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      04-17-2006, 05:02 PM   #1
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Arrow "Two Paths": 10 facts about E92 Coupe

Here you go:

1. BMW designers first introduced designs of 2dr 3er sedans/coupes. The 6er was in its FEP stage at that moment and with the revival of 6-series BMW chose to label their coupes with even numbers. Which when all were in market would start from 2er, 4er, 6er and 8er (up in the air but still a creative idea of being revived). The E92 would have been known as 4er.

2. BMW design director then suggested "two paths": altering the product plan so that the 4er could be slotted in the product range - between 3er and 5er. Designers then started working to differ key details such as the front end and the rear end of the cars - under the approval of the Design director and the BMW Board of Directors (BoD).

3. After the final designs had been made in 1:1 scale clay models the BMW BoD decided the E92 would definitely be badged 4er Coupe, not 3er Coupe. This decision was made on the eve of the Frankfurt IAA unveiling of the 6er and X3 in September 2003.

4. Internally the design development was called "Projekt MB" - not because of the greatest rival of Stuttgart but because of the svelte lines and curves interplay with a beautiful design - that have something in common with Monica Bellucci.

5. The E92 has been to hell and back: testing took place in Sweden, Arizona, California, Tokyo, France, South Africa, Wales, Germany and the Nurburgring. A world famous road in Scotland UK was utilised - the road is very popular with speeding celebrities. Jay kay of Jamouraqui lost his licence there due to exceeding the speed limits. The promo movie shoot for the E92 launch was also shot here.

6. Marketing analysis showed due to huge brand equity the 4er would not suffice to replace the M3, so the 4er was rebadged back to the 3er (BoD outvoted the 4er idea by a margin) - also slightly altering the product plan again.

7. The new N54 bi-turbo engine presentation was such a tremendous success: with its superior economy, and the right quality of power for a dynamic car, that the BMW BoD insisted on the spot to develop further sizes (I4, V8 & V12) of turbo-charged engines for future BMW cars.

8. The chassis design differs a lot from the sedan and is much stiffer thanks to a bulkhead located behind the rear passenger area - which contributes to greater rigidity. The areodynamic set up is different from the sedan - especially the flow under the car. Wind noise is all but extinct and the Logic 7 sound system can be heard at low levels in excess wind.

9. Although the 3er coupe might be a coupe of the 3er sedan - name wise - it is not the same car to drive. Everything has been altered to accompany the Coupe image as a stand alone model. The suspension is more tuned to be more accomodating to the performance of the car. As is the steering which is set up to offer more feel befitting a performance coupe. All this sending the message that this is not a 2dr sedan.

10. Before the end of the year the new coupe will be also offered with diesel engines - bypassing the few years it took for the E46 to be offered with diesel powered engines. Diesel powerd 3er Coupes are a great success in Europe. xDrive will be offered as well.

Last edited by EnI; 04-17-2006 at 06:27 PM..
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      04-17-2006, 05:05 PM   #2
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" mamma mia "
If E92 reaches the beauty of Monica Belluci they will sell a lot.
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      04-17-2006, 05:07 PM   #3
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Nice review. Any word whether the diesels will include the 335td?
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      04-17-2006, 05:10 PM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by stressdoc
Nice review. Any word whether the diesels will include the 335td?
It will. But 330d coming first.
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      04-17-2006, 05:15 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GregA
xDrive will be offered as well.
That's excellent! Do you know if xDrive will be offerred at introduction or later in the production cycle?
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      04-17-2006, 05:33 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BKsBimmer
That's excellent! Do you know if xDrive will be offerred at introduction or later in the production cycle?
xDrive will come first as 330xd, later (scheduled for year 2007) also in cars with I6 petrol engines.
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      04-17-2006, 05:40 PM   #7
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so what does this all mean? i sorta dont get it!! what are the diffrent models coming out for ci? (328,330, and 335, or 328 and 335). how much wokuld the lowest model cost in dollers?
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      04-17-2006, 05:43 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by romeo26
so what does this all mean? i sorta dont get it!! what are the diffrent models coming out for ci? (328,330, and 335, or 328 and 335). how much wokuld the lowest model cost in dollers?
The "Ci" designation has been dropped.
They'll all just say "i' from now on.
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      04-17-2006, 05:46 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by romeo26
so what does this all mean? i sorta dont get it!! what are the diffrent models coming out for ci? (328,330, and 335, or 328 and 335). how much wokuld the lowest model cost in dollers?
Don't know yet exactly what US market will get. Please discuss the speculations in this thread:

http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=12057
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      04-17-2006, 06:36 PM   #10
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Monica Bullucci, inspiration or distraction? I wonder what the start up screens in Munich E92 engineering depts were like...
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      04-17-2006, 06:50 PM   #11
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Greg did your location change from New York/München to München recently?

How long are you in München for?
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      04-17-2006, 07:18 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JSpira
Greg did your location change from New York/München to München recently?
He sure does get around, doesn't he?
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      04-17-2006, 07:53 PM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RichReg
He sure does get around, doesn't he?
Yeah in that awesome M3 of his

Thanks for the info, man.

-Brett
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      04-17-2006, 07:55 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JSpira
Greg did your location change from New York/München to München recently?

How long are you in München for?
Oh, just a stupid mistake. I was changing my title to "Secret Agent" and decided to rewrite "NYC" to "New York City" - I managed to delete "NYC" and forget to write down "New York City".

I'm in Big Apple right now, heading to Muenchen again next month. To Knorrstrasse 147, of course. For a week. And then back to NYC, and so on ...

PS: I use my M3 while in NYC - when not using cabs or subway. In Munich I usually take rental new Ford Focus 1.6 TDCi. Nice car.

Last edited by EnI; 04-17-2006 at 08:25 PM..
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      04-17-2006, 07:59 PM   #15
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Hi, what does all this mean for the hardtop convertible...328 and 335?
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      04-17-2006, 08:45 PM   #16
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Cool. Thanks for the info. What's FEP?

I might just have to skip the E90 and get the E92 now. I love it! Projekt MB. My E30's name is Monica.

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      04-17-2006, 09:09 PM   #17
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so from what I can gather, the e92 was set in production as a different car than the e90? So does that mean the coupe will no longer be a silly less practical version of the 4-door? Until now the 3-coupe has always been a sedan with longer front doors, no back doors, and a sexier roofline - but that is it. Now the 3-coupe (meant to be a different model) is going to be unique?

Maybe the 3-coupe will go the way of the G35 coupe and be much different sharing only the wheelbase. I think I would like this idea because until now I thought buying a coupe was pretty ridiculous because it offered not much else besides impracticallity and subjectively better looks. Unless of course you bought the M3. The three series was built as a four door car. Making a 2-door version always seemed kinda silly from a fundemental point of view.

Maybe the 3-coupe and 3-sedan will be similar in the way that the 5 series and 6 series are. In the e36 and e46 era the coupe and sedan were basically a toss up because they had pretty much same seeting space, just different looks and entrances. However choosing between the 6 and 5 series requires MUCH more thinking as they are much different cars (despite being about the same size/price)
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      04-17-2006, 09:24 PM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ynotony
so from what I can gather, the e92 was set in production as a different car than the e90? So does that mean the coupe will no longer be a silly less practical version of the 4-door? Until now the 3-coupe has always been a sedan with longer front doors, no back doors, and a sexier roofline - but that is it. Now the 3-coupe (meant to be a different model) is going to be unique?

Maybe the 3-coupe will go the way of the G35 coupe and be much different sharing only the wheelbase. I think I would like this idea because until now I thought buying a coupe was pretty ridiculous because it offered not much else besides impracticallity and subjectively better looks. Unless of course you bought the M3. The three series was built as a four door car. Making a 2-door version always seemed kinda silly from a fundemental point of view.

Maybe the 3-coupe and 3-sedan will be similar in the way that the 5 series and 6 series are. In the e36 and e46 era the coupe and sedan were basically a toss up because they had pretty much same seeting space, just different looks and entrances. However choosing between the 6 and 5 series requires MUCH more thinking as they are much different cars (despite being about the same size/price)
You've got it quite well. It's exactly what is happening: the E92 character is very different to the one of E90 - E92 being much more sporty & performance oriented. While the styling is different, the shape of E92 is still resembles 2dr sedan form - not being mini GT / mini 6er. Yet having the 6er's character. A perfect combination.

Quote:
Cool. Thanks for the info. What's FEP?
FEP stages are a final part of a development process of a vehicle. FEP is consisted of 3 sub-phases:
FEP1 = final engineering pilot
FEP2 = final evaluation pilot
FEP3 = final evaluation production
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      04-17-2006, 09:30 PM   #19
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GregA
Oh, just a stupid mistake. I was changing my title to "Secret Agent" and decided to rewrite "NYC" to "New York City" - I managed to delete "NYC" and forget to write down "New York City".

I'm in Big Apple right now, heading to Muenchen again next month. To Knorrstrasse 147, of course. For a week. And then back to NYC, and so on ...

PS: I use my M3 while in NYC - when not using cabs or subway. In Munich I usually take rental new Ford Focus 1.6 TDCi. Nice car.
Ah. The life of a secret agent. Typos will expose your identity.

I am going back to München next month also. Probably from the 17th thru the 24 - with a trip back to Vienna in the middle for two days.
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      04-17-2006, 10:51 PM   #20
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First post question

Greg, nice read - all great info. I'm holding out buying one 'til they sort the new tranny. My question: you said there was a new bulkhead behind the passenger compartment. Will there still be folding rear seats?
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      04-18-2006, 01:02 AM   #21
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BartE92
Greg, nice read - all great info. I'm holding out buying one 'til they sort the new tranny. My question: you said there was a new bulkhead behind the passenger compartment. Will there still be folding rear seats?
My guess from this 2+2 configuration and the addition of a "bulkhead located behind the rear passenger area" is that the rear seats won't be folding.
Greg, do you have any info on the rear seating area?

Pic from Greg's post: http://www.e90post.com/forums/showpo...&postcount=490
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      04-18-2006, 06:10 AM   #22
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 3aficionado
Greg, do you have any info on the rear seating area?
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