My new E91

I just took delivery of my new E91 at the PDC on Monday! Yesterday was a 500+ mile day... Making our way to Indianapolis via Tail of The Dragon.
To be frank, we have roads that are just as nice or better in California. Still, is was a very cool experience!

The car is fantastic. Compared to my GTI, it's definitely more of a grown up car. I do feel the extra weight, and all the controls are much more weighty.. But I like it.

The only thing I don't like is the notchy manual transmission. It seems the only way to shift smoothly (especially from first to second) is to slam it in gear as fast as you can, and at a minimum of 3000 RPM's - and be equally as fast with your footwork. Slow just doesn't cut it with this car.
I've seen a couple items on Burger Tuning that might remedy it and help make shifting smoother. Can any of you comment on that?

You'll see that I installed the nose mask within a few hours of picking it up. This is solely to help preserve the front end for its 3600+ mile journey home to northern California. Once it gets there, it's coming off.
Ugly and 80's as it may be... It's doing a fine job of keeping everything off the paint. I particularly appreciate all the mesh screen on it.. Which lets the air get in, but nothing else.
Overall, it's an easy install, until you get to the tabs on the very bottom which need to be stretched really hard to get under the bumper. The manual says "Pull snugly" or something similar. What they should have said is "Pull and stretch with all your might".

We're headed to Chicago today for 1.5 days, then off to Minneapolis then South Dakota ( Mount Rushmore, Badlands etc...), then Wyoming to visit Yellowstone and Grand Tetons then Boise Idaho, followed by a short stay in Lake Tahoe before we head home next Friday. once I get her home, the Performance Exhaust, Intake, strut brace and bike racks will be installed. Tinting the windows will be in Order that weekend as well.

Should be a sweet wagon when I'm done!

Beautiful, congratulations!

Good decision. You will not regret this one. Did you happen to consider the Xpel nose mask? These cars must have a bug magnet - but I clean mine frequently and am satisfied with it.

You probably don't want to do this right away but.
Changing the transmission fluid to the Redline recommended fluid has really smoothed
out my manual shifter. They have an app on there website that tell you
which fluid to use . If its like mine it will be D6.
Really for the cost of the fluid you wouldn't believe its the same transmission.
Also remember under the free maintenance program you entitled to one free oil
change a year regardless of what the computer recall says its in the warranty
manual.

Also Fyi

http://www.e90post.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=16

Originally Posted by pegscrapr

I just took delivery of my new E91 at the PDC on Monday! Yesterday was a 500+ mile day... Making our way to Indianapolis via Tail of The Dragon.
To be frank, we have roads that are just as nice or better in California. Still, is was a very cool experience!

The car is fantastic. Compared to my GTI, it's definitely more of a grown up car. I do feel the extra weight, and all the controls are much more weighty.. But I like it.

The only thing I don't like is the notchy manual transmission. It seems the only way to shift smoothly (especially from first to second) is to slam it in gear as fast as you can, and at a minimum of 3000 RPM's - and be equally as fast with your footwork. Slow just doesn't cut it with this car.
I've seen a couple items on Burger Tuning that might remedy it and help make shifting smoother. Can any of you comment on that?

You'll see that I installed the nose mask within a few hours of picking it up. This is solely to help preserve the front end for its 3600+ mile journey home to northern California. Once it gets there, it's coming off.
Ugly and 80's as it may be... It's doing a fine job of keeping everything off the paint. I particularly appreciate all the mesh screen on it.. Which lets the air get in, but nothing else.
Overall, it's an easy install, until you get to the tabs on the very bottom which need to be stretched really hard to get under the bumper. The manual says "Pull snugly" or something similar. What they should have said is "Pull and stretch with all your might".

We're headed to Chicago today for 1.5 days, then off to Minneapolis then South Dakota ( Mount Rushmore, Badlands etc...), then Wyoming to visit Yellowstone and Grand Tetons then Boise Idaho, followed by a short stay in Lake Tahoe before we head home next Friday. once I get her home, the Performance Exhaust, Intake, strut brace and bike racks will be installed. Tinting the windows will be in Order that weekend as well.

Should be a sweet wagon when I'm done!

Congrats!!! Great wagon ya got there!

Are you aware the Taste of Chicago starts today? Jennifer Hudson is performing at the Petrillo Music Shell at the north end of Grant park today at 5:30. Lawn seating is free. www.tasteofchicago.us

Great Ride, enjoy!

Congrats! Did you order? All true about MT. You'll have to get used to it. Shift at 3500 or more, or keep some gas pedal pressure while shifting.

1 - nice ride!
2 - dig that color!
3 - your headlight close-up photo was awesome...nice job.
4 - not sure how much time you're spending in Tahoe, but a clockwise trip around the lake, beginning at South Lake, is awesome. It's only about 70 miles or so with great food and coffee stops. Worth the drive if your schedule allows.
Congrats!

Don't forget the ZHP weighted shift knob - that immensely improved the shifting in my E91. Highly recommended.

Very nice looking car, and East/West crossing is a great way to bond with it. Time to change mein auto and siggy, no?

Originally Posted by pegscrapr

We're headed to Chicago today for 1.5 days, then off to Minneapolis then South Dakota ( Mount Rushmore, Badlands etc...), then Wyoming to visit Yellowstone and Grand Tetons then Boise Idaho, followed by a short stay in Lake Tahoe before we head home next Friday. once I get her home, the Performance Exhaust, Intake, strut brace and bike racks will be installed. Tinting the windows will be in Order that weekend as well.

Should be a sweet wagon when I'm done!

Congrats! I'm having wagon envy right now!

I did a very similar trip to that, going from Chicago to CA, stopping as well at Badlands, Yellowstone, Tetons, as well as Devil's Tower and Zion. This is JMO and I'm sure this opinion was based on a lot of chance or circumstances, but Yellowstone for me was better than the rest of the trip, combined. IOW, if you really "stop to smell the roses" anywhere on your trip, you know where my vote goes. I like Tahoe a lot too, I recommend getting on a fishing boat, catching some salmon, cooking it that night. YUMMY!

BTW, I'm certain there are probably at least a couple of people that are sick of me yabbering about it, but I'd run a couple of searches on "CDV delete", and form your opinions about the idea of it. I also like the ZHP knob.

Originally Posted by abonn

Good decision. You will not regret this one. Did you happen to consider the Xpel nose mask? These cars must have a bug magnet - but I clean mine frequently and am satisfied with it.

Thank you!

No, I didn't consider any other nose masks options because I knew this was going to be temporary. I'm removing the mask once I get home.

For the shifting, consider the CDV delete. Night and day on my 328. Also a shorter, weighted knob will do wonders. There are many from which to choose. Mine's made by UUC. I haven't changed the fluid. Didn't think it was necessary after the CDV delete. But I might in the future, if I ever go with a short shifter mechanism.

Another popular, inexpensive and easily reversible mod is a clutch stop.

Have a great trip! Sounds fantastic.

Originally Posted by tturedraider

Congrats!!! Great wagon ya got there!

Are you aware the Taste of Chicago starts today? Jennifer Hudson is performing at the Petrillo Music Shell at the north end of Grant park today at 5:30. Lawn seating is free. www.tasteofchicago.us

Yes! We made it to Taste of Chicago on Wed. We were standing in line purchasing food tickets during her performance. We couldn't see her, but everyone could hear her just fine.
It was A really hot day, but a great experience!

Originally Posted by 55

Congrats! Did you order? All true about MT. You'll have to get used to it. Shift at 3500 or more, or keep some gas pedal pressure while shifting.

Yes, I custom ordered it. Everything I want, and nothing I don't.

Originally Posted by renaultf1

Don't forget the ZHP weighted shift knob - that immensely improved the shifting in my E91. Highly recommended.

I have the M Package... Is that the knob you're referring too?

After putting 1900 miles on the car already, I've learned that if I want the shifts to be smooth, I just need to shift higher - at 3500 or 4000 rpm. Then it's fine. I'm not sure what the CDV delete does because I haven't had time to research it, but shifting is fine and normal as long as I shift at those higher rpm's. Maybe it effects slow speed/low rpm shifting?

Other than figuring out the way the car likes to be shifted, I've also figured out something I can't stand not having: a temp gauge. BMW decided to give the US cars an MPG gauge instead of an engine temp gauge, and it's something I really miss.

It bothers me to not know what's going on with the engine. Is the temp climbing as I'm idling in hot weather? Is the car warmed up yet?
I don't like having to rely on an idiot light to tell me when there's a potential problem. Usually by that time, it's too late.

Originally Posted by pegscrapr

After putting 1900 miles on the car already, I've learned that if I want the shifts to be smooth, I just need to shift higher - at 3500 or 4000 rpm. Then it's fine. I'm not sure what the CDV delete does because I haven't had time to research it, but shifting is fine and normal as long as I shift at those higher rpm's. Maybe it effects slow speed/low rpm shifting?

Other than figuring out the way the car likes to be shifted, I've also figured out something I can't stand not having: a temp gauge. BMW decided to give the US cars an MPG gauge instead of an engine temp gauge, and it's something I really miss.

It bothers me to not know what's going on with the engine. Is the temp climbing as I'm idling in hot weather? Is the car warmed up yet?
I don't like having to rely on an idiot light to tell me when there's a potential problem. Usually by that time, it's too late.

The Clutch Delay Valve cushions the clutch engagement when the pedal is released rapidly to avoid damage to the drivetrain. I'm on my 5th MT BMW and have never felt the need to eliminate it, although I do plan to replace the transmission fluid with Redline around 50k. I tend to shift slowly from 1st to 2nd around the torque peak (2750 rpm) and even occasionally start off in 2nd if on a downhill grade.

Unfortunately, the water temp gauge on older BMWs such as the E46 (1999~2005) was so heavily buffered that it was really only useful for knowing when the motor had reached operating temperature. It would not gradually show an increase in temp, but would rapidly climb to the red area when overheating - about as effective as the present idiot light.

The warm-up workaround for the 328i/128i is to check the oil level reading thru the OBC after driving a few miles. If there is no reading, then the engine is still too cold for spirited driving, and it generally takes about 3 to 6 miles of moderate driving to get a reading, depending on ambient air temp.

Another gripe of mine is that unlike some cheaper cars, BMW has not seen fit to give us a real time PSI reading for each tire, even though the TPMS hardware is in place.

At any rate, congrats on your non-turbo, MT E91 - we're driving the last of the breed!

Tom

Thank you for your response, Tom. After getting used to the car, I don't think it's necessary to perform the CDV delete mod. I'll do some more research on it though after we get home.

The temp gauge isn't a deal breaker.. It annoyed me at first, but I'm already getting used to it.

I bought this car because I really wanted the last of these engines... And the steering. The look is classy too. I love my car and plan on keeping it until the wheels fall off.

Congrats on your beautiful wagon. I echo your observations on the MT and the nose mask. I've had one on every car I've owned (usually Colgan, but this time I ordered it from my dealer, and it was ready to be installed when I took delivery) except the Lexus - there wasn't one available from any source at the time. Don't be in a hurry to remove the bra upon getting home. If you're going to be doing local highway driving, stone chips are soon on the horizon. I speak from experience.

Originally Posted by pegscrapr

After putting 1900 miles on the car already, I've learned that if I want the shifts to be smooth, I just need to shift higher - at 3500 or 4000 rpm. Then it's fine. I'm not sure what the CDV delete does because I haven't had time to research it, but shifting is fine and normal as long as I shift at those higher rpm's. Maybe it effects slow speed/low rpm shifting?

Other than figuring out the way the car likes to be shifted, I've also figured out something I can't stand not having: a temp gauge. BMW decided to give the US cars an MPG gauge instead of an engine temp gauge, and it's something I really miss.

It bothers me to not know what's going on with the engine. Is the temp climbing as I'm idling in hot weather? Is the car warmed up yet?
I don't like having to rely on an idiot light to tell me when there's a potential problem. Usually by that time, it's too late.

The lack temp gauge annoys me, too. I'm not sure which is worse, no gauge at at or one that doesn't actually give useful info. It turns out the gauge in the E46 is really nothing more than a mechanical idiot light. It is electronically calibrated so that after warm up it always displays dead center unless the motor overheats. Then it instantly goes from showing a normal temp to fully to the right showing overheated and the red overheated light comes on. It doesn't actually show the true coolant temperature.

btw - that mpg gauge is iconic BMW. It has been there for decades. Since at least the E30; probably the E21 or before. BMW has been concerned with fuel economy since before the EPA existed. Safety, too. There is an OLD ad for the 2002 that touts its safety design features.

Here is my shift knob. Is this not a good one?

If you want to know the water temp
Get a elm 327 obd bluetooth dongle and download the torque app.
You can then set up gauges for the sensors that are available on your
smartphone. Unfortunately temp and voltage are about the only two that
are usefull unless you have a 335.
Cost is about 30 bucks for the dongle on ebay and 5 bucks for the download.
You don't want to leave it plugged into your OBD 2 port or it will drain the battery.

Originally Posted by pegscrapr

I bought this car because I really wanted the last of these engines... And the steering. The look is classy too. I love my car and plan on keeping it until the wheels fall off.

AMEN! In my opinion you got the best E9X config. E91 + M Sport + 3 pedals. The best of all worlds. If only I could have convinced my SO to go E91 vice E90. Oh well...

Originally Posted by pegscrapr

Here is my shift knob. Is this not a good one?

That is a great one!!!