[Skitzofrenik]

Hey all,

After much thought, research, and reading from this forum (thank you all for the help you unknowingly provided), I placed my order for a 2015 BMW 435i Gran Coupe about 3 weeks ago. I've always had Asian cars (Honda Civic, Nissan Maxima, Nissan Altima, Honda Accord, and currently 2008 Acura TL-Type-S), but I couldn't resist the BMW once I saw how many gadgets it has. NOTE: I'm a gadget-loving guy.

My build is:
-Black Sapphire Metallic w/ Black Dakota Leather
-M Sport
-Driver Assistance Package and Plus
-Dynamic Handling Package
-Lighting Package
-Technology Package
-M Sport Package w/ 19'' Orbit Greys
-M Sport Brakes
-Heated front seats
-Harman Kardon system
-Black kidney grilles

Mods planned:
-Black on black Stance VIP SC-5 wheels with Continental ContiExtreme Contact DWS tires (245/35/19)
-Black chrome exhaust tips
-Coding (comfort exit, DVD in motion?, corner LED delete?)

Delivery Date is end of Feb/beginning of March so any recommendations or advice (esp with coding) is greatly appreciated.

Can't Wait!! (*Bart Scott voice*)

[aksi]

welcome to the forum!
I, too, come from Japanese cars.
Still love my older cars, but German cars have something special. I hope you enjoy the forum and the car for the times to come!

[DrivenByE30]

If only we could have the best of both worlds..

The reliability of the Japanese car, and the desirability of the German...

Congrtas onthe 435i GC... looks like its fully loaded...
Enjoy ..

[Golden Arrow]

Originally Posted by DrivenByE30

If only we could have the best of both worlds..

The reliability of the Japanese car, and the desirability of the German...

Congrtas onthe 435i GC... looks like its fully loaded...
Enjoy ..

BMW and Toyota are supposedly working on a two-door vehicle of some sort. We might get our wish.

[DrivenByE30]

We could just get the opposite lol

[NO_RETURN]

As a fellow gadget guy, I can promise You are going to love it.

FWIW an iPhone will give you the best integration / apps.

tons of info out there on how to get started coding... Haven't tried it yet myself.

Hand wash & detail is an absolute must with that Saphire Black Paint. If unfamiliar look up 2 bucket wash method.

[55Nomad]

Congratulations on a new era of car ownership. And welcome to the forum.

[James550i6spd]

congrats. You'll never look back. You will fully understand what they mean when they say most Asian cars have no "soul".

..and I work for a Japanese OEM

But you can't beat them for reliability. I've leased 5 Infinitis in the last 13 years, and ZERO trips to the dealer for any of them. But BMW would be just as reliable if they did not focus on the performance aspect..it's always a tradeoff.

Our Japanese engineers are all closet BMW fans ....they dream of a world where they can design freely without constraints of a OCD-like quality system.

[VMRWheels]

Congrats on the pick up! And welcome to the BMW fam

[snowghost]

Started out German and went Japanese in the 80s and 90s. Came back to the fold in 2001 with my 530i. Never looked back.

[Skitzofrenik]

Thanks for the all the info guys and gals. Regarding the paint job, I'm playing around with the idea of vinyl wrapping it. I realize that Black Sapphire Metallic paint job will be tougher to keep clean so I was thinking of either vinyl wrapping in gloss black or matte black. The dealership has a relationship with a local car vinyl wrapping company that will do the whole car for $500. I figure a small investment if it'll be easier to keep it clean (read: not have to spend hours preventing swirl marks). Thoughts?

[NO_RETURN]

Originally Posted by Skitzofrenik

Thanks for the all the info guys and gals. Regarding the paint job, I'm playing around with the idea of vinyl wrapping it. I realize that Black Sapphire Metallic paint job will be tougher to keep clean so I was thinking of either vinyl wrapping in gloss black or matte black. The dealership has a relationship with a local car vinyl wrapping company that will do the whole car for $500. I figure a small investment if it'll be easier to keep it clean (read: not have to spend hours preventing swirl marks). Thoughts?

Why cover that beautiful paint with plastic wrap? Don't get me wrong I kinda dig wrapped cars if you want to do something outlandish that you can't really do with conventional paint... I also think it's decent alternative vs paint for covering an old beater with trashed paint. But on a brand new BMW with the best paint color available... No.

Don't fear the black... You just need to invest in about $200 In a car washing / detailing stuff or even a starter kit.

[Skitzofrenik]

Originally Posted by NO_RETURN

Why cover that beautiful paint with plastic wrap? Don't get me wrong I kinda dig wrapped cars if you want to do something outlandish that you can't really do with conventional paint... I also think it's decent alternative vs paint for covering an old beater with trashed paint. But on a brand new BMW with the best paint color available... No.

Don't fear the black... You just need to invest in about $200 In a car washing / detailing stuff or even a starter kit.

I hear ya on that. That's my only reservation about vinyl wrapping; it's a brand new car's paint job that I'm not keen on immediately covering. Basically, I'm looking what options will allow me to keep that "New Car" look for years instead of months (lol aren't we all), but without the headache of swirl marks that are notorious on black cars.

Do you have any recommendations on quality products you use for your car? Thanks in advance

[NO_RETURN]

You are going to get 100 different opinions...

Some guys are big proponents of getting the Space Age nano-polymer coatings. I tried that route on my GTI but really didn't feel it was worth the $1,300 price tag... not at all.

I believe the best solution is wash and clay the entire car then use a Good DA Polisher with the right pad and Fine machine polish ->Next is Sealant -> Then Carnauba Wax... Yes its time consuming, yes you will have to do sealant and wax again in 3-12 months. Frequency really depends on how dirty you get it, where you live and if you have a garage + covered parking.

I like to use Adam's Polishes but they are by no means the only game in town, Do your homework. Check out the detailing section of the forum.

I am ashamed to say I have not done my entire car yet and I've had it 6 weeks. Too busy + too much rain.

I don't have a Black BMW... My wife said do you really want 3 black cars, I had to give in on that one. I bought Melbourne Red instead.

[HoustonEaDo]

Originally Posted by Skitzofrenik

Do you have any recommendations on quality products you use for your car? Thanks in advance

Check out www.zainostore.com

[tex2670]

Same here--1st German car. Looking forward to it.

[fecurtis]

This is my first German car too. Came from an Infiniti, put about 80k miles on it with zero issues. My mom bought it from me since she really liked the car and it now has about 95k miles on it still with no issues.

The BMW, while I love it, had it's first issue at around 6k miles. The DHP and adjustable dampers would error out ("Chassis Malfunction Error"). That was fixed by replacing the front accelerator sensor. Other small issues:

1. Drivetrain Malfunction at around 8k miles, car enter limp mode. Pulled over and restarted, all was fine.
2. One day I started up the car and everything on the iDrive screen was in German. Confused I turned the car off and back on. Everything booted up normally, but I realized later on that day that the car had deleted my 1 through 8 presets.

Minor things for sure, but yeah you probably won't get the experience you had with Japanese cars. Nothing ever went wrong with the Infiniti and it had things like navi, back up camera, adaptive xenon headlamps, adaptive cruise control (I hated it so I never got it on my BMW), 4 wheel steering, etc. etc.

Despite it's quirks, I can't see myself going back to Infiniti, especially now that their cars are more geared towards safety features than actual driving enjoyment. Infiniti used to be the only Japanese manufacturer that could go toe to toe with BMW as far as driving engagement was concerned, not anymore. Many say Lexus has since picked up that candle...but I'd rather walk than drive a Lexus.

[mike@x-ph.com]

Congrats!

[nicknaz]

OP congrats on the order!

I have to ask, seems like you have ordered a car that stickers in the $65k range.. M3 cost....

[Philipangoo]

When I am older I would definitely buy a lexus. To keep miles off my M5.

[fecurtis]

OP, where are you at in the DMV?

[Skitzofrenik]

Originally Posted by nicknaz

OP congrats on the order!

I have to ask, seems like you have ordered a car that stickers in the $65k range.. M3 cost....

Haha, I actually started off by wanting to get the M3 (liked the 4 door instead of the 2), but a couple things about the M4 pushed me away from it...

1. Incredible engine no doubt, but it was too loud to me. Maybe I'm quirky, but I like a strong, but not loud/obnoxious engine (no shots fired).

2. Aesthetically, I found the 435iGC more attractive than the M4 or even M3 (Again, no shots, just personal opinion)

2. As you can tell, I like my gadgets. The base sticker for the M4 started around $65k and when you include all the gadgets that I wanted, it crept up to ~$78k

For me, the strong, but quieter engine, more attractive body style, and fully loaded at $65k was the perfect fit for me. That being said, the M3/4 are sick to drive on the highway lol