Yeah the wood in my TD is backed by aluminum, but I don't think my '80SD has anything behind the wood. I don't know, there is so much fake stuff out there that looks real that it's hard to tell. I sat in a Towncar that appeared to have wood trim on the doors. I opened the rear door's ashtray and it turned out to be brown plastic.

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1999 MB SL500 (110,000 mi)
2004 Volvo V70 2.5T (220,000 mi)
2014 Tesla Model S 85 (136,000 mi)
MBCA member

Perhaps BMW stands for

BENZ, MERCEDES? - WISH

Group,
I am a big time BMW enthusiast that just so happens to own a Benz. A 93 300E for a daily driver. I just want you to know that there are alot of unhappy BMW owners who will be jumping ship soon if they keep up this Dodge Stratus rear end stuff. So will there be salvation? I hope so, down with Chris Bangle, he's the one responsible for this disaterous styling.

This guy Chris was quoted as saying" We want to take the styling to someplace buyers don't want to go" Well I guess that would be the showroom, eh?

Matt OO=00=OO ONRAILS
89 M3 (a daring but beautiful design)
93 300E (Great inside,boring outside)

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Sold the Benz, sayin' goodbye. Thanks for all the info you guys and girls provided.


www.ownster.com

huge mistake , this car...i've seen them sitting on dealer lots , but not yet a one on the road. i cant believe anyone is paying a 'premium' to sticker on these...i expect mark downs sooner rather than later...the gadgetry intimidates , and as for the looks , it doesn't seem like form is following function anymore , which was always a strong point for both bmw and mb.
and its almost like they're trying to push us 'forward' where we dont want to go...dictating our tastes. am i taking this too seriously?
bmw styling gradually getting goofier with each generation.
take a black Z3 , looks like a shoe.
i'm not just bashing them , cause i 've liked and owned a few , too , used to walk into dealer and desire every car on floor, but not anymore.

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thanks , jago1244
current stable
2002 E430 4MATIC blk/char
2001 BMW 325CIC
1996 993 TARGA

Yeah, pretty soon they'll look like an old SAAB...
Gilly

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Click here to see the items I have up for auction at EBay

Click here to see a photo album of my '62 Sprite Project Moneypit (Now Sold)

I was thinkin the same thing. The back is horrible. It looks like they just sawed about a foot of the rear of the car.

This is my first time seeing the Z8 speedo and tachometer in the middle of the dash?
http://spiritofmunich.com/01~Z8/P0005725.jpg

The front is somewhat ugly.
Front 3/4 angles look somewhat good. (7/10)
The rear and its two 3/4's are F,UGLY.
The interior is... weird, and the wood edges were sharp! (The one I saw)
I'd rather have the 5-series that was next to it (M5) or the older 750iL (sweett car)
The choice is easy between this new 7-series and the MB S-Class

There is a kid in school who drives one. I saw it parked with an orange paper on his windshield.. (oh well.. you can afford a $100K car and can't pay a few bucks for parking...)

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2008 BMW 335i Coupe

It looks good, much better than some of the new Benz models. It is a departure from the previous models, but still in line with the M3 and M5. I think I can get used to it.

Attached Thumbnails

 

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1987 560 SEL
"A study in the Washington Post determined that women were better communicators than men, I just want to say to the authors of that study "Duh""

That is the single most butt ugly BMW I have ever seen. And to think that I actually saw a couple on the road yesterday. Not surprising since I live in Scottsdale AZ, where the money is plentiful, but unfortunately good taste is not. To think that we have come from the beauty and perfect form of the M6 to this crap is depressing. When I first saw the W210, I was hoping this wasn't a sign of things to come but just a fluke. Then comes the W220 to replace the perfect W140. Sure the 220 isn't ugly but it definetely does not look as good as the car it replaced, and neither does it have the "presence" of the previous car. Heck, at first I thought it barely looked like an MB. Sort of like a big Mazda in a way. Then I started getting worried since it meant that pretty soon I would no longer be able to buy new Benzes unless blindfolded. But hey, I thought, I still can go to BMW or Audi. But I still had hope since the A8 and A4 were perfect designs from every angle. Especially the A4 avant wagon. But then comes the A6. What were they thinking. My mother actually grabbed an overboosted A4 1.8T quattro for the times when her 500sl would't do in that regard. Then comes the new A4 and she says "no thank you, I'll keep mine." Oh well, another one goes down the drain. But we still have the A8. As far as that one, enjoy it. It is probably the last non-gimmicky, good looking Audi. And me being a long time Mercedes owner will take one in a heartbeat over a W220 on looks alone. Also being a Porsche owner, racer and all around 911 expert, thought things were still ok in Porsche camp. Then comes the 996. Not ugly, but go to the Porsche boards and everyone will agree that the 993 is a much better looking car. But when I first saw this new 7 series, I was shocked. How can one turn one of the most beautiful sedans around into the ugliest one. It is almost impossible to make it uglier. They boast about all the technical gizmos. Bull I say. If one is impressed by that, don't drive. The only time I have been seriously impressed by technical gizmos was when none were there when I last drove a 1973 Carrera RS 2.7 in anger. We all know those gizmos do take away from the driving experience. Besides the fact that in my experience, those are the first things to break every time. For me luxury is the finest materials available in large car with an excellent AC and very comfortable power seats and an excellent non-infantile sound system inside a car that looks mature. Even 11 years ago when I was 19 I had the same opinion. Who needs to go through a computer screen just to set the AC temperature. I personally find that a detriment to ease of use. To me that is not luxury. So if they are going for the youth market, they should think again. The MB 600 from the 70's, which is the epitome of class, is still considered the most luxurious car ever built and it lacks a lot of those gimmicks. If I really wanted gimmicks, I would just buy one of those tacky, pimped out Suburban/Escalade custome jobs with the stupid "I just got an NBA contract" chrome 20 inch wheels and tv's and vcr's inside. Sometimes I wonder if I can market taste in a bottle for there sure is a need for it. For me, I'll stick with the last truly good looking Benzes in the form of the 500e, W140, 90's SL's, the last good looking Porsches in the form of the Carrera RS 2.7, 89 911 speedster, 96 993 turbo, and in as far as Bimmers I'd keep the M1, any generation M3 (until they do the 7 series treatment to the lights, which those morons will do), M5's, and of course the M6 and 3.0 csl. Every time I look at Lotus now a days, I thank the fact that they have financial troubles. Because maybe if they did not, the last sports car in the world with purity of line, purity of lineage and character which is the Lotus Esprit would be prostituted in the name of the almighty dollar. With every new and uglier car that comes out I find that the Lotus Esprit and cars like the 500e just look better and better. Let me tell you guys, what you are seeing in auto design lately is the result of having a majority of new designers graduating from the same school, which is Art Center College of Design. Can you even grasp that concept if applied to art. Just think about how depressing the wolrd would be if the majority of the world's artist or even architects came out of the same school with the same faculty. In the old days, future designers started under aprenticeship at the design studios of the manufacturers themselves with no idea sharing with other companies' designers. Just look at the W140 and it is pure Mercedes. Big, heavy, vault like, imposing. A true S class. In a black, long-wheelbase version, you can almost picture some dignitary in the back seat. It almost harks back to the 600 pullman, which was Mercedes' intention when they designed it. I used to love the fact that in the early 90's recession, that car got criticism for the opulence and wealth it implied. But to me the W220 does not give me the same image. I'm sorry, but to me that car is a lot less Benz. Instead of picturing a dignitary in the back seat, all I picture is some cocky, neuveau rich professional athlete in the front seat. Of course, the NBA special, 20 inch chromes do help. So I find that BMW in their new 7 series isn't alone in degrading their product line. But again, nothing is as ugly as that monstrosity. Besides, cars can be an aful lot like sexual partners. No matter how good the experience, at some point you have to look at them.