sleepingdog

Russ,

I ordered a 535d M Sport Touring a couple of weeks ago and have been given the same ETAs as yourself. The extras are pretty similar, and like yourself I'm sticking with the 18' RFTs, as you say can always change them at a later date if they turn out to be hideous. Stuck with the dealer and got a 10% discount after a bit of banter, was cautious about using an internet broker but maybe next time.

One thing you might consider is the I-Pod connector lead produced by BMW that allows you to control the I-Pod from the steering wheel etc. , also charges it and allows display of songs/playlists etc. It's ?40 but might be worth it - think I will get it.

Russ1974

Are you in the UK aswell sleeping dog?

I've opted for the USB socket for the stereo. We have this in my wife's E70 X5 and it's great - just plug a memory stick or hard-drive with MP3s on it, and full control from the stereo. With this, no need for the iPod cable. I don't know which works best or is fastest, the only downside with USB is that scrolling through songs and menus is a little "laggy". But the sound quality and integration with the iDrive is superb.

sleepingdog

Yup I'm in Scotland. I'm getting the USB interface as well, will use it for the i-pod with the BMW lead.

9 LEE

Talking of Tracker.. here goes my experience buying my 535d M-Sport Individual from my local dealer (ex demo)..

Dealer - "Ah yes, Sir... Tracker, would you like it fitted? It will almost guarantee your car back if it's ever stolen"

Me - "err.. possibly.. how much extra?"

Dealer - "Only ?495, and we can fit it straight away"

Me - "umm... in that case, no. If it gets stolen i don't want it back anyway after some scrotum has torn the arse out of it on a mad dash to Harwich Docks or wherever to get it out of the country"

(slightly ruffled) Dealer - "well, i really DO recommend it"

Me - "nah, let's leave it"

___________________

Cut to Handover day, sitting at the salesmans desk

Dealer - "Well, it's just ?30 to transfer your name for the tracker - would you like to give us a cheque?"

Me - "I never ordered tracker!!"

Dealer - "umm... err.. it was fitted from new by us.. it.. ummm... errr.. appears"

Me - "here's your ?30, and thanks for the free tracker!"

(Judging by the awkward shuffling in his seat and embarassed look, he knew it was fitted all along! I hope i'm wrong...)

_____________________

Lee

Russ1974

Lol very nice. ?495 though? I'm sure we only paid ?299... I expect there are different levels though. The one we get has GPS, so it doesnt matter if somebody takes it out of the country - it transmits the GPS location using an inbuilt SIM card which works globally. So as long as the tracker hasn't been found and disabled, or put inside a crate with no signal, they will find it. Personally, it's not about getting the car back - it's about catching the criminals and being able to send the boys round to their house for a bit of revenge

fastboyuk

Hey all.

Not really posted on here before, but I've been sniffing around for a while

I've also ordered a 535d LCI (hello sleepingdog!). Been given a delivery date of 10th October, but I'm hoping this is worst case scenario (hey, I can always dream!).

I looked at Tracker to see if it would reduce my insurance. When I speccd up the top of the range Tracker, it reduced my bill by ?800 with Direct Line, from ?1,600 to around ?800.

I think they might actually own Tracker as a company, hence the large discount.

Sleepingdog, you had any updates on your delivery date?

9 LEE

The Police don't really have the resources to tackle car crime on such a scale these days. It's very well organised now..

Well done on your discount btw, and if you want some 19" 172's i have the set i took off mine (5,000 miles old and 99% mint with no kerbings) for sale. I put 20'' Hartges on mine, but the 19's looked amazing already, and i often wonder why i bothered changing them (they were fitted when specced by the dealer so i had no say)

Lee

Russ1974

Looking around 10th October for my 535d M too ... I'm already planning my run-in period route - thinking of taking the beast on a lands end to john o groats (and back) marathon ... leave late at night, cruise control, nice overnight run.... individual audio, USB stick full of MP3s... damn it, I WANT MY NEW CAR NOW!!!

I know that police don't have time to tackle car crime, but the idea of tracker is that they monitor it, then phone the police and say "the stolen car is at this address if you'd like to go and collect it" so it's 0 effort for a recovered car statistic, which is what its all about these days. The top of the range tracker lets you log on to a website and monitor the position of your own car ... its a nice feature but it was a few hundred quid more and the subscription was also quite a bit more expensive.

I'm happy to stick with the 18"s... after experiencing the life saving qualities of run flats, I can't imagine driving a car at high speed on the motorway without them!

9 LEE

So they give you location of the car so you can go to the violent armed gangs house and demand it back !! I'm 6ft 4 and 17 stone, but i don't argue with bullets!!

Happy days!

fastboyuk

Tell me about it: another eight soul destroying weeks to go...

Mind you, my wife's new Focus ST3 arriving on 1st September will give me something to play with until the real metal arrives!

I'm picking up my car from Southend (I live in Glasgow), so I've got one big drive to give it a good run-in. It should put close to 500 miles on it. The remaining 500-700 miles I'm sure I can do over the following week.

Like you said mate, I want my car NOW!!!!