Today the BMW car club of British Columbia, Canada had their annual drive to Harrison Hot Springs - a location roughly 110 km away from the city - for a buffet lunch.
The drive entailed a mixture of highway driving on the main east-west highway called aptly, Highway 1, followed by a short turn off on Highway 11 heading north, then a small single lane country highway the rest of the way.
This presented the first opportunity for me to do any protracted highway driving with overtaking opportunities with my wife and child in the car. As a lead up, I worked to install my ground wires prior to this trip so I could test and be happy with all the heel and toeing I was looking forward to.
First off, the BT on the highway is simply a joy. I can hardly believe a car of this performance existed some 16 years ago! We travelled as a car club in a convoy to the location. Using the traffic in front of me as early radar detectors, I was able to test the highway acceleration of the car under a variety of circumstances. The acceleration from a cruise speed is exceptional.. more power is just a downshift away. The engine generates speed in such a way that one has to be careful above redlining unawares.
Suffice it to say that the ride was comfortable and never once did I feel out of touch or out of place (well, once I did brake in the middle of a corner and upset the chassis but that was my fault...). When a passing window opened up I simply accelerated. Wide open throttle would yield such large distance gaps in a space of about 3 to 4 seconds that I was in disbelief at how fast I was going. For Europeans, please bear in mind that North Americans do not have the freedom to exceed 120 km/h in most of the places we drive. However, I was easily cruising at 120 km/h and hitting peak speeds of 170 km/h on one brief occasion.
It doesn't look that fast looking out the windshield but when I look in the rear view mirror and see the car I have overtaken is more than a city block behind in the span of a few short seconds, it's quite a revelation. I have driven cars that have been all out, faster than the B10 Bi-Turbo. I haven't driven a car that goes that fast without the usual drama associated with speed.
It was also raining in places. Yet the car was so composed that I did not feel the ASC kick in even once. It is simply quite inspiring to drive. The car is inviting, engaging, she talks to me and seduces me with her performance. Even my wife, who is prone to car sickness in jerky sports cars had a fun relaxed outing throughout the drive to and from the springs.
As a car enthusiast, it is simply so rewarding to drive car which responds so well and communicates to the driver it's behavior with clarity and poise.
C-J
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