Funny, I was thinking of resurrecting this thread in a few weeks. Since you beat me to it...
I have mixed feelings about the car.
Here's the bad:
The car has been to the dealership several times to address, to me,
absolutely unacceptable clicks/pops/creaks from various plastic interior pieces particularly as the interior is hot from sitting in sun and cools down (or when it's below freezing and warms up). These noises come from the dash trim, door panels, steering wheel trim, and center console. I often drive with the windows open and AC off, even when it's hot, just to mitigate this (turn the AC on and forget it as the temp. delta is so big the contraction happens more rapidly). The b!tch of it is I cannot drive the car any single time, ever, without one of these noises happening or me anticipating one, which detracts from the experience. Every time something clicks or pops it's like I'm being stuck with a needle.
I had to delete the Pandora app from my phone because whenever I get in the car it would open on my iPhone and I had to close it before accessing another function on the phone (including after getting out of the car). Randomly, the infotainment system would start on Pandora as well, although this was rare.
Additionally, the infotainment system has begun to randomly start on the menu screen instead of what it was on last time I drove the car (maybe 5 times it will start on the last-used function and the 6th time it will start on the menu screen despite not selecting it prior).
I've made peace with the orange peel. Not only am I used to it, talking with a body guy at the dealership put my mind at ease. He said it's normal (which I kind of knew but hearing it from him helped) and that the finish of my car was in good condition even for being new. Putting extra effort into keeping the finish clean and shiny actually makes it rather hard to notice. Some of you may have seen this recent thread (pics) where I tried out Wolfgang Deep Gloss Paint Sealant 3.0:
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php/topics/4506819/all/Best_Protection_&_Easiest_
Overall, the dealership experience has been good. They've treated me well and have even thrown in some merch. for my trouble.
Here's the good:
The powertrain is stellar. I continue to be impressed with the B58 engine and the ZF 8AT. The car is simply fast; however, you can unleash absolutely beastly acceleration if you time the throttle inputs right (I'm still learning how to consistently do that). The smoothness of the engine is very good and the sound is
phenomenal, better than an M4's engine. BMW also did a very nice job at calibrating the drive modes. The default "comfort" mode is perfectly acceptable for most driving with soft shifts and plenty of power available at will. Sport mode is great fun. It adds very noticeable weight to the steering, faster throttle response, and firmer shifts. What's more is you can use the paddles for up-shifts you can get even more firmness out of the shifts and really bang the gear changes, it's utterly thrilling. Only problem is the car can be so fast there just isn't sufficient space or time to really exploit it, it's more power than anyone 'needs'.
The driving position (coupled with the responsiveness) is very good. It's like BMW built a nice car around the driver whereas Acura built a nice car for the driver to go inside.
iDrive, to me, is very intuitive and I like how it's laid out as well as the graphics. It's miles beyond what my Acura had.
The heads-up display is fantastic. I miss it when I get into a car without one.
It looks great to me: classy, sporty, and iconic at the same time. I'm proud to drive it and proud to be seen in it.
Overall:
I can't say today whether I'll be getting another BMW in 2 more years because I've got another ~730 days or ~1,460 times of getting in the car worrying about where the next random click (that has no business existing in a car this expensive) is coming from. With that said, I can't really say I regret it because it's a nice car to look at, drive, and I've been treated pretty well by the company/dealer.
PS I always use my turn signals but I definitely understand why BMW drivers zoom around, the cars inspire confidence.