Yet another new E90 owner

[FStop7]

Thanks to Will @ Long Beach BMW I'm now a three time ///M owner. After two E46 M3s the E90 feels like a huge upgrade in every way.

I ended up buying an 08 configured like so -

Alpine White / speed cloth
6MT
Carbon leather
Technology
Premium Stereo
iPod
Sirius
NO sunroof

It's a fantastic car. I wasn't sure I was going to like speed cloth until I sat in it. It's great, very grippy and there's still quite a bit of leather trim on the upper back, headrest, and bolsters. After two Imola Red interiors it's a nice change.

Thanks again, Will.

[mPlasticDesign]

AWESOME! Another NO sunroof sedan. Cool!!! Interior pics, plz!

[MJC///M3]

congrats!!

[Deda]

very nice,congrats!

[FStop7]

Some observations at ~375 miles

The S62 revs so much faster than the S54, it's unreal. When blipping the gas on downshifts the S62 jumps through the revs like it's nothing. The break in period is killing me, I really want to open this car up.

The transmission reminds me so much of the E46 trans, except with a much better stock shifter. It even makes the same little noises when working the clutch at low speeds.

I like the E90 interior. For the most part it looks to be of decent quality. The lack of a coolant temp gauge sucks. The new gauge faces are awesome, especially the moving redline on the tach. The way it looks almost like a mercury-filled thermometer is so much cooler than the LED blocks on the E46 tach.

The premium stereo is NOT worth $2,000. It's an improvement over the Harmon Kardon stereo in the E46, but not a $2,000 improvement. Not even close. If this is what the high dollar stereo is like, then the base stereo must really stink.

The OEM iPod interface is nice to have. I installed a DICE unit in my E46 and it was really bad about picking up whine from the car's ignition system.

I've never had a car with satellite radio. I finally got around to activating it this morning. It seems cool, but I don't know how much I'll use it. It would be cool on the 09 models if it had a feature to let you save songs you liked from the Sat radio onto the hard drive.

i-Drive: Meh. Overcomplicating the simple. The only reason I'm glad I have it is for M Drive.

M-Drive: I like it, though I can't tell a difference between the different steering settings.

The seats: Big improvement over the E46. The deep side bolsters really make a difference. The speed cloth is great, I never thought I'd love a car with a cloth interior. It has just enough leather to give it a nice feel and smell, and the cloth texture feels good and holds you in place.

Clutch: Super light compared to the E46, which is very welcome in LA traffic. Between the lighter clutch and the low RPM pull of the V8 it's not much of a pain in a traffic jam.

Real time traffic: Kind of a waste in LA. The roads are always messed up. I spend most of my time acknowledging traffic warnings. Yes, computer, I know. It's LA, all the roads are boned. Every day.

Carbon leather trim: This stuff is _sick_, I love it. I had brushed aluminum in both my E46 M's and while I loved it in those cars, I was ready for a change.

Alpine White: I have wanted a white M3 since the days of the E36. The first time I saw a white E46 my jaw was on the floor. My first M was Sterling Gray and my second was Jet Black, I could never find a white M3 with the options and price I wanted when I was ready to buy. Finally, I got Alpine.

[Perpetrator]

Congrats! I also had an E46 M3. The E90 is just as great, but the E46 still has a special place in my heart since it was my first M. Overall, I feel like the E90 took a step forward.

[tszene]

Originally Posted by Perpetrator

Congrats! I also had an E46 M3. The E90 is just as great, but the E46 still has a special place in my heart since it was my first M. Overall, I feel like the E90 took a step forward.

I hate to say this, ( and i know i'll get booo-ed) but i think they missed the mark with the e46. The e92 is awesome from layout of the instruments through performance, shifting etc. So is the e36 which i still have.
however, i still believe that e46 was the sexiest looking m3.

[jgorman13]

Post pics of the speed cloth?

[mPlasticDesign]

Originally Posted by FStop7

....
The premium stereo is NOT worth $2,000. It's an improvement over the Harmon Kardon stereo in the E46, but not a $2,000 improvement. Not even close. If this is what the high dollar stereo is like, then the base stereo must really stink.

The base steroe is leaps and bounds above the old 'Business' stereos, those really sucked. The 'Professional' system which is standard on these cars is really pretty good. I would say it is better than the HK's on the E46. The HK's on the E9x are pretty sick for a stock setup but $2k, I dunno...