It's the type of car that grabs your attention with its slinky overall style, suprisingly unfussy for a modern BMW, with effortless attention to small visual details, inside and out.
To keep one's attention, as an ownership prospect, the car needs to have a myriad of little touches, thoughtful creature comforts, which make day-to-day life that little bit easier, and keeps the smile on one's face that little bit wider...
For instance, the R230 features a clever function programmed into the driving controls; when coming to a dead stop, press the brake pedal down to the floor and when you let it go, the brakes stay applied (the brake lights dim slightly to avoid blinding following traffic). When you want to set off in stop-&-go traffic, nudge the throttle gently and the car will move forward, applying the brakes automatically when you ease off the pedal.
Bliss.
Now obviously the R230 was auto only, and so this was easy to program. But it's this sort of attention to detail that really makes these sorts of premium cars so attractive, to me, not just the style and performance. The W203 had intelligent monitoring of tail lights; if a brake bulb goes, for instance, the foglight will automatically dim and be used in its place.
What little touches have you long-term E89 owners, especially daily drivers, discovered in your cars? Often by accident...
To keep one's attention, as an ownership prospect, the car needs to have a myriad of little touches, thoughtful creature comforts, which make day-to-day life that little bit easier, and keeps the smile on one's face that little bit wider...
For instance, the R230 features a clever function programmed into the driving controls; when coming to a dead stop, press the brake pedal down to the floor and when you let it go, the brakes stay applied (the brake lights dim slightly to avoid blinding following traffic). When you want to set off in stop-&-go traffic, nudge the throttle gently and the car will move forward, applying the brakes automatically when you ease off the pedal.
Bliss.
Now obviously the R230 was auto only, and so this was easy to program. But it's this sort of attention to detail that really makes these sorts of premium cars so attractive, to me, not just the style and performance. The W203 had intelligent monitoring of tail lights; if a brake bulb goes, for instance, the foglight will automatically dim and be used in its place.
What little touches have you long-term E89 owners, especially daily drivers, discovered in your cars? Often by accident...
