Top Gun Maverick-not a mooney but I’ll let that slide.

[Pinecone]

My BMWs have not been expensive to own.  And no major issues, just a lot of little things.

My 2002 M3 battery died at 2.5 months.  Some badges fading.  A brake light switch failure (they stayed on all the time).  A cam sensor.

[Fly Boomer]

6 hours ago, Pinecone said:

My BMWs have not been expensive to own.  And no major issues, just a lot of little things.

My 2002 M3 battery died at 2.5 months.  Some badges fading.  A brake light switch failure (they stayed on all the time).  A cam sensor.

Well, I guess my BMW was expensive for me because I took it to the dealer to be worked on.  This was a long time ago, and everything cost several hundred dollars.  Air in the tires:  $200.  Clean battery cables:  $300.  My Prius on the other hand has had one set of tires and the 12-volt battery that boots the computer.  No engine work, factory brakes, factory windshield wipers, etc.  I’m at 160,000 and still get 50 MPG unless I’m flogging it down the highway at 80 MPH.  I have never been around a more reliable piece of machinery.

[Pinecone]

My repairs were at the dealer also.  But several were under warranty.  

The cam position sensor was a total of about $160, parts and labor.  But they were going to charge a $135 diagnostic fee to read the code to tell them it was the cam position sensor.  So it really only cost me about $30 to be fixed, which was less than the part.

I have spend a lot on upgrades, but those are entirely optional, and I did the work myself (with some friends helping).

My Fiat has had nothing except replacing some light bulbs, one set of brake pads (but the fronts are coming up on a third set).  Tires.  Change the oil.  

And it gets 35 MPG +/- and is a whole lot more fun to drive than a Prius.   About 95K miles right now, coming up on 11 years.

[Fly Boomer]

On 5/26/2023 at 2:31 PM, Pinecone said:

And it gets 35 MPG +/- and is a whole lot more fun to drive than a Prius.   About 95K miles right now, coming up on 11 years.

I concede the fun part, but having driven some real junk in the past, I'll probably keep buying Toyotas.  Maybe Lexus.

[Echo]

My Porsche’s have NOT been expensive to own. High mileage cars are an acquired taste. I leave that to Mooney. Liquid cooled and normally aspirated. Just wind the tach, change the oil and drive ‘em. 

[Echo]

Just changed oil in Tacoma today. Sucks that oil filter on bottom and leaks at you on change while underneath. 911 and Arteon on top. Easy peazy. 

[Pinecone]

BMW got it right on oil filter.  Cartridge, not spin on.  Right up top.  And when you remove the bolt, it allows the oil to drain back to the pan.  So I run the engine to get the oil warm (around the block), removed the filter bolt, suck the oil out.  Replace the cartridge and O-rings, add oil, reset counter, done.

[Pinecone]

10 hours ago, Fly Boomer said:

I concede the fun part, but having driven some real junk in the past, I'll probably keep buying Toyotas.  Maybe Lexus.

Life's too short for boring cars.  Most vanilla car I ever bought was my 76 Corolla SR-5.  As it was basically some cosmetics over the base car.

All my other cars have been the performance model of the line.  And every car I have ever owned, I ended up modifying and upgrading.  Mostly suspension, but a number with engine mods also.

[N201MKTurbo]

I used to be car crazy until I started flying. After that I didn’t care about cars anymore.

[Hank]

1 hour ago, N201MKTurbo said:

I used to be car crazy until I started flying. After that I didn’t care about cars anymore.

I'm noticing some of that, but I still don't want plain vanilla or a rolling couch. The car has to be able to handle crooked roads, and accelerate enough to get out of its own way. 

But my need for speed on the ground has withered significantly. If I want to feel fast, I descend and fly over the lake at ~1500 agl to allow for hills and towers--a 20-minute boat ride can be accomplished in just under two minutes. 

[Fly Boomer]

5 hours ago, Pinecone said:

All my other cars have been the performance model of the line.  And every car I have ever owned, I ended up modifying and upgrading.  Mostly suspension, but a number with engine mods also.

Kind of like your 252?

[Pinecone]

1 hour ago, Fly Boomer said:

Kind of like your 252?

EXACTLY.

Current CARS in the household are a Fiat 500 Abarth, a 2002 E46 M3, and a 1995 M3 LTW.

Abarth has minor mods, rear seat delete and short shifter.  E46 has a TC Kline suspension and H&R Sway bars, 265 tires all around, Borla exhaust.   E36 has Koni Double Adjustables, H&R sport springs, UUC sway bars, swapped hats, short shifter and Borla muffler.

Had a 2000 M Roadster that ended up with Turner Stage 4 engine kit with shorty headers, H&R sport springs, Bilstein sport shocks, RD Sport sways, Randy Forbes short shifter.  Ex got and still has it.  And yes, she appreciated what she has.  She has done a number of track days, mainly in the E46 M3.

Before these, had a 1985 Dodge Daytona Turbo Z, that ended up with an almost 100% Mopar Direct Connection parts engine, build by Koffel's Place.  Koni springs and gas shocks.

The 76 Corolla ended up with a pair of 40DCOE Weber carbs, Isky cam, headers, springs and Bilstein sport shocks and TRD sway bars.

[N201MKTurbo]

1 hour ago, Pinecone said:

EXACTLY.

Current CARS in the household are a Fiat 500 Abarth, a 2002 E46 M3, and a 1995 M3 LTW.

Abarth has minor mods, rear seat delete and short shifter.  E46 has a TC Kline suspension and H&R Sway bars, 265 tires all around, Borla exhaust.   E36 has Koni Double Adjustables, H&R sport springs, UUC sway bars, swapped hats, short shifter and Borla muffler.

Had a 2000 M Roadster that ended up with Turner Stage 4 engine kit with shorty headers, H&R sport springs, Bilstein sport shocks, RD Sport sways, Randy Forbes short shifter.  Ex got and still has it.  And yes, she appreciated what she has.  She has done a number of track days, mainly in the E46 M3.

Before these, had a 1985 Dodge Daytona Turbo Z, that ended up with an almost 100% Mopar Direct Connection parts engine, build by Koffel's Place.  Koni springs and gas shocks.

The 76 Corolla ended up with a pair of 40DCOE Weber carbs, Isky cam, headers, springs and Bilstein sport shocks and TRD sway bars.

I found out a long time ago that all that stuff just gets me speeding tickets. 

There is nothing more frustrating than driving a high performance car slowly (like the speed limit). And if you are going to drive the speed limit, why do you need a high performance car. 

I'm not completely out of it. I do own a Yamaha FJR1300 that I have proven will do the Salt River Canyon at an average speed of 75 MPH. The speed limit is like 35. In high gear the bike hits the rev limiter at Mooney speed.

That being said I consider good driving skills is getting the highest gas mileage possible, which I practice on every trip.

[EricJ]

3 hours ago, N201MKTurbo said:

I found out a long time ago that all that stuff just gets me speeding tickets. 

There is nothing more frustrating than driving a high performance car slowly (like the speed limit). And if you are going to drive the speed limit, why do you need a high performance car. 

That's why God gave us track days and race clubs. 

Back to the BMW car ownership experience, which is entirely suitable for a drifted thread on a Mooney site, my last race car was a 1998 BMW 328i.   My first two race cars were Ford Taurus SHOs, and they were both very cheap to run and and race.   Chassis parts were cheap and plentiful in junk yards, and there were just enough SHOs in junkyards that engine and drivetrain stuff was cheap, too.   A junkyard motor in those days was $200, and they were pretty bulletproof.    They were also very reliable, even when run very hard, so they were very economically efficient as far as race cars go.

So after a few other cars and seeing people have very good performance and reliability success with the BMW E36 series on track, I bit the bullet and got one, figuring I'd just be paying the BMW tax and would have to suck up the expense.   I'd had a Cadillac CTS-V and the "Cadillac tax" was a real thing, so I was just prepared for the BMW to be expensive to run.

I raced the BMW for eight years, just sold it last year, and it was by far the least expensive and most reliable car I ever raced.   That was a very pleasant surprise.  It was also very competitive in the classes I competed in, until a rule change made it non-competitive.   

I'm not so sure about the more modern BMWs, though.   They don't seem quite so attractive. 

[Echo]

My son loves his Z4 M Coupe.  He put on a carbon intake and had it tuned.  Cat back exhaust.  Yoy can fit two full sets of clubs in the boot.  Great fun on twisties.

[Pinecone]

On 5/28/2023 at 6:10 PM, EricJ said:

That's why God gave us track days and race clubs. 

I'm not so sure about the more modern BMWs, though.   They don't seem quite so attractive. 

Yes and YES.

The last really good looking BMW was the E46. Every time I drive mine, I stop and just look for a minute and think that it looks GREAT.

[Pinecone]

2 hours ago, Echo said:

My son loves his Z4 M Coupe.  He put on a carbon intake and had it tuned.  Cat back exhaust.  Yoy can fit two full sets of clubs in the boot.  Great fun on twisties.

The funny thing is, one of the design criteria for the Z4 was that it fit two golf bags.  Seriously.

We got to see the designer presentation the Z Homecoming before the release.  But most people there were of the mind, the Z is the fun run car.  They would take their 5 or 7 series to go golfing.

The German's never understood the US Z market.  That most Z owners, it was their 3rd or 4th of 5th car. NOT their primary or only car.

[Echo]

7 hours ago, Pinecone said:

The funny thing is, one of the design criteria for the Z4 was that it fit two golf bags.  Seriously.

We got to see the designer presentation the Z Homecoming before the release.  But most people there were of the mind, the Z is the fun run car.  They would take their 5 or 7 series to go golfing.

The German's never understood the US Z market.  That most Z owners, it was their 3rd or 4th of 5th car. NOT their primary or only car.

Wow.  Form and function are a win for me.  That made me laugh Pinecone.  I get what they mean, but a fun run before and after golf makes my day.   

[Echo]

7 hours ago, Pinecone said:

Yes and YES.

The last really good looking BMW was the E46. Every time I drive mine, I stop and just look for a minute and think that it looks GREAT.

The M2 Comp is really functional rolling art too.

[Pinecone]

18 hours ago, Echo said:

The M2 Comp is really functional rolling art too.

Current M2 is 4 inches longer and 4 inches wider than my M3.  And it weighs 600 pounds (SIX HUNDRED) more.

[EricJ]

On 5/29/2023 at 11:05 PM, Pinecone said:

The last really good looking BMW was the E46. Every time I drive mine, I stop and just look for a minute and think that it looks GREAT.

One of the reasons I sold my E36 (other than me just kinda being done racing) is that it was 25 years old and not getting any younger.    Even moving up to an E46 would be moving up to a pretty old car.    And I agree the E46 was the last really serious driver's 3-series car that was really good for track use.   Strangely, the American OEMs support track use reasonably well now, but they're all so heavy you need a bigger tire budget than I want to spend.

[Echo]

16 hours ago, Pinecone said:

Current M2 is 4 inches longer and 4 inches wider than my M3.  And it weighs 600 pounds (SIX HUNDRED) more.

Duly noted.  Parking garages are collapsing from the weight of new vehicles.  Not good.

[Igor_U]

On 5/29/2023 at 8:53 PM, Echo said:

My son loves his Z4 M Coupe.  He put on a carbon intake and had it tuned.  Cat back exhaust.  Yoy can fit two full sets of clubs in the boot.  Great fun on twisties.

Interesting...

Ironically, those would not fit in Golf. 

[Echo]

22 hours ago, Igor_U said:

Interesting...

Ironically, those would not fit in Golf. 

Do you mean golf as in GTI Vdub?  Back seat or seat down for that, right?

[Echo]

22 hours ago, Igor_U said:

Interesting...

Ironically, those would not fit in Golf. 

I was there, so if you are calling mea liar...?  Just pull drivers and set 'em on an angle.