F80 ZCP Delivery and OCMD Photoshoot - Mineral White - S/O Full - 6MT

[Verbiage]

Hi everyone!

It’s been a while since I posted here (and a while since I took delivery of my M3), but I wished to share my experience and some special photographs for you all that were taken last month in Ocean City, MD. I apologize in advance for the rant, but there is quite a story behind this car – plus, I promised my amazing Client Advisor that I would tell you all about my experience. Here’s a picture of him and I with the car. Photoshoot pictures are at the end of the post. (Also: special thanks to George, one of my best buddies, for accompanying me and taking pictures of all the important stuff while we were at the dealership -- including this one; I was too caught up in the moment of things to take many of my own. )



I sold my 2007 E90 335i to a good friend of mine back in 2014, and have been out of a BMW ever since – actually I suppose I partially own one, as my daily driver is a 2011 Mini Cooper S Clubman – but either way as 2016 wound down, I felt the urge to re-enter the arena. In October 2016 I fell in love with, and began a fervent search for, an F80 30 Jahre edition. I was in love with the combination of heritage and Individual aspects it possessed, and located two cars; one in my home state of Maryland, and the other in Pennsylvania. My first preference has always been a 6MT, and although both cars were DCT I was willing to consider them because they were 30 Jahre cars; a 6MT 30 Jahre was proving impossible to locate. After seeing that the Maryland dealership (which was also my local dealer – BMW of Silver Spring) had marked up the vehicle by around $6,000, I decided to investigate the dealership in PA (Otto’s BMW). I spoke to a wonderful young lady by the name of Cristina Acosta who advised that the car was still for sale (without a markup), but that another gentleman had placed a deposit hold on the vehicle because he was coming in to contemplate purchasing it. I don’t ever recall wishing so much that a deal would fall through, but alas, I got an email from Cristina stating that the 30 Jahre had been officially sold later that evening.

Of course, as each setback is a setup for a comeback, I immediately saw this as an opportunity to get a car specified to my own tastes – mainly, with a manual transmission as was initially desired. Because Cristina had also provided me such stellar service and correspondence, I decided against using my local dealership and instead sent my build specifications to her in an email, requesting to perform the transaction through Otto’s. She connected me with Client Advisor Ian Martin, who ended up being one of the most stand-up gentlemen I’ve ever met. The entire process went ridiculously smoothly, and he checked and triple-checked every part of the build process, even ensuring that I had an F80 build slot allocation so we could get the car built before the end of the year.

My car is a MY 2017 build (went into production October 2016), so some options have changed slightly for later 2017 and 2018 MY’s. My car is one of the special/weird F80 LCI I’s that received the rear LED tails but retained the non-smoked LED headlamps (I think it was only around a 5-6 month production run, or something); I actually prefer the ones I have, given the combination of color options on my car. However, my final specifications were as follows:

Mineral White Metallic
Sakhir Orange/Black Full Merino Leather
Carbon Fiber Interior Trim with Black Chrome highlight
Competition Package
Executive Package
Lighting Package
Manual Transmission

My reasons behind the spec were to keep a purist approach, and I chose to add the full leather because I feel it adds a sporty, luxurious dynamic to the interior (it also is apparently relatively uncommon to see on M3’s); the contrast stitching is truly beautiful in person, and the additional leather on the glovebox compartment and dashboard are very aesthetically pleasing. I decided against an Individual interior, since I think most of us can agree that fewer interior trims fit a color like Mineral White better than Sakhir Orange. The only options not included were carbon ceramics (which I have no need for), DCT, and the driver’s assistance package; a manual transmission is the only driver assist I require.
After approximately two months involving many emails and text messages exchanged with Ian (from the time my build was submitted), and tracking the ship that left from Germany for the United States, the car finally arrived on December 9th, 2016. Here’s the picture Ian sent me the night before the journey. Anticipation, much?



I had arranged for a trip via train with George from Washington, D.C. to Wilmington, DE (the closest station to West Chester, PA, where Otto’s BMW is located) and I genuinely don’t recall a colder day, that year! We had to take two trains to reach Wilmington, and when we got there we met with Ian (who happened to be in a brand new 5-series; what a supple ride it had!) who took us to the dealership. Upon arrival, I actually spotted the car outside. I only glanced at it quickly, refusing to take it in fully until its formal reveal. After paperwork was finished, I watched it being backed into one of the observation/client delivery bays that Otto’s has – which are extremely well-lit and spacious. The exhaust is LOUD. Funnily enough, there was a gentleman in the bay next to mine picking up a black F80 ZCP. Was pretty cool to see, since I actually don’t see many ZCP’s on the road, despite them having been out for a few years.





I was introduced to my BMW genius (there would be no second delivery/Encore visit for the Genius rundown since I was traveling in from out of state) who ran through many of the features of the car and adjusted the Harmon Kardon settings, among other things. What blew me away initially was just how driver-oriented the interior was. The shift throw was soft, but slid into gear beautifully and was extremely short, for a stock manual transmission. Clutch uptake was also quite short, and I will admit that during the first part of my time with the car, starting from first gear created a bit of a stutter due to the transmission’s lightness; it really is designed for quick driving! I am very used to the Mini’s manual gearbox, which is quite different (no worries, I didn’t stall it driving out of the observation area – that’s all I could think about LOL). It was my first time driving the car with this transmission (I had driven another F80 earlier that year with the DCT, which is obviously also fantastic), but I genuinely can’t imagine this car with another gearbox. The drama it brings in conjunction with the power is almost meant to be.



The drive home was around 150 miles, and my buddy and I were able to appreciate and learn many things about the car. Not sure how many of you have actually seen the style 666 in person (I know there was much debate on them when I frequented the forums), but the concavity and depth of structure are surreal; definitely much better than any other OEM wheel offering from BMW, in my opinion. They also are perfect at 20”, since this is a much bigger car than it was in years past – the chassis has grown quite a bit, even from my E90. The ride (in comfort mode setting on the way home, admittedly) is quite tolerable; but then, driving a Mini Cooper S daily over all sorts of terrain would make anything else seem like a Rolls Royce. Either way, this is a performance sedan, and not a posh car to be chauffeured in. You know what you are signing up for when you get into it.

We stopped by Chipotle for lunch. Here’s the F80 in the Chipotle parking lot.



And here she is in her spot within the garage, safely home.



As I approach a year of ownership, the car has accumulated 3,360 miles. It is strictly driven once in a while and on weekends, as the weather permits. This is a car that I have desired since I was very young, and it has been an honor and a blessing to be able to own it at this stage in my life; my reasons for maintaining it as I do extend toward very personal and humble beginnings. I am planning on keeping this car for the duration of its life, and enjoying every mile placed upon it. I have had such a wonderful experience throughout all of this, and am happy to be in a BMW again. As far as the modifications go, I am planning on leaving it stock (read: drivable) other than perhaps an MPE – although the ZCP exhaust has done a fantastic job of improving it over the standard car. Just looking to enjoy the ride, at this point.

And onto the photos; this is, by far, the best I’ve seen a stock F80 look. These were shot in October of this year in a remote portion of Ocean City, Maryland. I attend a car show there once a year (H2Oi), and had been waiting for quite some time to link up with this dude. Excellent guy.



























If any of you are in the DC/MD/VA area and seeking photographs of surreal quality and post-work, definitely reach out to Arlen at AML Photography. Website is here.

Again, many thanks to Cristina and Ian at Otto’s BMW for the peerless service. Ian’s Facebook page can be found here. He has an affinity for ///M cars, so he will most certainly take care of you.

Anyway, I hope you’ve all enjoyed reading my story as much as I’ve enjoyed telling it. I’ve read plenty of stories on this site about folks taking delivery of their M3’s, and am happy to finally be able to share my own.



Marc-Anthony

[KevinM]

Nice post and photographs! And the 6MT as well.

[silvergray545]

Twins!

[Verbiage]

Originally Posted by KevinM

Nice post and photographs! And the 6MT as well.

Thank you, Kevin!

Originally Posted by silvergray545

Twins!

All the other emoticons don't have similar...emojis?

[silvergray545]

Originally Posted by Verbiage

All the other emoticons don't have similar...emojis?

Well played!

We should collab on a photoshoot. Say, at a track day?

[Mike.]

i remember that journey, thats when you liked me and sent me those pics..

[Oreganoflow]

stock looks so good. i miss it.

even stock height.

[Verbiage]

Originally Posted by silvergray545

Well played!

We should collab on a photoshoot. Say, at a track day?

We will see what can be accomplished. Haha.

Originally Posted by Mike.

i remember that journey, thats when you liked me and sent me those pics..

Mike, I miss when you used to send me your ranting videos. You should send me another.

Originally Posted by Oreganoflow

stock looks so good. i miss it.

even stock height.

I feel the exact same way. I am perfectly happy with how it came from the factory.

[Verbiage]

All: apparently Photobucket charges $400 for hosting and I was unaware of the change, since it had been years since I used it. I have swiftly since deleted my account.

My apologies if you clicked on the post and the images weren't there. I've straightened everything out.


Thanks!

[swagon]

Long time no hear from you, mate! Congrats on the whip and making your dreams come true. Enjoy it as much as you can.

[Verbiage]

Originally Posted by swagon

Long time no hear from you, mate! Congrats on the whip and making your dreams come true. Enjoy it as much as you can.

Haha, yeah I came on to post about my experience. It's only been a year. Better late than never. LOL.


Appreciate the kind words man. Hope you've been well!

[AG23]

Awesome photos. The m3 zcp looks/drives/sounds so great it really does not need mods. Enjoy your dream car.

[whoop_ass]

nice pics!!!

[Ben Overlake]

These m cars are nice but not that nice

[GERMAN M3]

Great write-up and pics! Nothing like a 6MT! In my opinion, makes you feel more connected to the car. Great color choice as well!
Congrats!

[Verbiage]

Originally Posted by AG 17

Awesome photos. The m3 zcp looks/drives/sounds so great it really does not need mods. Enjoy your dream car.

Thank you, he really did a fantastic job capturing it. I have really been enjoying it, thus far.

Originally Posted by whoop_ass

nice pics!!!

Originally Posted by Ben Overlake

These m cars are nice but not that nice

Sounds like you should have bought a Camry, or something.

Originally Posted by GERMAN M3

Great write-up and pics! Nothing like a 6MT! In my opinion, makes you feel more connected to the car. Great color choice as well!
Congrats!

Thank you very much! Definitely the only transmission, for me. I love everything about it. And the color choice I am still extremely happy with, even if it is slightly on the common side. I appreciate the kind words!

[Rhd-jon]

Enjoy.

[mike@x-ph.com]

Sick! Love that color combo

[m3rxn]

beautiful

[Verbiage]

Originally Posted by Rhd-jon

Enjoy.

Originally Posted by mike@x-ph.com

Sick! Love that color combo

Thanks Mike! Definitely a failsafe, if nothing else. Haha.

Originally Posted by m3rxn

beautiful

Thank you!

[Snapp]

I'm so in love with these pictures (cars pretty nice too hahah). Arlen really knows what he's doin. That location is just perfect I? wanna get some shots of mine there someday

[ellipsis212]

Agreed. Great write up and truly excellent photos.

My 2017 has the same combination of tails/headlights although I didn't realize it was a short production run. I wouldn't change em.