, over the Grimsel, Furka, and Gotthard passes to Italy and Lake Como, and a trip down the autostrada to Villefranche-sur-Mer in France.
Don't really quite know the best way to do this, so I am going to talk about the car first (yes!) and then our trip. If it was not for the car, we would not have been in Europe, now, would we?
M5 Review
F10 M5. One amazing ride. I ordered my car May 11th and took delivery on September 10th. It is Alpine White/Full Sakhir Orange with Piano Black trim. It has all the options except the driver assistance package, rear seat entertainment and B&O sound. Previously I was fortunate to have an E60 M5 which I picked up in early 2008. I also have to let everyone know that the E60 was my first bimmer - as luck would have it the deal that I cut on the lease was less expensive than the M3 that I was originally looking at - but enough of that car.
The new F10 M5 is better than the former car IN EVERY WAY - HANDS DOWN. All of the folks talking about the active sound, the fact that it is larger/heavier, the loss of the high-revving V10, blah, blah, blah, have either not driven it, or, are stirring the pot. The sum of the parts on this new car allow it to do some really amazing things. Granted, it is large, however, that size seems to disappear once behind the wheel. The combination of the active rear differential, the instantaneous torque, connected steering (while in sport plus engine and sport steering settings), great brakes and aggressive exhaust note make for an engaging and predictable driving experience.
Although I did not abuse my car while in Europe I did drive the F10 M5 last October at the Ascari track in Spain. My opinion was forged from that experience and the nearly 800 miles I put on the odometer while in Germany, Switzerland, Italy, and France. Ladies and Gentlemen of the jury, let me provide you these facts:
***8226; The car pulls very hard from nearly a stand still - and it does not stop until red-line. Although there is a drop off (based on the figures provided by BMW) the butt dyno does not pick it up. I feel that this is entirely due to the fact that the thrust from ~5500-6500RPM is unbelievable.
***8226; Turbo lag. Yes, I do feel that there is a bit of lag while in efficient settings, i.e., when tooling around town. If the car is setup with the more aggressive sport or sport plus it is nearly nonexistent and after there is any load on the engine forget about it all together. That includes passing on the highway and entering/exiting some of the more challenging turns at Ascari.
***8226; 20" rims make for a slightly more rough ride than the 19"s that were on the E60. Still not bad, but, if you are expecting the same type of ride from the OEM setup as the E60, better go with the 19"s on the F10. IMHO, I liked the more rough ride from the 20's and here in SoCal the roads are still good enough to not worry about damaging the wheels (until CA files bankruptcy, that is).
***8226; Rear Diff. I don't know exactly what the white coats at ///M did in software and with the systems integration, but they work miracles. I think that this new system, which takes into consideration many variables and proactively adjusts the lock, combined with the rear end bolted directly to the chassis, make for a very predictable driver. On the track last year it was very clear that this entire system is better than the M3 (which we also drove on the circuit) and is clearly why this big sedan outpaces the smaller, more nimble brethren. Disclaimer***8230;I did not get a chance to drive with DSC off (abiding by the 24h+ rule with my car), but I am interested to see just how good it is at some point. 2 day ///M school?
***8226; DCT. Enough said. Well, almost. I do still miss the, well, abusive nature of S6 on the SMG. That was just too fun. Don't get much of that on the DCT. When you think of pulling the paddle it has already shifted and it is SMOOTH. Didn't get to stomping on it during the ED run-in, but did in Spain.
***8226; Exhaust note is very aggressive. IMHO more so than the stock E60, as the F10 says something even at low revs. I could never hear my E60 unless the windows were down and in a tunnel or near a wall. Not so with the F10. Just roll down the window and be subjected to a great note. Time was paid to this and as such I am rethinking my initial thoughts to replace the OEM with an Akra setup. Larger tips would be nice. Side story. While we were in Monaco we got stuck in some traffic behind a large wedding caravan. I normally don't do this, but with all of the youngsters celebrating outside the church I slipped it into neutral and revved it. Everyone turned and started jumping up and down. Now, I don't know if it is was the group of people, the fact that they had not seen an F10 M5 before (unlikely, considering Monaco), or that here in OC M5's are a dime a dozen, but the old car's OEM note never received any attention. Not so with this monster.
I am not going into the electronics, materials, or fit and finish of the interior. They are all topnotch and others have done a fantastic job reviewing these elsewhere. Base sound was better than expected but for the record I am not an audiophile. Bluetooth audio sucked. It was unreliable and frequently had garbled playback, could have been my old iPhone 3GS. I do not know but I won't be using it so this is a non-issue for me. Piano black is killer and as reported by others is a dust magnet. Probably going to put a swifter duster in the glovebox
Now that I have been back home here in the OC for a couple weeks (and caught up on work - got to pay for the car and vacation) I've had the chance to get my European Delivery documentation complete. What a trip! I must start by saying a couple things right off the bat***8230;
1. If you are hesitating about doing a European Delivery because of driving in [insert country with small roads here] do not sweat it, and go for it! It is not all that bad, and, your insurance covers damage to your beloved BMW.
2. The people here on this board are some of the most well spoken and versed people regarding travel planning around. Fantastic knowledge base and I very much thank all of you that helped with advice and guidance on our itinerary.
Now, one more shameless plug. Jon Shafer at Santa Barbara BMW is a rock star. Bought a few cars in my time and I have to say this was the most painless and professional experience I have ever had. Considering the market conditions around the new car I was purchasing there was much room for a CA to pull some stunts, especially someone who you were working with remotely over the phone and email. Thanks Jon.
Disclaimer***8230;this is LONG with many pictures. Feel free to flame me for it! Our trip took us from Munich, to the Berner Oberland in Switzerland, over the Grimsel, Furka, and Gotthard passes to Italy and Lake Como, and a trip down the autostrada to Villefranche-sur-Mer in France.
Don't really quite know the best way to do this, so I am going to talk about the car first (yes!) and then our trip. If it was not for the car, we would not have been in Europe, now, would we?
M5 Review
F10 M5. One amazing ride. I ordered my car May 11th and took delivery on September 10th. It is Alpine White/Full Sakhir Orange with Piano Black trim. It has all the options except the driver assistance package, rear seat entertainment and B&O sound. Previously I was fortunate to have an E60 M5 which I picked up in early 2008. I also have to let everyone know that the E60 was my first bimmer - as luck would have it the deal that I cut on the lease was less expensive than the M3 that I was originally looking at - but enough of that car.
The new F10 M5 is better than the former car IN EVERY WAY - HANDS DOWN. All of the folks talking about the active sound, the fact that it is larger/heavier, the loss of the high-revving V10, blah, blah, blah, have either not driven it, or, are stirring the pot. The sum of the parts on this new car allow it to do some really amazing things. Granted, it is large, however, that size seems to disappear once behind the wheel. The combination of the active rear differential, the instantaneous torque, connected steering (while in sport plus engine and sport steering settings), great brakes and aggressive exhaust note make for an engaging and predictable driving experience.
Although I did not abuse my car while in Europe I did drive the F10 M5 last October at the Ascari track in Spain. My opinion was forged from that experience and the nearly 800 miles I put on the odometer while in Germany, Switzerland, Italy, and France. Ladies and Gentlemen of the jury, let me provide you these facts:
***8226; The car pulls very hard from nearly a stand still - and it does not stop until red-line. Although there is a drop off (based on the figures provided by BMW) the butt dyno does not pick it up. I feel that this is entirely due to the fact that the thrust from ~5500-6500RPM is unbelievable.
***8226; Turbo lag. Yes, I do feel that there is a bit of lag while in efficient settings, i.e., when tooling around town. If the car is setup with the more aggressive sport or sport plus it is nearly nonexistent and after there is any load on the engine forget about it all together. That includes passing on the highway and entering/exiting some of the more challenging turns at Ascari.
***8226; 20" rims make for a slightly more rough ride than the 19"s that were on the E60. Still not bad, but, if you are expecting the same type of ride from the OEM setup as the E60, better go with the 19"s on the F10. IMHO, I liked the more rough ride from the 20's and here in SoCal the roads are still good enough to not worry about damaging the wheels (until CA files bankruptcy, that is).
***8226; Rear Diff. I don't know exactly what the white coats at ///M did in software and with the systems integration, but they work miracles. I think that this new system, which takes into consideration many variables and proactively adjusts the lock, combined with the rear end bolted directly to the chassis, make for a very predictable driver. On the track last year it was very clear that this entire system is better than the M3 (which we also drove on the circuit) and is clearly why this big sedan outpaces the smaller, more nimble brethren. Disclaimer***8230;I did not get a chance to drive with DSC off (abiding by the 24h+ rule with my car), but I am interested to see just how good it is at some point. 2 day ///M school?
***8226; DCT. Enough said. Well, almost. I do still miss the, well, abusive nature of S6 on the SMG. That was just too fun. Don't get much of that on the DCT. When you think of pulling the paddle it has already shifted and it is SMOOTH. Didn't get to stomping on it during the ED run-in, but did in Spain.
***8226; Exhaust note is very aggressive. IMHO more so than the stock E60, as the F10 says something even at low revs. I could never hear my E60 unless the windows were down and in a tunnel or near a wall. Not so with the F10. Just roll down the window and be subjected to a great note. Time was paid to this and as such I am rethinking my initial thoughts to replace the OEM with an Akra setup. Larger tips would be nice. Side story. While we were in Monaco we got stuck in some traffic behind a large wedding caravan. I normally don't do this, but with all of the youngsters celebrating outside the church I slipped it into neutral and revved it. Everyone turned and started jumping up and down. Now, I don't know if it is was the group of people, the fact that they had not seen an F10 M5 before (unlikely, considering Monaco), or that here in OC M5's are a dime a dozen, but the old car's OEM note never received any attention. Not so with this monster.
I am not going into the electronics, materials, or fit and finish of the interior. They are all topnotch and others have done a fantastic job reviewing these elsewhere. Base sound was better than expected but for the record I am not an audiophile. Bluetooth audio sucked. It was unreliable and frequently had garbled playback, could have been my old iPhone 3GS. I do not know but I won't be using it so this is a non-issue for me. Piano black is killer and as reported by others is a dust magnet. Probably going to put a swifter duster in the glovebox