Yes, another one of "those" posts of someone asking for validation/advice/camaraderie...but hey, it's midnight, the house is asleep, and who else am I going to share my excitement/nervousness/concerns with? I can't believe I just bought a car (let alone one 3x any other car I've bought) sitting at my computer at midnight. AHHH!!! Here we go...
- First time a buddy drove into my driveway and I got my first taste: June 2013
- First official test drive: July 2013...was almost late to my own daughter's birthday party...no joke
- The freeze: relocated the family in August to a new state...car talk was put on hold as I focused on getting everyone settled
- Most recent test drive: 2 weeks ago (P85)
- Months of reading this forum and torturing my wife: since that test drive in July
I know everyone has better things to do than give advice, but again, it's Midnight and I just made a $100K+ purchase...I need to type this out!!!
What I got (and why)
- 85 (short commute, but lots of road trips planned)
- Performance (this was probably the one I waffled on the most...I've NEVER been the M-series BMW guy...never been a performance car guy...but test driving the P was intoxicating...I may still switch this back to an S)
- Grey (personal preference)
- Grey Leather (was going black but concerned about the interior being too dark...especially in the gloomy PNW)
- Pano Roof (helps with the gloomy PNW)
- Fog (I have lots of fog and rural roads where I live)
- Obeche Matte (was going carbon but liked the wood/organic feel...went Matte due to three kids 8 and under)
- Parking Sensors (no debate)
- Tech (no debate)
- Rear Facing Seats (3 kids ages 8, 6, and 3...those seats were made for us!)
- UHFS (I know it's not the world's greatest, but wanted good sound and sub without going aftermarket)
- HPHC (I like the dual chargers...options on road trips)
- Air Suspension (This one was the hardest. Literally the last box I checked. I do go to the mountains quite often and being more rural I'm often on gravel roads)
Still need to buy:
- Center Console
- All Weather Mats (see kids above)
- Tire Repair Kit
- Chains (see mountains comment above)
- XPel Wrap (see "+" below)
Waffled on (I'm going to try to ignore all the "Go +!!!" replies but here we go...)
- +Package...I know people say it's what the "P" should have been. I know the handling is amazing. But I go back to the fact that I wasn't even going to go "P." This will be a commuter car and hauling the family of 5 around car. I'm not going to the track. I'm not doing any crazy handling maneuvers. I figured I'd love the instant torque of the "P" but had trouble justifying the handling aspect of the "+" given my driving. Especially since I'm not looking for the headaches (and expense) that comes with 21" wheels. In order to do + it would cost me $4,500 for 21s, $6,500 for the package, and an entirely new set of 19" rims for my winter tires. I'd much rather spend all that on a Wrap/Tint job. Unless of course someone here has an amazing ability to persuade! This is going to be a painful two weeks before I confirm.
- Sub Zero...while I do like to go to the mountains occasionally, I do live in the Seattle area where it doesn't get that cold and the car is garaged. I almost threw it in for those ski trips...still may...
- Lighting...I like lighting as much as the next guy but this seemed to not be worth $1K
I'm not going to be able to sleep tonight (or for the next two weeks...)
Fire away...I'm open to feedback. But I also wouldn't be surprised to get no responses. Thanks for being my support group.
(not putting in the fancy signature until it's confirmed!)
- First time a buddy drove into my driveway and I got my first taste: June 2013
- First official test drive: July 2013...was almost late to my own daughter's birthday party...no joke
- The freeze: relocated the family in August to a new state...car talk was put on hold as I focused on getting everyone settled
- Most recent test drive: 2 weeks ago (P85)
- Months of reading this forum and torturing my wife: since that test drive in July
I know everyone has better things to do than give advice, but again, it's Midnight and I just made a $100K+ purchase...I need to type this out!!!
What I got (and why)
- 85 (short commute, but lots of road trips planned)
- Performance (this was probably the one I waffled on the most...I've NEVER been the M-series BMW guy...never been a performance car guy...but test driving the P was intoxicating...I may still switch this back to an S)
- Grey (personal preference)
- Grey Leather (was going black but concerned about the interior being too dark...especially in the gloomy PNW)
- Pano Roof (helps with the gloomy PNW)
- Fog (I have lots of fog and rural roads where I live)
- Obeche Matte (was going carbon but liked the wood/organic feel...went Matte due to three kids 8 and under)
- Parking Sensors (no debate)
- Tech (no debate)
- Rear Facing Seats (3 kids ages 8, 6, and 3...those seats were made for us!)
- UHFS (I know it's not the world's greatest, but wanted good sound and sub without going aftermarket)
- HPHC (I like the dual chargers...options on road trips)
- Air Suspension (This one was the hardest. Literally the last box I checked. I do go to the mountains quite often and being more rural I'm often on gravel roads)
Still need to buy:
- Center Console
- All Weather Mats (see kids above)
- Tire Repair Kit
- Chains (see mountains comment above)
- XPel Wrap (see "+" below)
Waffled on (I'm going to try to ignore all the "Go +!!!" replies but here we go...)
- +Package...I know people say it's what the "P" should have been. I know the handling is amazing. But I go back to the fact that I wasn't even going to go "P." This will be a commuter car and hauling the family of 5 around car. I'm not going to the track. I'm not doing any crazy handling maneuvers. I figured I'd love the instant torque of the "P" but had trouble justifying the handling aspect of the "+" given my driving. Especially since I'm not looking for the headaches (and expense) that comes with 21" wheels. In order to do + it would cost me $4,500 for 21s, $6,500 for the package, and an entirely new set of 19" rims for my winter tires. I'd much rather spend all that on a Wrap/Tint job. Unless of course someone here has an amazing ability to persuade! This is going to be a painful two weeks before I confirm.
- Sub Zero...while I do like to go to the mountains occasionally, I do live in the Seattle area where it doesn't get that cold and the car is garaged. I almost threw it in for those ski trips...still may...
- Lighting...I like lighting as much as the next guy but this seemed to not be worth $1K
I'm not going to be able to sleep tonight (or for the next two weeks...)
Fire away...I'm open to feedback. But I also wouldn't be surprised to get no responses. Thanks for being my support group.
(not putting in the fancy signature until it's confirmed!)