Discussion
My inability to refrain from the classifieds took hold after the departure of my beloved E46 325Ci which I proudly owned for 7 trouble free years. This was back in the mid noughties, and my first 'proper' car.
Since then I've flitted between BMW's and Jaguars (a couple of horribly underpowered comp cars included in that time), each car lasting no more than a year before the urge to change got too much. I haven't, and hate to think how much I've sunk into, and therefore lost in £££ over the last 10 years especially, but then I look back on my car history and smile at the fun I've had. That's why we're here no?
In that time I've had;
2010 5.0 N/A Jaguar XF (with Spires back boxes.. Oooof)
That was followed by a mint 2006 Jaguar XK (Elite Racing Rear exhaust.. Again, lovely sound.. No picture
)
Then a 2010 E93 330i (wanted a manual coupe... bought a auto convertible) That was great for a month in the summer, but even after dropping £3K (wince) on Billstein suspension, the wobbliness and creaking got the better of me.
Then a horrid 1 Series comp car... that lasted 3 months until I persuaded a junior QS to take it on
Then the one I should have never sold.. more on that in a bit. I spent an awful long time researching and hunting down the best example I could find.
A late 2013 E92 335i - Manual. 10K on the clock!
Despite the fact my first proper drive (the drive home from Manchester to Berkshire) resulted in me going straight to BMW Sytner (a crunching 2nd gear which resulted in new gearbox, DMF, clutch and release bearing. £11K warranty bill!!) I absolutely adored it.
Plugged the vacuum hose with a golf tee and enjoyed a year of straight 6 goodness!
A change of jobs, with an element of 'being on the road', prompted me to justify to myself, the need for a big Diesel. Despite the fact I would still be doing less than 15K a year I convinced my self this was the answer.
2017 XFS
Looked great, went like a train. But after 6 months the Diesel clatter and woeful interior build quality meant it had to go.
In all honesty, when I spotted her... a lazy Friday afternoon's browsing, I hadn't been looking to buy. But I had to go and see it. I wanted petrol, and I wanted a straight 6!
When I pulled up at James Paul, Nr Horsham, (wonderful set up and great guys!) I could see it sitting proudly inside the showroom. Did I love the colour or hate it? Anticipation only grew as when I went to enter the building the salesman embarrassingly had to tell me a customer there to pick up another car had spotted it and was trying to make some numbers works.
Luckily for me, he couldn't. It was my turn.
Once up close, I knew I was going to buy it even before I'd sat in it or heard it.
So,
MY 2018 BMW 440i Coupe
Snapper Rocks Blue
20" Performance Alloys
Carbon Aero
M Sport Plus Pack
MPPSK
Manual gearbox
Smitten. The power, the noise, I love it. I love the I-drive (after the stupid touch screen in the Jag), I love the proportions of the front grill I love driving it!
While I'm sure its not unique, I do wonder how many other manual MPPSK cars there are out there?
Thanks for reading.
Oh, and I do like the colour!
Since then I've flitted between BMW's and Jaguars (a couple of horribly underpowered comp cars included in that time), each car lasting no more than a year before the urge to change got too much. I haven't, and hate to think how much I've sunk into, and therefore lost in £££ over the last 10 years especially, but then I look back on my car history and smile at the fun I've had. That's why we're here no?
In that time I've had;
2010 5.0 N/A Jaguar XF (with Spires back boxes.. Oooof)
That was followed by a mint 2006 Jaguar XK (Elite Racing Rear exhaust.. Again, lovely sound.. No picture
)Then a 2010 E93 330i (wanted a manual coupe... bought a auto convertible) That was great for a month in the summer, but even after dropping £3K (wince) on Billstein suspension, the wobbliness and creaking got the better of me.
Then a horrid 1 Series comp car... that lasted 3 months until I persuaded a junior QS to take it on
Then the one I should have never sold.. more on that in a bit. I spent an awful long time researching and hunting down the best example I could find.
A late 2013 E92 335i - Manual. 10K on the clock!
Despite the fact my first proper drive (the drive home from Manchester to Berkshire) resulted in me going straight to BMW Sytner (a crunching 2nd gear which resulted in new gearbox, DMF, clutch and release bearing. £11K warranty bill!!) I absolutely adored it.
Plugged the vacuum hose with a golf tee and enjoyed a year of straight 6 goodness!
A change of jobs, with an element of 'being on the road', prompted me to justify to myself, the need for a big Diesel. Despite the fact I would still be doing less than 15K a year I convinced my self this was the answer.
2017 XFS
Looked great, went like a train. But after 6 months the Diesel clatter and woeful interior build quality meant it had to go.
In all honesty, when I spotted her... a lazy Friday afternoon's browsing, I hadn't been looking to buy. But I had to go and see it. I wanted petrol, and I wanted a straight 6!
When I pulled up at James Paul, Nr Horsham, (wonderful set up and great guys!) I could see it sitting proudly inside the showroom. Did I love the colour or hate it? Anticipation only grew as when I went to enter the building the salesman embarrassingly had to tell me a customer there to pick up another car had spotted it and was trying to make some numbers works.
Luckily for me, he couldn't. It was my turn.
Once up close, I knew I was going to buy it even before I'd sat in it or heard it.
So,
MY 2018 BMW 440i Coupe
Snapper Rocks Blue
20" Performance Alloys
Carbon Aero
M Sport Plus Pack
MPPSK
Manual gearbox
Smitten. The power, the noise, I love it. I love the I-drive (after the stupid touch screen in the Jag), I love the proportions of the front grill
I love driving it!While I'm sure its not unique, I do wonder how many other manual MPPSK cars there are out there?
Thanks for reading.
Oh, and I do like the colour!
Simon-k41v9 said:
that is a great looking car!
my only negatives with modern day manual BMWs is that the gear knob is proper pony - Im sure there must be an M performance upgrade??
I disagree. The gear knob in the picture is a Clubsport weighted gearknob. Far from from being modern it dates back the E46 330Ci Clubsport of several years ago. It gives a great gearchange.my only negatives with modern day manual BMWs is that the gear knob is proper pony - Im sure there must be an M performance upgrade??
helix402 said:
Simon-k41v9 said:
that is a great looking car!
my only negatives with modern day manual BMWs is that the gear knob is proper pony - Im sure there must be an M performance upgrade??
I disagree. The gear knob in the picture is a Clubsport weighted gearknob. Far from from being modern it dates back the E46 330Ci Clubsport of several years ago. It gives a great gearchange.my only negatives with modern day manual BMWs is that the gear knob is proper pony - Im sure there must be an M performance upgrade??
It does look pants.. I did have a look at possible replacements between viewing and buying but, it actually feels pretty good!
Agree on the iDrive observation. I have just swapped an XF for a (measly) 420i and the usefulness of the nav / media etc is just night and day better.
I took an in-stock car instead of waiting for a build, the one thing I don’t like (and that applies to yours too I’m afraid) is the black painted alloys.
I took an in-stock car instead of waiting for a build, the one thing I don’t like (and that applies to yours too I’m afraid) is the black painted alloys.
miniman said:
Agree on the iDrive observation. I have just swapped an XF for a (measly) 420i and the usefulness of the nav / media etc is just night and day better.
I took an in-stock car instead of waiting for a build, the one thing I don’t like (and that applies to yours too I’m afraid) is the black painted alloys.
Haha... Different strokes etc. They’re one of my favourite things about the car, indeed I think they’re one of the nicest wheel designs BMW have offered. I took an in-stock car instead of waiting for a build, the one thing I don’t like (and that applies to yours too I’m afraid) is the black painted alloys.
Nice work OP; can’t be many manual cars knocking about given the love for the ZF8.
The B58 is a cracking engine (I have a 140i). Agree red the gear known it looked fine in the E46 but it looks a tad out of place in the newer cars.
Love the idrive too; with the wheel and shortcut keys it’s so much easier to use than sodding touchscreens.
The B58 is a cracking engine (I have a 140i). Agree red the gear known it looked fine in the E46 but it looks a tad out of place in the newer cars.
Love the idrive too; with the wheel and shortcut keys it’s so much easier to use than sodding touchscreens.
Court_S said:
Nice work OP; can’t be many manual cars knocking about given the love for the ZF8.
The B58 is a cracking engine (I have a 140i). Agree red the gear known it looked fine in the E46 but it looks a tad out of place in the newer cars.
Love the idrive too; with the wheel and shortcut keys it’s so much easier to use than sodding touchscreens.
Thanks!The B58 is a cracking engine (I have a 140i). Agree red the gear known it looked fine in the E46 but it looks a tad out of place in the newer cars.
Love the idrive too; with the wheel and shortcut keys it’s so much easier to use than sodding touchscreens.
What probably appears a trivial issue to most (first world problem etc), the loathing I had for the touchscreen in the jag really was strong. Just a PITA and frankly sometimes dangerous when on the move.
The engine is a cracker! And with the valves open in ‘Sport’ going through the gears is a real treat!
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