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Ashok
2002 E39 Carbonblack/Caramel M5 (best car I ever owned)
2005 E60 Blue Onyx/Caramel/Light Figured Ash M5 (worst car I ever owned)
2007 E90 Montego Blue/Black Alpina D3 (sublime) Let me tell you what SMG stands for...
I have to agree 110%. On every new car they have launched since last 5 years, they have been late or problems on logistics. For instance in UK:
E46 M3 (2001) - engine, 19" wheels not available immediately
E46 M3 CSL (2003) - delay in launch, wrong xenons fitted, wrong wheels fitted to car
E60 M5 (200???) - delay in 1st delivery, delay in second, lack of information/communication
Maybe BMW develops superb products but getting them onto the market is absolutely awful and in my company I work for - we probably see no bonuses paid for such customer fiascos. But the brand is so strong that it probably can shield this - I for sure we go non-BMW next.
1) Well then u had to choose for Audi next time, and u will notice that is worst than BMW in all aspect, not only in delay.
2) What do u rather want to:
- have your car now with an engine that will propably be damaged due to the oil pump?
- wait 1-2 monthes more and this problem resolved?????
Does your mother never told u to be patient in life? u act like if u just wanted to have your toy right now, just to say u have it, to play with it 10 days after that to put it in your garage and don't touch anymore.
You can't complain about BMW HQ's attitude. They delayed the deliveries to give a finished product, if you don't understand this, that's sad.
It's not so simple Sank. The problem is lack of communication. There have countless delays above and beyond the "promised" delivery dates which really annoys me.
The development time for the car has been far too long given that the M5 was meant to have been developed from day 1 alongside the whole E60 project. BMW showed the concept M5 in Geneva in March 2004 and the road cars should have been with us a year later.
It's just another mess like the CSL fiasco. We are buying the cars because of they are superior products, the rest of the BMW experience has been very poor. They just don't care about the customer like they should.
ah, you are missing the bigger picture my friend. remember- all is relative and it has nothing to do with me. or you. but it has to do with "us". we dont know much about how the bmw products are created, or how the audis, merc and even skodas for all i care are born. we are ignorant. but what we do know is that the other players set their consumer expectations and then - they deliver. on time. like clockwork. plain and simple. yes, it just happens that i am a sucker for the bmw car-building philosophy and i like their finished products. but that does not mean that i am not also a businessman that sees how things are done at the other camps and compares. the lack of staffing is not an excuse. bmw has enough money to size up its departments as they see fit. if they think they can keep up with the competition by employing say only one engineer- so be it. however, i expect that engineer to establish a deadline and deliver. on time. every time. i'd rather have a deadline in 1 year than in 2 months and get it bumped 6 times- get my drift? porsche for example are even smaller. yet, they deliver like clockwork and it is always known when their new cars will be out.
all i am saying is that people get in trouble for managing customer expectations the way bmw does. thats all.
... and lastly- i am far for complaining- i am just observing and sharing. i have plenty of opportunities to play with car-toys and i am not "itching" for the m5. i would love to have it as a daily driver (which will hopefully happen some time this year), but i am way past the "gotta have it" stage in life
also, just a gut feeling, i am not sure we've heard the last on the delays (especially for the us) from bmw. i hope i am wrong.
The development time for the car has been far too long given that the M5 was meant to have been developed from day 1 alongside the whole E60 project. BMW showed the concept M5 in Geneva in March 2004 and the road cars should have been with us a year later.
For me, this hits dead center. We saw M5 development mules at almost the exact same time as the E60 mules, and BMW made no secret of the fact that the M5 was being developed at the same time. I think even the regular E60 shows that.
Beyond that, had BMW not had delay after delay, the cars would be released worldwide by now, and I would probably have not had so much time to think about SMG, and have it anyway.
I think the mistake, which the M group is responsible for, is they spend so long releasing the "perfect" car. I think it would have made much more sense to release the car without every single bell and whistle, and then add upgrades and updates to the car over the lifetime of the model. Instead, they release a car with ALOT of new technology, and go figure, they are having issues from it. What changes/updates did the E39 get? Or the E46? Not much.
First, I suspect that the longer gestation of the M models compared to Mercedes and other competitors is due to the very aspect we all laud and expect -- the completeness of the car in the categories of power AND handling. New AMG models stream out of Merc's doors because it doesn't take too much thought, testing or refinement to slap an existing hugely-powerful engine onto an existing frame and gussy it up with bigger wheels, tires and a thicker anti-sway bar. This is exactly the approach for which Mercedes has been criticized here and elsewhere, and it is exactly BMW's dedication to all-around performance that makes us prefer its products.
Second, I believe that BMW has met its publicly announced release targets for the new M5. We tend to quickly forget that much of what is discussed here is the product of rumor and alleged "inside" information. We then hold BMW to the plans it allegedy made but to which it never committed. BMW NA has said for months that it expects the M5 to become available in the US "in late 2005." All indications are that we still are on track.
Third, I would prefer not to have BMW make upgrades to the car every few months. If I am going to pay over $80,000 for the car, I don't want it to lack some feature that becomes available a week after mine is built. Not only would that be annoying, but it would hurt resale values. So, in sum, while I agree that the waiting is frustrating, the benefit of the wait, presumably, is a well-sorted car with as few flaws as possible given the amount of new technology.
Where I do agree is that BMW could accomplish much with better communication. Although it cannot be held to assumptions made on internet forums regarding release times, the company must recognize that the flow of information (and disinformation) is much more rampant now than it was just five years ago. It also should recognize that it is catering to an enthusiast base that is spending tremendous sums on its products. It can engender more loyalty and much more satisfaction with more information delivered more timely.
I have to agree 110%. On every new car they have launched since last 5 years, they have been late or problems on logistics. For instance in UK:
E46 M3 (2001) - engine, 19" wheels not available immediately
E46 M3 CSL (2003) - delay in launch, wrong xenons fitted, wrong wheels fitted to car
E60 M5 (200???) - delay in 1st delivery, delay in second, lack of information/communication
Maybe BMW develops superb products but getting them onto the market is absolutely awful and in my company I work for - we probably see no bonuses paid for such customer fiascos. But the brand is so strong that it probably can shield this - I for sure we go non-BMW next.
Are you telling me that NO OTHER car company i.e. MB, Porsche, Ferrari, Audi, etc. has delayed or been late in production delivery???
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