My Review of NAIAS - Quite Concerned

[JasonTDude]

My dad and I just got back from Detroit. We were there for the new Ms and were quite excited about it.

I'm not a forum junkie and I want to get straight to the point.

Between my dad and myself, my family has bought/sold/owned 14 BMWs in the last 20 years (give or take). He currently has a 750 and a X6 (for my mom) and I drive a E90 M3 and X5 (my wife). Apart from an Audi here and a Mercedes there, we are pretty much a BMW fan family as you can say and were quite excited to see the new cars.

That being said, we were very disappointed with the following:

a) The overall introduction/unveil that took place was quite disappointing. It was more of a shareholder meeting than anything else. The two executives that spoke spent more time discussing their company's sales than anything else. This is the auto show, who cares about how many cars you sold this year over last year? They didn't even properly talk about the cars in detail (I actually doubt they even knew enough about them). Why this is relevant is because it pretty much acknowledged all of my concerns about the company and how they view themselves now.

b) Someone revved one of the cars, it sounded absolutely horrible. I remember seeing those videos of the M3 (one was in the parking garage and one was in a street somewhere in NJ) and everyone back then were saying "oh don't worry, it's still being improved". WRONG. The cars sound exactly the same - terrible.

c) The front and rear design of the car looks so confusing. The hood and power dome design is very much underwhelming. The power dome doesn't look nice at all. There is a very large gap around the wheels, you can almost put 2 iPhones there.

Before I finish my post, I'd like to say that as much as we were disappointed with BMW's event, we were extremely surprised with the Corvette unveil. Now that is what a sports car unveil should be like. Those guys did the complete opposite of what BMW executives did, they spent 95% of their time talking about the car's technical characteristics and the changes they worked on and % of their time about the overall company.

I don't care about the turbo engine or the electronic steering wheel. I care about the direction BMW took with these new cars, in fact all of their cars. Before they used to build sports cars. The cars had souls, they were different. Every single one of their cars had a special story to them. The new cars don't have that anymore. Every new car is a derivative of another, in their entire line up they have only 3 engines. They have so many models and so many variations, I cannot keep count yet their production is so similar. They are maximizing their profit and minimizing their development costs. While these sound like a way to run a company, I think they have taken this to the next level and went to far ahead.

Thanks for reading.

[Sedan_Clan]

Looks like you'll be buying another car or keeping your E90 ///M3. Enjoy that Corvette as it seems to resonate with you more. Thank goodness for choice.

[Real Deal]

To each their own and enjoy Chevy, I am glad it was a share holder meeting damn it get my stocks up some more. 6 months till I drive this puppy :-). It's a business and they are suppose to make money no?

[Money2536]

Your review is much appreciated. I've been saying this for a while, there is a reason you only hear a tiny clip here or there of the exhaust/intake sound. If you do here it, it's always masked by some goofy music. The car is not going to sound good. I only hope it doesn't sound terrible.

[parky1215]

Sounds like exhaust will be first must-to-do mod for this car.
But for us who will be getting M3/M4 this June, we may have to live with this possible crappy exhaust till some awesome company releases their system

[Real Deal]

For the misinformed, read up and see that BMW is already working on the sound and well aware of it. The exhaust note is easy to change with some modification, my issue is the sound of the engine which BMW is supposedly aware and working on it.

[lucas.kent]

I was there as well, and see your point. But the unveil isn't targeted for the most part at consumers directly; it's targeted at a very specific audience of industry insiders, technical automotive press, and especially competitors. NAIAS has always been a sort of "flex your muscles" type of event and not one to induce car sales.

With that being said, I thought the unveil wasn't the best and that the cars didn't sound that great either. And the executives jokes were pretty lame.

[JasonTDude]

Originally Posted by Real Deal

For the misinformed, read up and see that BMW is already working on the sound and well aware of it. The exhaust note is easy to change with some modification, my issue is the sound of the engine which BMW is supposedly aware and working on it.

I am not misinformed. I did read in an article (auto something) that also said the same thing. I don't believe the engine sound can be fixed or improved. Engine can only have a natural sound. The exhaust can be improved, but to me it looks like the improvement will be marginal because they have this exhaust for more than 2 years and knew how it sounded, they are not going to make it sound drastically better in 2 months.

Originally Posted by Real Deal

To each their own and enjoy Chevy, I am glad it was a share holder meeting damn it get my stocks up some more. 6 months till I drive this puppy :-). It's a business and they are suppose to make money no?

Of course it is a business, but that is not how you run one. People who attend NAIAS are car enthusiasts. They are not shareholders. Look at Apple. They hold these massive conferences. People who attend to those conferences are geeks, blog owners, and other tech savvy people. Have you ever seen any of these conferences talk anything other than a new product? When a company "unveils" something, it is the expectation of the audience that the company present their new product and talk about it. Everyone knows how many cars BMW sells. Everyone knows BMW has a big factory in North America and employ Americans. We traveled 2000 miles because we wanted the guys who are response for the future of the ///M to talk about the new cars, not because we wanted to find out how many cars BMW sold this year.

Originally Posted by Sedan_Clan

Looks like you'll be buying another car or keeping your E90 ///M3. Enjoy that Corvette as it seems to resonate with you more. Thank goodness for choice.

I haven't decided what to do yet. I can see that you are trying to insult me but I am not going to feed you with what you want. The fact that my family has bought and sold over a dozen BMWs in close to quarter of a century should be a good enough reason for you to stop treating me like a 20 year old who wants to order his first BMW.

[karbonphiber]

Originally Posted by parky1215

Sounds like exhaust will be first must-to-do mod for this car.
But for us who will be getting M3/M4 this June, we may have to live with this possible crappy exhaust till some awesome company releases their system

it should sound good right off the production line and even better with a performance exhaust... especially for an M car.

Unless BMW has purposely made the car sound like a rusted tin can in hopes to profit off of consumers by selling a better sounding performance exhaust system through their M Performance products.

[markeh]

Idk about you guys but I'm taking off the cats and res right away and waiting for a decent catback system to come out

[Real Deal]

This is not the first comment I have heard about a 20 year old something in a response and also not the first comment from a negative experience someone had that states they/their family has owned BMWs forever etc... Just to come and find out they had an agenda but I give up and just read the posts that actually are constructive. BMW still needs to fine tune the car and will reserve judgment until then. My e90 didn't sound great either but after a few engine tunes and exhaust it's beastly and can hold its own vs many different cars.

[JoeFromPA]

Originally Posted by JasonTDude

I am not misinformed. I did read in an article (auto something) that also said the same thing. I don't believe the engine sound can be fixed or improved. Engine can only have a natural sound. The exhaust can be improved, but to me it looks like the improvement will be marginal because they have this exhaust for more than 2 years and knew how it sounded, they are not going to make it sound drastically better in 2 months.

Respectfully, you couldn't be further from the truth.

Engine sound is dictated by the size, shape, and flow of the induction system. Underhood insulation, the shape and thickness of plastic wheel liners, and with low RPM revving and direct injection - the injection system design itself.

I have no idea why the official unveil had this car sounding like this. You are right - the unveil itself was terrible and the car sounds bad. Obviously the look is subjective and I'll wait to see that in person.

However, the bottom line is it's a 3.0 liter direct injected inline six with two turbos on it. While the components may be completely different, it's going to create a very similar engine sound to the n54 - unless it's amplified by reducing insulation, increasing induction sound, etc.

That project could take 2 weeks to go from test to finalized plan. Similarly, the exhaust system could be totally different.

until we have a production model being tested, I'll wait to pass judgement on the sound.

[JasonTDude]

Originally Posted by Real Deal

This is not the first comment I have heard about a 20 year old something in a response and also not the first comment from a negative experience someone had that states they/their family has owned BMWs forever etc... Just to come and find out they had an agenda but I give up and just read the posts that actually are constructive. BMW still needs to fine tune the car and will reserve judgment until then. My e90 didn't sound great either but after a few engine tunes and exhaust it's beastly and can hold its own vs many different cars.

Sorry sir, but this car sounds nothing like the E90 (M3 that is). If someone blind folded me, I wouldn't be able to say if the new M3 is a 335 or not from where I was standing in the auto show. I can also tell you that a lot of the people surrounding me had a similar view regarding the sound.

Originally Posted by JoeFromPA

Respectfully, you couldn't be further from the truth.

Engine sound is dictated by the size, shape, and flow of the induction system. Underhood insulation, the shape and thickness of plastic wheel liners, and with low RPM revving and direct injection - the injection system design itself.

I have no idea why the official unveil had this car sounding like this. You are right - the unveil itself was terrible and the car sounds bad. Obviously the look is subjective and I'll wait to see that in person.

However, the bottom line is it's a 3.0 liter direct injected inline six with two turbos on it. While the components may be completely different, it's going to create a very similar engine sound to the n54 - unless it's amplified by reducing insulation, increasing induction sound, etc.

That project could take 2 weeks to go from test to finalized plan. Similarly, the exhaust system could be totally different.

until we have a production model being tested, I'll wait to pass judgement on the sound.

Fair enough and I hope you turn out to be right.

[Chill72]

Originally Posted by JasonTDude

Before they used to build sports cars. The cars had souls, they were different. Every single one of their cars had a special story to them.
Thanks for reading.

Oh boy here we go again with this nonsense.

[Never Convicted]

LOL...joined today, posts all over the place, horrified by BMW. All that's missing is "I got you babe" when the alarm goes off.

[Real Deal]

Originally Posted by JasonTDude

Sorry sir, but this car sounds nothing like the E90 (M3 that is). If someone blind folded me, I wouldn't be able to say if the new M3 is a 335 or not from where I was standing in the auto show. I can also tell you that a lot of the people surrounding me had a similar view regarding the sound.



Fair enough and I hope you turn out to be right.

See, there is the magic word I wanted to hear... The e90 M3... As I said you seem to have an agenda with 9 posts and just joined recently. I have read posts just like yours just under different names and with low post count that just recently joined :-) you get my drift son?

[Real Deal]

Originally Posted by Never Convicted

LOL...joined today, posts all over the place, horrified by BMW. All that's missing is "I got you babe" when the alarm goes off.

No **** huh I know droid vs iPhone got canned and before you know it lol.

[Sedan_Clan]

Originally Posted by JasonTDude

I am not misinformed. I did read in an article (auto something) that also said the same thing. I don't believe the engine sound can be fixed or improved. Engine can only have a natural sound. The exhaust can be improved, but to me it looks like the improvement will be marginal because they have this exhaust for more than 2 years and knew how it sounded, they are not going to make it sound drastically better in 2 months.

Of course it is a business, but that is not how you run one. People who attend NAIAS are car enthusiasts. They are not shareholders. Look at Apple. They hold these massive conferences. People who attend to those conferences are geeks, blog owners, and other tech savvy people. Have you ever seen any of these conferences talk anything other than a new product? When a company "unveils" something, it is the expectation of the audience that the company present their new product and talk about it. Everyone knows how many cars BMW sells. Everyone knows BMW has a big factory in North America and employ Americans. We traveled 2000 miles because we wanted the guys who are response for the future of the ///M to talk about the new cars, not because we wanted to find out how many cars BMW sold this year.

I haven't decided what to do yet. I can see that you are trying to insult me but I am not going to feed you with what you want. The fact that my family has bought and sold over a dozen BMWs in close to quarter of a century should be a good enough reason for you to stop treating me like a 20 year old who wants to order his first BMW.

Oh Jason (...or iPhone vs Android or whatever other pseudonym you choose to use this go 'round) relax!! If I wanted to insult you I would have done so deliberately. It wouldn't have been veiled by any means. My point was that you came here to rant.......and we listened. The good thing for you is that you have a choice, and if you've already decided with vehement decisiveness that this car isn't for you, there is no reason to stick around and detract from constructive discussions....right!!??

[myzmak]

Originally Posted by JasonTDude

I am not misinformed. I did read in an article (auto something) that also said the same thing. I don't believe the engine sound can be fixed or improved. Engine can only have a natural sound. The exhaust can be improved, but to me it looks like the improvement will be marginal because they have this exhaust for more than 2 years and knew how it sounded, they are not going to make it sound drastically better in 2 months.



Of course it is a business, but that is not how you run one. People who attend NAIAS are car enthusiasts. They are not shareholders. Look at Apple. They hold these massive conferences. People who attend to those conferences are geeks, blog owners, and other tech savvy people. Have you ever seen any of these conferences talk anything other than a new product? When a company "unveils" something, it is the expectation of the audience that the company present their new product and talk about it. Everyone knows how many cars BMW sells. Everyone knows BMW has a big factory in North America and employ Americans. We traveled 2000 miles because we wanted the guys who are response for the future of the ///M to talk about the new cars, not because we wanted to find out how many cars BMW sold this year.



I haven't decided what to do yet. I can see that you are trying to insult me but I am not going to feed you with what you want. The fact that my family has bought and sold over a dozen BMWs in close to quarter of a century should be a good enough reason for you to stop treating me like a 20 year old who wants to order his first BMW.

Oh, yeah...I dunno....

....gonna suggest BMW knows more about running car show presentations than you.

Just to set it up: One the one hand, car firm with 80 odd year history making massive profits and hugely desired and desirable cars who have set up dozens or hundreds of these presentations in the last few years alone.
On the other....bloke with 10 posts on an interweb forum for car nerds. I mean, I dunno...I think the tenor of their approach may not be your best line of attack....

(No matter how much history your family has.....or whatever....)

[Never Convicted]

Originally Posted by Real Deal

No **** huh I know droid vs iPhone got canned and before you know it lol.

What amazes me is that their little circle jerk threads on the E90 M forum, like "my S65 has ruined women for me" and " I don't care that I have no friends, I have the Last True M" aren't enough for them. The level of butthurt is incredible. Their egos must be shattered.

[Real Deal]

Originally Posted by Never Convicted

What amazes me is that their little circle jerk threads on the E90 M forum, like "my S65 has ruined women for me" and " I don't care that I have no friends, I have the Last True M" aren't enough for them. The level of butthurt is incredible. Their egos must be shattered.

E90 M is a great car but it's not the only car and better ones always come out In a few years or so. I just don't get it, it's not a ****** Ferrari, a used one is now around 40k so almost anyone can drive it. Lol at your comment above about ruining women for them :-)

[Savory]

Originally Posted by Chill72

Oh boy here we go again with this nonsense.

Yeah, it came off as a bit melodramatic. Drive the damn thing first before claiming the car has no soul.