It’s the year 2011 now but my 2004 brownish-looking BMW 523i sedan simply drives people crazy, never mind the sneaky little fact that I got it at a cash discount of R131 117 (about $18, 731). Nobody knows that but me and the car dealers though, so I have everybody going on and on about how I simply have a whole lot of money.
I could never afford a brand new 2011 model BMW, but I reckon even a BMW of seven years ago is better than most 2011 models of other car makes and this notion of mine was proven twice. The first time was when I was at work and had my 2004 BMW 523i parked right next to a 2011 Nissan Micra. Everybody was telling me how good my car looks and said nothing about he car next to it. On another occasion I was parked next to a 2011 Volvo and still got more of the same overshadowing presence that came with what people thought.
The Drive
As with all older, used cars, it is always wise to take it for a test drive before one actually completes the purchase and that is exactly what I planned to do, but the dealers wouldn’t let me as they said they have a new policy in place to let buyers
return problematic cars within fourteen days after purchase, since they have had many problems lately with armed thefts during supposed test drives.
So, the first time I drove my new baby was after I had paid for it and was taking it home. My smile grew bigger and bigger the further away I drove from the dealership as it was certainly nothing like I had ever experienced before. I killed two birds with one stone by taking the freeway as I wanted to get home quite quickly to read the manual and get better acquainted with the car, but it also gave me the opportunity to put my foot down on the accelerator and see what this baby can really do.
It is a Steptronic so I found it rather over elaborate to try and drive it in manual mode as the absence of a clutch to step on takes the “manual” out of manual driving, so I drive it in auto-mode to this very day.
I have owned two BMW cars before this one, a 1994 316i and a 1999 323i Steptronic, so naturally I had some expectations of a newer model and I wasn’t at all disappointed.
Comfort and luxury have always been the order of the day and this time around it was no different, better in fact.