fuck'n ugly.... I still like the E30's and E36's best... although the E46's aren't TOO bad.... but I hate the way their cars are going (example: new 5's)
To each their own. Funny thing is that the old e36 3 series was viewed the same way the new 5 series is. Funny thing the 5 series bmw has some similar lines to the Acura tl, which everyone seems to like. I've found that pictures don't do these car justice. I know bmw has fired their styling director, so am sure the next models probably will be a bit more conservative. the e30 is still the one of the best look bmw's. But then again i look at the capabilities of the car and not just how it looks.
It may look similar to a TL but it is a BMW.BMW fans expect a certain look,the new cars don't seem to have it.They may be just as capable as ever but the style just isn't working for me. We'll see what happens with the new models to come.
BMW didn't fire thier styling director, they promoted him. Turns out they're happy with the direction the styling is going, and it also turns out people are starting to catch on. Wait until you see non-masked, non-artist-rendered pictures *AT LEAST*, and preferably the car in person before you judge it. We're talking about 3 dimensions of paint, metal, etc.. and you're judging the size and shape of it in 2 dimensions. How the fuck do you know it's bigger? It's lighter... Besides, if you want a smaller BMW they've already got the answer on it's way to your dealership.. 1 and 2 series. Too big still? Have a Mini Cooper.
LOL dad was talking to a customer the other day, said he and his wife went into a BMW dealership, his wife wasn't really paying attention, not interested in cars, but she looked up and saw a new 5 series and said "Oh, I didn't realize you sold Pontiac too" I like the older, more angular cars... E30 is a classic, but I gotta say I love the styling of dad's E36 M3... can't beat it (even if the interior design is retarded)
5ers, 7ers, Z4s.. everything sells well 'round here. Hell the E46 is like the Accord of Austin, it's high time for a redesign. They are boring looking! (and I own one, lol AustinAccord)
Yeah Austin sounds similar to London where the 3 series is the best selling car. Of course in Europe they offer the diesel engines which accounts for a huge chunk of sales. Should be interesting to see how the sales go when the new model is introduced. I know the motor sports version of the Z4 is due out in the next year, along with talks of a final year production run of the E46 M3 with the M5 V-8… As well the new M2 coupe looks wicked, and should be a quick car for sure with 280-300 hp. And how could I forget the new M5, with a V-10 500 plus horsepower I could give a shit if its ugly…. Considering our demographics I believe the BMW dealership here is doing well, and getting better. I know from personal experience that this particular dealership has sold 9 new m3’s, with 3 more on order just this year alone. As well the mini’s are going out the door so fast that order can’t be fulfilled till 2005 now. Bear in mind this is a population base of say 500,000
And just imagine if you added in all the potential customers that went to Quebec and Ontario to get their cars for 'certain' reasons And on the design team deal, Bangle was promoted and is not directly in charge of the final product anymore. That was as of a good 6 months ago.
Think of it like this: We have a 'total population' of somewhere around double that, like 1.1-1.2 million... and our dealer has nine NEW M3s waiting to sell, that's 'normal stock' for them. They also carry the Z8 and M5 on the lot. The next time I'm in for service, they'll have around 9 M3s (mostly convertible) and they will *all* be different from the last time I was in there.
He also designed the Z3, Z8, E46 3 series and E39 5 series, which many of the puters who diss the new rides hail as the holy grail of BMW design. Funny, most of the time they don't even realize Bangle's hand in that. Funnier still, they often think that one man can singlehandedly dictate the design language of a large auto manufacturer!
They've always been like that, people often think my car is missing some options due to the simplicity of the layout... I'd rather have less lights than blue lights.
I'd rather have an E46 M3. On a side note, if the actually do produce the E46 M3 with the 5 series engine then that car is going to be sexy as hell.
I agree, simple is better on the inside and out. That's where domestics go so wrong. GM for example, look at sunfires and cavaliers, they've got too many sharp lines, points and bubbly shit going on for my taste. Keep them clean and they'd be so much nicer. That BMW is pure sex.
