Welt Delivery - 12 hour compliance!

[spmd11]

Hey all! Just picked up the M3 in Munich. What an experience!! Awesome, awesome.
More later.. this is just initial post. Off to Heidleberg!!
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Cheers from Heidleberg!

This was my second ED but my first at the Welt. Well, I'm speechless. It was so much fun,
I can't recommend it more for anyone that might be on the fence about doing this. Lucky for me,
I didn't have to pay for airfare, as I'm a pilot with UPS. I traded trips with one of our Captains and
flew one of our scheduled trips to Cologne with a four day layover and I timed the ED date to match the trip.
I operate back to the US on Tuesday evening. I sure wish that I could put the car in the airplane for the
way home, cause it would fit just fine!!

I ended up Purchasing airfare on Germanwings from Cologne to Munich. I took a local train in Cologne to the airport and a
train from Munich airport to downtown Munich and a local subway from the Hotel Bristol to the Welt. Everything went great
with the trains, but there is a learning curve if you are a first timer. I would only try the trains by yourself or with your spouse.
With kids it would be stressful.

The Hotel Bristol is rated a 3 star. I would agree. It is a small hotel, sort of like a Holiday Inn Express, only smaller yet.
But it is very clean, the rooms are comfortable and the breakfast is very good for the rate that you are paying (breakfast is
included in room price). It is also very conveniently located to the Subway entrance, literally 50 steps away.

Did you guys know that Munich cops drive BMWs? Pretty swift!

I showed up at the Welt at 8:30 by Subway (took a little longer than I had anticipated on the train... about 15min).
My delivery was scheduled for 9am. The ED paperwork was simple and efficient, then I had about 10 minutes or so
left over to hang out in the customer lounge. I had a coke and jumped on the internet.

The delivery itself was fantastic. However, my guide had very limited knowledge as she has only been on the job about
2 months. The customer service and attention to detail is truly outstanding, but it would be nice if BMW had at least one
employee handy with extensive technical knowledge to answer questions. The best we could do is get the help of a fellow
employee who was more experienced to answer some of my questions. One question that took some time to figure out is
how to get into S6 mode on the DCT. Delivery took about 45 minutes as we took our time. After delivery, they valet parked
my car in the basement until I was ready to leave the Welt. Way cool. We talked about break-in. They insisted that all
customers, German, US and the rest, are required by warranty to honor the break-in. Which they told me is 5500 rpm...
no mention of speed limit.

Another nice touch, is that they allow you in the Customer lounge for the entire day and it is excellent for eating and
getting on the internet and chilling out. The food is outstanding. Not a full meal, but for what they have it could substitute
for a light lunch or breakfast, depending upon how much you want to eat!!

I was provided a gift voucher that was good for $10 Euro in the gift shop and $15 Euro in the cafeteria. I ended up spending
about 4 hours in the Welt hanging out, shopping and the lounge.

Upon leaving the Welt, one of the employees took some snaps of me outside in the car.. and off I went for Heidleburg!
Munich to Heidleburg is about 350km or so. Traffic was terrible. I had about a half dozen opportunities for unlimited speed,
which amounted to 140mph exactly at 5500 rpm. But there was so much congestion and construction zones on this route that
my average speed after 3 hours was 75mph!! Ha! No better than the US! But it was still great fun exploring some of the M3's
limits. I was amazed at the discipline of the average German driver. I only saw one pass from the center lane by a grumpy 5erGT
that couldn't stand waiting in the long line of 120km traffic. People in the middle, pretty much stayed in the middle. Those I caught
in the left lane, mostly pulled into the center pretty quickly, except for congested areas. I was only passed once, by a Merc McClaren is it?
Looked expensive. He actually let me in front of him as I closed on a truck in the center lane.. then when I obliged by moving back to the
center he passed me. It was respectful though, and I appreciated it.

I will report back about the car when I get home. Safe to say it just exceeds all expectations. Everything about it. It is like the M is made
by a different company. So incredible. I was surprised most by the DCT. I'm a manual guy and so I thought I was sacrificing for the wife,
who insisted on DCT... Man was I pleasantly surprised. It is one fantastic piece of work and I really have no idea which is a better setup.
You can't go wrong with either... but if I had one of each, I think I would steer toward the performance of the DCT more often than not, with a
dash in the stick for occasional satisfaction of rowing myself. I can actually do this with our 135 Coupe which has a manual, so I'm all set!!!

Best attribute of the M? Engine, hands down.. what an engine!

Any of you blokes interested in a 2010 135 convertible? LOL! It's for sale! M3 should arrive stateside in early October!

Here are some pics...

[odiesback]

Congrats!
Classic combo. I love it!

Beautiful car. Enjoy your trip

[jjw2331]

Great looking car!

[dhoggm3]

Congrats! You're gonna love that car.

[SamS]

Awesome. Motoring around Germany with the top down on an M3 has got to be one of the best feelings in the world!!

[Mr. ///M3 RD]

Congratulations nice looking e93 enjoy your drive along the backroads of Germany

Happy Trails

[10M3MAN]

[BMW Fanatic]

Ciao*

Nice car, congrats!

[HeartMD]

congrats. Enjoy the German country side with that awsome care.

[spmd11]

Thanks, guys! Headed to the airport... flying home tonight. What a whirlwind but what fun! So thankful I got the M!

[Moxie]

Nice car. Spent 5 years in Louisville & enjoyed it.

[saeedg48]

you're a pilot!? nice

[fastrack]

Congrats on the new car, ED looks like a blast

[masti99]

Congrats, enjoy ur trip!

[positiveions]

nice and congrats

[GregW / Oregon]

Nice photos. Now the waiting!

[GustavM3]

beautiful car! Enjoy in good health! Sweet you are a pilot. I am taking some flying lessons but considering doing it as a career. Problem is I do not know if I should go to one of those schools I see advertise all the time. Would you mind sending me a PM with some advice, thanks!

[spmd11]

PM'd

[nockie]

Why did you have the car in D1 going 140MPH? Great post. Thanks for sharing.

[Greeney]

I'm jealous of your bird... Do they also have you in the MD10?

[spmd11]

D1? You mean 1st gear? Not sure what you mean. Look at photo again. It is showing 7th gear at 5500 rpm

[spmd11]

MD11. We don't have MD10s. Fedex does. We have Boeing 757, 767, 747-400, MD11 and Airbus A300