Hello all-- thanks for letting me be a member of your community. I'm a newbie to the roundel-marque-- but I think I made a pretty good start with my first effort- a '10 335d...OMG, what a machine... Mine is Space Gray/black leather, and has pretty much all the options, (I think) except the cold weather package and PDC. Does have the heated seats. Planning a cross country trip in her already-- why not? This car is designed to effortlessly eat up big highway miles. I'm a retired "rail" and ran over the American mainlines for well over 20 years, until I got a medical retirement. So I can honestly say, I've been around BIG compression and glow plugs a bit already! We're talking some big numbers, like 4200 BHP in the standard Amtrak road engine, called a Genesis P42. So yeah-- I like diesels! I'll probably have lots of questions for you guys-- will post them over in the Diesel forum. Thanks again... Bob in So. Calif.
Welcome Bob!!!! Great car you have there. I am a big diesel fan too, although I currently don't have one, I will again at some point.
OK GS-- workin' on it! Gotta get my tint and maybe smoked tail lite lenses first! But she looks pretty good BONE STOCK, too...
I've been asking at my dealership when they are going to start importing the 7 series diesel... but right now I'm looking around for a B7 instead. I like Diesels as well, my motorhome has a Cat diesel and my yard tractor is a 3 cyl diesel... when the run they run well, when the don't they are a pita. On one of my outings I had an oil leak in the hydraulic fuel injection system that left my toad covered in a nasty black coating of oil. Luckily I wasn't far from home when it started... and I'm only a few miles from one of their largest parts warehouses in the country. Was able to get the necessary parts and replace them myself the same day and be on my way to another adventure. Good thing too since I was leading a caravan of a dozen RV's down to Assateague. I was able to meet them at the specified location in CT to start out as planned. Anyways I digress... I have anxiously been waiting for a used diesel 7 to be available to purchase and maybe a few years from now I will be able to get my wish. Happy dieseling... Chuck
Thanks for the replies, guys. Yeah Chuck- they are certainly interesting machines that sometimes look like they can have "a mind of their own." The guys in Europe have got it made (well, except for their fuel prices) in that they have a galaxy of small displacement diesels of different makes available to them. I understand that the BMW "One Series" can be had with a sub 2 liter diesel...it is supposed to be marvelously fun to drive. We can't get the little diesels here in USA-- I believe-- due to stricter EPA admission rules, etc.? Might be nice if we had access to a bigger variety of these oil-burners...but I count myself lucky to be part of the club now with the 335d. No oil leaks in my car...knock wood, knock wood.
Nope, the emissions concerns are resolved, it's purely a business case now. It costs a minor fortune to get a car certified for US sale so if the projected sales don't justify the investment, it doesn't happen. Sales of the X5 diesel have reportedly been brisk, the 3er OK but not great. That doesn't bode well for the little diesel 1er. Yet...times may change. So, enjoy your torque-monster and spread the word!
Thanks for the clarification, NTS. I'm a rank newbie in the diesel world, well - except for those big things that run on rails. NTS- don't you think part of all this is the "mind set" of American drivers vs. the rest-of-the-world? In other words, small diesels are just flat out completely and absolutely accepted in Europe and even in the Third World countries? Yeah, we've got our big Powerstroke massive diesel trucks, etc. which seem pretty popular among a lot of suburban guys, and these couple of BMW models- the X and the 335d. But none of these could be considered "entry level" vehicles, at 50 to 70+ thousand $'s. But maybe things will slowly change here; I hope the diesel philosophy can make some deeper inroads here, and maybe more of these torquers can get certified, as you say... Most of us here would probably enjoy tooling around in a diesel "one-er." I sure would... but I count myself very lucky to have figured out a way to get the one I have...so far, so good.
