New B7's; new Bmer musings

[Dan DiBiase]

Chris, my understanding is that we'll get both the 2.0 liter I4 and the 3.1 liter V6 (same as the A6, called the 3.2 for some reason) in the US. The 200-hp 4-cylinder sounds like a nice engine. I can only imagine my car with 30 additional hp from the factory.... sweet... And I agree on the new BMW's. The 3-Series is up next, the initial pictures show that it has been mildly Bangle-ized - no 'bustle-butt' - but the crisp, taut lines are gone. Bummer. All of the reviews I've read of MMI say that it is much better than iDrive - more buttons for direct menu access, more intuitive, etc.
 
Dan D
'04 A4 1.8T q MT-6
Central NJ USA

Chris Dyer <chrisdyer at hotmail.com> wrote:
www.fourtitude.com has the exhausting details on the new b7 a4/s4 models. 
What intrigues me most is the new 2.0 FSI turbo motor...looks like a winner. 
I didn't have the patience to read all of the articles, but is that going 
into NA cars? Why not the new v6 from the a6? (marketing and price, duh!)

Also, bro-in-law just bought a new Bmer 530. I hate all the new Bmer's 
styling, and I think they've do-dadded, gee-whizzed, over-tech'ed them to 
death. I mean, they're not Bmers anymore! Anyway, I drove it and was 
thoroughly underwhelmed. The only plus was interior fit n' 
finish--excellent. But i-drive (aka i-crash-whilst-adjusting-A/C) was never 
used--screen wanted me to "accept" some legal statement. ARE YOU JOKING?!?! 
This is a CAR, not a friggin' software download. Unreal. (Is audi's a8 
system this bad?) Anyway, drove plainly, very boring, not exciting like my 
friend's 325i. More like a DeVille.

[flame suit on]