July '16 ED (Germany/Belgium) w/ SSII/Amaro Brwn F80 ZCP 6MT: 2400+ miles!

[backagain]

Originally Posted by DE Urlaub

Excellent! What is yr build and what are yr plans for yr ED? I have to hit the road by 1230 to get up north by the end of the day.

SO/Black, DCT, Executive, Drive Assistance +

Spending 2 weeks in Germany to be on the Alpine roads and meet some friends. Dropping off at Hamburg. My route is about 1,400 miles.

[DE Urlaub]

Great color combo. Nice tour. Good amount of time. I want to do the Alpine road but it won't happen this time. Will you do yr 1200 service over there?

[DE Urlaub]

Genius provided my VIN! My F80 is in the body shop with paint to follow shortly. Completion slated for Friday 6/24. Very excited!

Altho the title of my thread may imply I only plan to autobahn-cruise my M3, I intend to test the lateral capabilities too. This twisty section is just 500m from the farm where we will spend most of our trip. It is in a federal forest, so no houses thru most of it and there are some nice elevation changes too...

[backagain]

Originally Posted by DE Urlaub

Great color combo. Nice tour. Good amount of time. I want to do the Alpine road but it won't happen this time. Will you do yr 1200 service over there?

No, probably not. Just too much hassle to do it on the road, and then try to get reimbursed back home. I'll just have the dealer do it right before redelivery.

[NOLATom]

The 1200 mile service was quicker than I thought it would be. Called the nearest dealer to me in France the day before, showed up at 10 and was out by 11:20.

[MN2///M]

Originally Posted by DE Urlaub

My boys are interested in visiting Cologne. I am interested in any must-see attractions. Thanks!

I like the magnificence and artistry of old churches, so highly recommend the Cathedral. Not sure of its current state, been over 10 years since I was last there, so may want to check to see what construction/refurbishment projects may be underway.

Good luck with the autobahn. My trip was primarily back roads and the few times I hit the autobahn, I couldn't help but think they are no better now than the highways here in the US.

My longest stretch of unlimited hit portions of A7 & A96 on a run from Bayreuth to Lindau near the end of my trip. While I did get to top speed, my 220ish mile trip averaged out to 35 miles an hour according to the trip computer. With construction, traffic and poor sections of road in need of repair I found no more than 3 to 5 km at a time that I could stretch the legs on. Even when the road was good, seemed I was always pushing on some Audi or Mercedes that just did not want to let me pass....just like the US.

In comparison, my last trip to Germany just over 10 years ago I was able to run upwards of 240 KPH for long stretches on a run from Cologne to Garmisch; completed the run in right around 4 hours.

I had much more fun on back country twisties even with keeping it close to the 100 KPH speed limits.

[bob330i]

Originally Posted by MN2///M

Good luck with the autobahn. My trip was primarily back roads and the few times I hit the autobahn, I couldn't help but think they are no better now than the highways here in the US.

My trip between Munich and Fussen was fun and there were quite a few places were you could run up the speed. Once you get near the border, then it turns into mostly back roads.

The highway was super smooth and much better than in the US (I live in San Jose, CA). Also the drivers were much more well behaved.

[backagain]

Originally Posted by bob330i

My trip between Munich and Fussen was fun and there were quite a few places were you could run up the speed. Once you get near the border, then it turns into mostly back roads.

The highway was super smooth and much better than in the US (I live in San Jose, CA). Also the drivers were much more well behaved.

Don't get me started on the CA drivers. Those people hog the left most lane, refusing to move over. CA driver handbook advises people not to drive on the right most lane, so often people have to pass on the right.

[DE Urlaub]

Thanks for all of your inputs!

Our new "baby" was born on Friday ! I did my final paperwork with BMW of North Cincy (formerly Jake Sweeney - ownership/management remains the same) yesterday and the transaction could not have been smoother. No drama, no surprises! Aatir Barlas is a terrific CA to work with. He is a motor head. Truly passionate about cars and M's in particular (He is M certified). It is so refreshing to work with someone who knows more about the product than I do (rare event in my experience). BTW, this dealership was allotted 4 GTSs for their customers if that tells you anything. My experience was positive also with the Finance Manager (Nick) and the Sales Manager (Nick). Highly recommend this operation.

Friday we drive to D.C. to spend the night at a friends and leave our beloved Lab in his good hands while in EU. Saturday we fly out of Dulles on Lufthansa!

[backagain]

Originally Posted by DE Urlaub

Friday we drive to D.C. to spend the night at a friends and leave our beloved Lab in his good hands while in EU. Saturday we fly out of Dulles on Lufthansa!

Congrats! See you at Welt. Looks like now I'm 1 hour ahead of your delivery after moving my slot from afternoon to morning so that we can roam around the city after the factory tour. When you look down and see a Chinese dude dancing around a SO M3, that would be me.

Have a safe trip!

[DE Urlaub]

Great to hear. I will look for you. Would be cool to get photos of our cars together! We shall see! Safe travels to you as well!

[DE Urlaub]

Now that the dust has settled and jet lag is just a memory, here are a few photos of the ED adventure thus far. Quick recap - flew from Dulles to Frankfurt on 2 July. We like Lufthansa and feel they do a nice job, all things considered...

[DE Urlaub]

Took an ICE high speed train to Munich from a train station at the Frankfurt airport. We did this multi-step traveling because we got a smoking deal using Lufthansa Miles and More "Bargains" which restricted us to fly into and out of same airport. Since we are staying north of Frankfurt it made sense to use it as our airport. We got nearly a half price deal in points (55K vs 105K points) for business class. Another restriction to consider is that should you need to alter or cancel this bargain deal, you lose these points!!! . This is Frankfurt Airport's train station. Very convenient (easy walk from baggage claim), very impressive architecture ...

(still can't post more than one photo per posting)

[DE Urlaub]

ICE (Inter City Express - with the emphasis on EXPRESS!). Train ride was like floating on air - very smooooooth...

[DE Urlaub]

Cruising speed on the ICE ....

[DE Urlaub]

Ali met us from Sixt at the Main Train Station of Munich. BTW, this was on a Sunday and this was no problem. He ferried us to our Airbnb located within a couple miles of the Welt. Quite an opulent ride and a nice engaging fellow...

[DE Urlaub]

Had to hit a local recommended restaurant, so here is the obligatory German cuisine shot and yes it was good!....

[DE Urlaub]

Now onto the real reason we went to Germany. It was nice to meet up with a couple of other bimmer post guys picking up their M3s with their wives on Independence Day...

[DE Urlaub]

The Welt is an impressive place with other-worldly architecture...

[DE Urlaub]

[DE Urlaub]

Heading down the steps...

[DE Urlaub]

I was awe-struck by our new M3. The Silverstone Metallic really impresses me. The CF roof looks good from above...