I walked into the dealership on New Year's Eve looking to order a 330xi. The sales guy saw me looking at the silver M3 Cabriolet with Imola (a color for a German car named after an Italian race track?) Red leather seat and midnight blue top. He tells me if I'm interested, and purchase it today, he'll throw in a CD changer -- the salesman adds that he needs to meet the year-end sales quota.

It was $10,000 more than what I wanted to spend, and I wanted a Sedan. But, this thing does seat four comfortably -- I tried out the back-seat, and was quite comfortable in it (I'm 5'9"). The sales-guy then drove me (because I didn't know how to drive a stick-shift) around the block, and I was hooked. So I bought it there and then.

Jan 1, 2002, I came in to pick up the car, and somehow managed to drive it to my friend's house while learning how to drive a stick. I got pretty good by the end of the day, albeit with a lot of drivers honking at me while I'm stalled at intersections. Boston drivers are very rude.

It is now March, and having driven about 3000 miles on this thing in a mixture of city, suburban, and highway traffic, here are my conclusions. But before I get to it, let's get one definition straight:

Cab-ri-o-let
n.
1. A two-wheeled, one-horse carriage that has two seats and a folding top.
2. An automobile with a folding top; a convertible coupe.

A cabriolet is NOT a cute little chic car by Volkswagen, otherwise known as the Golf convertible, or Golf cabriolet. And just because I use the term cabriolet, it does not make me "uppity" or "snooty"; and if you're a white girl with way too much makeup who told a guy this, you are simply an idiot!

But I digress, and back to my review.

Pros:

The car's exterior is drop dead gorgeous. I mean, wow. I think it's safe to say that the M3 Cabriolet is the Heidi Klum of the automotive world -- it may not have the exotic sex appeal of Giselle Bundchen (or a Ferrari 360 Spyder), but it is unlikely to garner any complaints.

This is very much a guy's car. The M3 demographics is almost entirely male; only 3% of M3 buyers are women. The M3 Cabrio also looks very masculine, with its flared fenders and bulged aluminum hood. All this erases any possibility of it being a 'chic car' -- very important given that this is a convertible.

The car's interior also looks wonderful. The dash has a supple surface with gun-metal grey ('titan shadow') trims and is very functional without looking cheap. The look is stereotypically German -- all business. It doesn't look as luxuriant as the dash for a Lexus SC-430, but then again, a BMW is not a Lexus.

I am told by a chemist friend of mine that BMW uses a more expensive plasticizer for their dashes and thus their dashes stay pliable where other cars' dashes grow hard and brittle. I've obviously not had this car long enough to comment, but it sounds good.

The steering wheel is absolutely wonderful. It tilts and telescopes. It is leather-wrapped, thick, heavy, and feel great. The wheel also has two sets of raised grooves on the inside of the wheel for your hands on the left and right, thus making controlling the vehicle even more effortless. The actual steering is dead-on.

Then there are the other aesthetic details...

The leather on the steering wheel is stitched with three sets of colored threads in the M colors -- French blue, navy blue, and red. The shifter-knob lights up at night, illuminating the tri-colored ///M logo on the knob. There's even a tri-colored ///M3 logo on the door sills.

The auto-dimming rear-view mirror is simultaneously retro and futuristic. It's got a 1950s rounded look, and yet is obviously modern, with an embedded light detector that automatically dims the mirror when someone pulls up behind you with the lights on. The auto-dimming feature of the mirror turns off when you the put the car in reverse, just in case you are in the parking lot with headlights hitting the mirror, but never-the-less need the illumination to back up.

The special ///M3 side mirrors are shaped like a tear drops and are heated. The right-hand mirror rotates down automatically when you put the car in reverse. This is extremely helpful when parallel parking. The left hand side mirrors does not tilt down automagically, but it is powered and has memory, so simply tilt it down when necessary, and hit the memory button to have it restored to its previous location.

The soft-top operation is flawless. You simply press down the open button on the center console, causing the four window slide down slightly, while a lid opens in the rear and swallows the top whole. Closing is exactly in reverse. Everything is automated -- unlike a Mercedes CLK Cabriolet, you do not have to unlatch the top from the A pillar. Even with the top down, the trunk space is still reasonable -- large enough for two airline carry-on sized luggage. Of course, if you have the top-up, you get more space. Not bad for a car that's only 3 inches longer than a Corolla. The soft-top is also fairly quiet -- when driving on the highway at even 80 mph, you would not know that this is a convertible.

The top is tripled layered and keeps you well insulated during the winter -- at least I've had no complaints even when it's 30 degrees outside. The rear window defroster works very quickly, negating the need for me to scrape ice off the window in a lot of cases. Of course, if you do need to scrape off ice, the rear window is made of scratch resistant glass, so scrape away!

There is an optional removable hard-top for the car, but I have not ordered it so I can't tell you what it's like.

Oh, and did I mention the climate control? Hit the window button, and all the windows will be defogged in less than 5 seconds! It's truly the best window defogger I've ever dealt with.

The M3 also has enough torque such that you can easily start from standstill while in second gear. This coupled with the fact that you can do the US speed limit all in second, you can simply leave the car in one gear if you're a REALLY lazy shifter, or maybe you're using your right hand for other things? Of course, I don't recommend this.

Cons:

No car is perfect, and the M3 Cabrio has its share of flaws.

First, the M3 Cabriolet has a wide door, and I find getting out of the car a bit more difficult than I'm used to. You need to literally push the door quite a bit to force it open -- I often find myself kicking the door open with my left foot. However, it does get easier with time.

Due to the low profile tires, it is very easy to get curb rash on your rims. So be careful when parallel parking! The M3 rims are painted in "chrome shadow" and cannot be fixed as the EPA does not allow the import of the paint they use. These rims cost you $600 each, and far higher at the dealer! So be careful with your rims, as I had to spend some $1300 for replacement rims after a bad parking job. You may think twice before leaving your car for the valet, especially if they parallel park it (as is the case in many cities).

The sports suspension is very stiff, and is wonderful on the highway, but on the pot-hole infested roads of Boston (e.g., Massachusetts Ave) that can swallow small imports, the ride is absolutely jarring. I find myself steering left and right simply to avoid the pot-holes. Suggestion -- ask the dealer to set your tire pressure for 4 passengers cargo -- the extra air in the tires seem to make the ride much better.

Also, BMW placed the window controls on the center console for the 3 series (including the M3), where-as for the 5 and 7 series, the window control has migrated to the window, where it belongs. I understand that BMW does this to minimize retooling costs when shifting from producing left-hand to right-hand drive cars, but it's still annoying. I suppose the blame ultimately rests on the limeys; after all, what right-thinking person would ever drive on the left hand side of the road? The practical effect of this placement is that when you are in 5th or 6th gear, it is neigh impossible to open or close the passenger side window; I always end up using the open all button to open all windows. This is highly inconvenient if you're trying to talk to the hot girl driving the VW Golf Cabrio in the next lane!

There's a huge blind spot created by the top. With the top up, there's almost no visibility to the rear right side, which makes merging onto a road from the left side a pain in the a**. I suppose you can always put the top down. This seems to be an issue to all cabriolets, including the CLK Cabriolet as well as the TT Roadster. I suppose nothing's perfect.

With the top down, and if the wind blows the right way, the rear seat belts flap around incessantly. There's a clip to tie down the rear belts, but it is only marginally helpful. Otherwise, driving topless is a blast.

Passengers riding in this car seem to have a penchant for either 1) putting their elbow on the center arm rest, or 2) playing around with the radio, either of which interferes with your shifting. You definitely need to teach the passengers to behave.

Another thing -- and this pertains to all BMWs -- their GPS absolutely suck. Well, suck may be too strong a word. It certainly isn't worth the $1800 they charge you. It does have a nice display, but it's a CD based system (not a DVD one) in which you only get one region for free. On top of that, you lose the front in dash CD player. You're better off getting the Garmin Streetpilot III. Thankfully, I didn't get the built in GPS unit.

When cold -- I mean, near freezing, the shifter seems to hate going into first and second gear initially. I don't mean it is just notchy -- you literally have jam the thing in gear, and then there's a loud clunk. This is not an aberrant behavior just on my car -- it seems to happen to all M3s, and BMW does not consider this to be a problem! Donnerwetter! Nicht ein Problem my a**! However, after the car warms up, this behavior no longer exhibits itself. So when starting off in the cold, I would move the shifter rapidly between first and second gear while at an intersection, which makes it better. You'd think that the shifting mechanism is frozen or something! Ok, I guess that's why BMW stands for Bavarian Motor Works, and not Bavarian Transmission Works.

The M3 Cabriolet is a cop magnet. Within three days, I've gotten two tickets for supposedly running red-lights. They were both yellow when I entered the intersection. Stuff that you can get away with driving any other car will get you a ticket. Trust me!

This is not helped by the fact that the M3 handles so well that you can do 85 mph, do high speed turns et al, and not even feel it -- in fact, you feel that you're driving too slowly.

Consider the tickets a BMW tax... in addition to the gas-guzzler tax you have to pay...

Speaking of which, this car also has horrible fuel consumption -- you'll get 10 mpg driving in Boston, 13 mpg driving in the suburbs, and 23 mpg driving on the highway. All this is with very light driving without accelerating from stop-light to stop-light. But if you can afford this car, a few extra dollars worth of gas won't hurt you.

Oh yes, and the insurance cost isn't cheap either.

Other Observations:

I've also found that silver Bimmers, like red Porsches, is a common stereotype. I've been told that driving the car makes me look like a snooty BU student or a "Euro-trash" (I have a penchant for wearing ascots--it keeps my neck warm, what can I say!) who's spending daddy's money and that I look too young (I'm 25) to be able to afford the car on my own. Well, I guess as far as negatives go, these aren't too bad.

Conclusion:

This is an extremely fun and absolutely beautiful car that gets a lot of attention. Guys will compliment you on it, and girls will simply stare at it. I'm not sure if this car would be considered a chic-magnet yet, so I can't report on that... Maybe I should consider driving around BU with the top-down during spring and summer! ;-)

Updates and rants:

The convertible top can absolutely be maddening! After a while, it starts squeaking, so that every little bump on the road will make the car sound like there is a cage full of rats running around in the trunk. You have to spray the top mechanism hinges with some type of silicon spray to stop it. It is terrible. It does seem that a lot of other BMW convertible owners have this problem.

May 12th, at 4800 miles, the car all of a sudden refused to start. I called BMW Roadside Assistance, and they did not get a tow truck to me for three hours. Why is that? Because they contract out the towing service to local companies and the local towing vendors can be a bunch of jerks. Then there was a situation with Herb Chambers BMW not having a night drop-off. The various towing companies refused to tow my car there, saying that Herb Chambers told them not to leave cars there. I had to argue with the towing company, finally convincing them to leave the now immobile M3 in the back of the dealership. Since the cleaning crew was there after hours, I convinced them to let me in and left my key on the service desk with a note.

So, it took Herb Chambers a few days to figure out why it would not start. It finally turns out that the switch to detect whether the clutch pedal was depressed broke, and the engine management unit refused to let the engine start. By the time they ordered parts and fixed the car, it had been nearly two weeks! Thank goodness I rode the T to work. I never drive my BMW to work, as it is basically a toy for nights and weekends; I cannot imagine that someone who depends on his car for critical transportation would be too happy with this.

Ah, the car drive well now, all is fine, right? Wrong. While the car starts, the cruise control no longer works, and there is a terrible rattle every time I depress the clutch. I took the car back, and apparently they installed the switch from a normal 3 series in my M3, which does not fit quite right and causes the rattle. Oh yes, it took them over a week to figure out why the cruise control does not work. The service manager at Herb Chambers BMW, Ali, has been extraordinarily nice. I just wish that the service was far more prompt. I have been hearing stories from various people complaining about the quality (or rather, the lack thereof) Herb Chambers BMW Service Department; now I understand. Meanwhile, I have been given various loaners, from a silver 325ci (a coupe) with a 5 speed standard to a dark blue 325i (the sedan) with the steptronic 5 speed automatic to a grey 330i also with a steptronic 5 speed as well as the Harmon Kardon stereo option. (See my coming reviews of the 325i, 325ci, and 330, respectively.)

Will I buy a M3 again? Yes, as it is extraordinarily fun to drive.

Am I happy with the BMW quality? Absolutely not. When one pays almost $60,000 for a car, one expects near perfection; that is definitely not BMW. Am I satisfied with Herb Chambers? Well, the service manager, Ali, is very nice. I do feel that the technical people are a bit incompetent. It should not take them a total of almost three weeks to fix what essentially amounts to a broken switch.

Lest one thinks that the M3 is the only car having issues, a friend of mine has a BMW X5, which had a problem with the car refusing to upshift. This happened while he was driving on the Interstate. He had to pull over, reboot the car, and the problem went away. The tech guys were never able to duplicate the problem. I assume there is still a hidden bug with the shifting software. A shifting problem also occurred on my friend's 1999 328i; the transmission stopped shifting after he hit a patch of ice. He had to pull over, turn off the car, remove the keys, and reboot the car before the shifting software started working again. His sunroof also have a problem which keeps reappearing even after it gets "fixed". There is also another friend's E36 328i having a non-functional temperature sensor (which was never fixed properly). Yeah, BMW has a lot of quality issues. BMW is no Lexus.

All this may force you to seriously consider a Lexus IS300 or at least an Audi.

Of course, a Lexus IS 300 is really like Prada bag--Americans may think Pradas are luxury items, but we all know Prada is the Gap of Italy--or in this case, a rebadged Toyota; it is utterly pretentious--worse than some chick carrying an obviously fake Louis Vuitton bought from Canal Street.

Oh, hint to you women: if you are carrying a fake bag, and a guy actually knows this, you are simply a wannabe. If you are carrying a Kate Spade, it says that you are a fashion victim. If you are carrying a Kelly bag (or for that matters, wearing your Manolo mules), you are obviously high maintenance and we cannot afford to date you. Most likely, a guy does not read W or WWD and won't know the difference between Berkin bags and Birkenstocks, so you have absolutely wasted your money. But let's be realistic--even if he does know the difference, it is irrelevant. I have never known any man (myself included) who ever said--gee, she has such good taste in hand-made shoes or Hermes handbags--I must woo her and father her children. Forget it! It doesn't work! Get a Nine West or some el-cheapo handbag instead--then we know you're pragmatic and fun instead of high strung and high maintenance. Save your money and use it on the down payment for your Porsche Boxster S instead! But I digress...

Ultimately, a Lexus simply cannot compare to a M3 in terms of low end torque and sheer handling abilities. So you put up with the quality issues and just enjoy the sound of the ///M engine as you blow past 4000 RPM towards the redline.

Sept 30th, 7800 mile update...

I got the oil changed on this car at 5000 miles. Cost, $160. Ouch! This thing eats up expensive synthetic oil. Be prepared to pay...

During the summer, the car started making loud noises when I started moving in first gear. Turns out someone bumped the car from the rear while parallel parking and pushed the exhaust slightly forward, causing it to vibrate against the firewall. The exhaust was readjusted under warranty.

Also, the brakes will squeal when feathered. Apparently, this is an issue with almost all BMW 3 series, but especially the M3s. This is caused by the break pad vibrating against the calipers. There is some type of anti-vibration gel you can use on the back side of the pads, but I don't want to spend the money to get it installed. Indeed, the service manager recommended against it. Either way, the problem went away as the weather got cooler.

The stock stereo in the M3 sucks. There's no way around it. The head unit's okay, but the amplifier is anemic and the speakers sub-par. I ripped out all the speakers and replaced them with ADS 346s. The amplifier was replaced with a pair of JL Audio 400/3 and 500/1. The new sub consisted of an enclosed area with a 10W6 firing through the ski-pass. I have less trunk space now, but much better sound.

Another complaint... Earlier in September, the car started squeaking whenever I hit the brake or turned the wheel. Apparently, a rubber piece in the front suspension dried out and needed to be re-lubricated. This was fixed under warranty, but I don't know what it would entail once warranty runs out--I was told this operation is a pain to perform.

On the plus side, all the BU girls coming back to school absolutely love the car. Even girls who are very anti-materialistic--you know, the type that goes nuts over crap like Daniel Quinn's Ishmael or Howard Zinn's A People's History of the United States (a better book would be Milton Friedman's A Monetary History of the United States, but I digress...)--go nuts over the car. What can I say? I'm not complaining.

Amount Paid (US$): 56,600
Condition: New
Model Year: 2002
Model and Options: M3 Cabriolet