The Official F3x OT Thread!

Originally Posted by furby076

3748 replies since it started on 4/6/2011

Just putting it out there, E36 OT has over 88,000 since 2009

Originally Posted by Shigeta

Just putting it out there, E36 OT has over 88,000 since 2009

Wow. Those old men need to get a life.

Originally Posted by Shigeta

Just putting it out there, E36 OT has over 88,000 since 2009

People in retirement communities have plenty of time to talk

Originally Posted by furby076

Did you hold the eye contact for more than 3 seconds? Did you take multiple photos? Did you trade phone numbers?

Cute dog!

Haha! Thanks, shes my little girl! (we have another chihuahua and a boston terrier who weren't there)


I did take more pictures, I swear he had a thing for me

Originally Posted by EnserioJose

Wow. Those old men need to get a life.

Yeah seriously, that avgs. 60 posts per day/everyday/for 4 years!

Originally Posted by Thyrilumi

Yeah seriously, that avgs. 60 posts per day/everyday/for 4 years!

well, since i am aparently an old geezer with time on my hands....


srsly tho, it seems to me that in this day and age of technology and advancements if engineering and production/manufacturing, cars in general have gotten so much better.

they're all faster, lighter, and safer than similar models/marques from the past, and are coming with more and more technology in them.

with that being said, there are reviews of late regarding the new 4 series, as well as other models, and i was just curious what you guys thought.

i like the looks of the e9x's, well, except the verts. i'm not a vert kinda guy, but it occured to me when working on my e28 that it is just about as big as my e36.

the e39 is probably very close to the e9x's, and the f's look even larger. it seems to me that the 5 is getting closer to the previous 7 as well. which is why the 1 series came out, to reach back to the roots of the driver experience, et all, yadda yadda yadda.

i looked at the 1, as i was intrigued by this, and found that no local dealer was interested in me ordering a base model with nothing in it but a steering wheel and 3 pedals. (well, almost as spartan as that...) they all had 1's that were up to the headliner in tech and gadgets.


what is up with that??

i like nice stuff, but when a car is smarter than i am, or i need to read the owners manual (psshhhh, yeah, who does *that*??) in order to figure out how to put the car in drive, or what ever, i just get all confused.

it seems to me that back in the day, bmw stood for something quality. something that you could drive the piss out of and feel safe doing so, knowing that your kid would one day be driving it to school/college or whatever.

nowadays we've got hyundais running with similarly high tech stuff and gadgets, and cadillac is hot on the heels of the high(er) end sporty segment with the ats and cts.

i just think that the line of distinction that separated bmw from the others back with the platforms like the e21, e30, e28, e32, and e36, from the rest of the automotive offerings was greater than what it is today.

sure, i'd love to get a new bmw, but apparently of late there are no things like dipstick tubes for the oil (it was bad enough for the guys that drove an auto e36...). but how is a 'car guy' going to be able to check his own oil anymore?? (i know,...who does *that* anymore...) but how are you supposed to know how low you are, if, in fact, one does manage to get a low oil indicator light on the display?? i think it just puts another disconnect between the driver and the car.

granted, if one could afford to purchase a new bmw, service would be the last thing on their minds, but what about the next generation of owners?? when the car has 1000 miles over factory warranty, and the only ones that are willing to buy are the poor bums that can't look past the shiny and realize the maintenance costs associated with an ever harder and harder to diy marque.


i dunno....maybe just rambling here. maybe it's just the old crusty guy that couldn't yell at the neighborhood kids to get off his lawn. maybe i just need a nap.

maybe i just like the way i feel connected to the way the e36 handles compared to many cars i have driven. even with 335k miles on it.

dunno. just thought i'd open a topic up in ot....thoughts??





df

You tell 'em DF!

408Racer, I live about 2 blocks from Santana Row. If you haven't joined the BMW CCA, you should. If you do, I'll buy you a drink!

Originally Posted by drivinfaster

the e39 is probably very close to the e9x's, and the f's look even larger. it seems to me that the 5 is getting closer to the previous 7 as well. which is why the 1 series came out, to reach back to the roots of the driver experience, et all, yadda yadda yadda.

Agreed. The f3x is almost as big if not as big as the previous gen 5, and the current gen 5 is getting close to the previous 7...it's getting too much. I presume they are trying to make the 3 series more appealing to soccer moms - who need the storage space for their kids

Originally Posted by drivinfaster

i looked at the 1, as i was intrigued by this, and found that no local dealer was interested in me ordering a base model with nothing in it but a steering wheel and 3 pedals. (well, almost as spartan as that...) they all had 1's that were up to the headliner in tech and gadgets.

I am not a fan of the 1. It feels you are getting too little for too much, but everyone has their own desires.

Originally Posted by drivinfaster

i like nice stuff, but when a car is smarter than i am, or i need to read the owners manual (psshhhh, yeah, who does *that*??) in order to figure out how to put the car in drive, or what ever, i just get all confused.

As a Gen x'er I am the wrong person to argue at with "less tech is better", because I grew up with tech and love it. One of my good friends, who is in his early 50's and in the tech industry, goes to conventions and looks at products and says "damn, that's furby right there". Look at things like the PS3 and Xbox...they are not targeted towards 15 year olds, they are targeted towards to people in their 30's. We have the desire to play and the money to back it up. I was at a house party last night, and my cousins husband and I were playing xbox, with the 15 year kid of one of the guests. So as far as I am concerned, bring on the toys. My only beef with BMW is they add optional items that are standard in cheaper cars. Luxury or not, I shouldn't feel like the Cruz gets better value than the BMW. I should get everything that is in the Cruz and then some. Luxury does not mean you pay more for the same...luxury means you pay more FOR more.

Originally Posted by drivinfaster

it seems to me that back in the day, bmw stood for something quality. something that you could drive the piss out of and feel safe doing so, knowing that your kid would one day be driving it to school/college or whatever.

Every new gen gets bitchin from the previous gen. When the e9x gen came out the e4x gen bitched, and before that your gen bitched. I know some of the reason they make their changes, and some I hate and some love. For example, they got rid of the tight suspension and made it into an optional package...well wtf! Now I gotta pay for what was previously "standard"...how about make it a free option (not unheard of, remember the automatic credit...so you paid the same if you got auto or manual). I got x-drive and m-sport...I want the m-sport suspension, better get DHP. One of those things they took a feature and decided to upcharge. Their probable reasoning? Cause soccer mom bitched about the tight steering.

Originally Posted by drivinfaster

nowadays we've got hyundais running with similarly high tech stuff and gadgets, and cadillac is hot on the heels of the high(er) end sporty segment with the ats and cts.

And here is the rub. Buy a hyundai sonata, fully loaded, and you get more then what is in the BMW at a cheaper price.

Originally Posted by drivinfaster

i just think that the line of distinction that separated bmw from the others back with the platforms like the e21, e30, e28, e32, and e36, from the rest of the automotive offerings was greater than what it is today.

It's a lot smaller of a change. Even e9x had more distinction then it's competition. f3x 328 vs 335 is not as big of a difference as the e9x 328 vs 335.

Originally Posted by drivinfaster

sure, i'd love to get a new bmw, but apparently of late there are no things like dipstick tubes for the oil (it was bad enough for the guys that drove an auto e36...). but how is a 'car guy' going to be able to check his own oil anymore?? (i know,...who does *that* anymore...) but how are you supposed to know how low you are, if, in fact, one does manage to get a low oil indicator light on the display?? i think it just puts another disconnect between the driver and the car.

I would love the dipstick, but if that is your biggest hangup get a 2012 e9x. You will be happy, unless you old timers hate the tech that much

Originally Posted by drivinfaster

granted, if one could afford to purchase a new bmw, service would be the last thing on their minds, but what about the next generation of owners?? when the car has 1000 miles over factory warranty, and the only ones that are willing to buy are the poor bums that can't look past the shiny and realize the maintenance costs associated with an ever harder and harder to diy marque.

Those are decisions that people should make before spending their cash. If they make ill-informed decisions that is their fault. In this day and age there is no reason you should be surprised at the type of repair bill costs to expect with an out of warranty BMW.

Originally Posted by drivinfaster

dunno. just thought i'd open a topic up in ot....thoughts??
df

Great topic, though I would certainly call it ON topic

i'm a fan of the tech when it suits me, but for instance, i do not feel the need to go out and get teh latest in flat screen tech when i do not watch that much tv.

i'm not a gamer, so things like wii, xbox, and the like do not interest me, either.

i *do* like cars, and dig the tech they come with, but feel that somehow there is a whole generation of yung'uns that don't know how to tighten a doorknob but can program t-vo to record a weeks worth of shows.

when i was an auto tech i loved the tech tools that were cutting edge. i hated how fast they got outdated, though.... so upgradability was a key factor in any major purchase.

i like tools, too, be they power tools or kitchen tools. in the kitchen, though, they had better be verstile and multitaskers.

i like the idea that 'low oil level' comes up on the info screen. had that on my old 750 (e32), but was able to verify the level with the dipstick. if nothing else, the dipstick was the 'failsafe'...what hapens if for some reason the sending unit fails (and it will given enough time....) and the motor seizes because the hapless driver has no way of double checking the oil level?? redundancy is a beautiful thing, and something that i think about with regard to machinery. i blame my grandfather, because he was a pilot. he'd be pitching a fit on the stupidity of engineers that let this fly, and the kicher was, he *was* an engineer....


so yeah, i know every generation bemoans the previous. it's what they do. it's inherent to life itself, i guess....





df

The E36, E39, and E38 are perfect.

Originally Posted by petriej

You tell 'em DF!

408Racer, I live about 2 blocks from Santana Row. If you haven't joined the BMW CCA, you should. If you do, I'll buy you a drink!

Yuuup...that was a good post by DF.

I might take you up on that offer petriej!

Originally Posted by drivinfaster

....so yeah, i know every generation bemoans the previous. it's what they do. it's inherent to life itself, i guess....

df

Agreed...but I guess cars evolve and have natural selection too. We don't want BMW to be SAAB'ed but is it worth living to have BMW be Toyota'ed?

Driverless cars are on the horizon...the ability to drive with 3 pedals is becoming a lost art...soon, the act of driving itself will be relegated to machines. So let's enjoy what we have now.

Originally Posted by petriej

The E36, E39, and E38 are perfect.

I know it is E46 era, but some say the model year 2001 line up was perfect...right before the Bangle revolution (some say it was good, others not so much).

not familiar with the term bangel revolution....will this affect my frosted flakes??

the e39 looks too smooched together pouty nosed to me, so i'd rather go e34 or e46. *love* the e38 over the e32, but the e32 was a decent car, too. considering it debuted in 1988 and had more gadgets then than what a large percentage of cars have today, it's still a standout. the dual dme controls, though, just kills it from a technician aspect, and only the later models where they went with a single dme would be worth me looking into.

but only with the m70. if i were to go with an m60 i'd opt for an e38. (then drop a 6spd in it)



df

My car is now docked in Maryland. Why oh why does BMW not just let me go there and pick it up?

Originally Posted by drivinfaster

not familiar with the term bangel revolution....will this affect my frosted flakes??

Are we talking about the Bangle Butt?

http://www.urbandictionary.com/defin...=Bangle%20butt


Chuck

Originally Posted by lewes2

Are we talking about the Bangle Butt?

http://www.urbandictionary.com/defin...=Bangle%20butt


Chuck

The Bangle Butt is just one component...Bangle revolutionized the styling not only of BMW but was soon imitated by just about everyone.

On another note...check out this jealous VW driver:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...Q#action=share

Someone outside the office is protesting. Can't hear it, but he is blabbing something about "Stop ##### Now", over and over.
1) I wish I knew what he was saying
2) I wish someone broke out the hose, tear gas, and German Shepard attack dogs

Originally Posted by furby076

...I wish someone broke out the hose, tear gas, and German Shepard attack dogs

Sniper Kitty is cheaper and more efficient.

Originally Posted by 408Racer

Sniper Kitty is cheaper and more efficient.

Pic didn't load

Sides, that incites panic. When you see uniformed police the law abiding citizens are saying "bout time"

Originally Posted by furby076

Sides, that incites panic. When you see uniformed police the law abiding citizens are saying "bout time"

Not always....

Originally Posted by 408Racer

Not always....

That wasn't a law abiding citizen

When the weapon is out of the holster, THEN it's time to panic!

Chuck

Originally Posted by furby076

That wasn't a law abiding citizen

The cop may have been an enthusiast and pulled the guy over for this monstrosity (note, however, that BMW apparently agrees that cheap fender vents look good):