Well I've had some fun in this the past few weeks. Decided to drive the thing down to Lake Como in Italy for a much needed holiday, given the amount of hours I'm doing at present I was really looking forward to the 5 days in an expensive hotel, but equally was looking forward to seeing how the BMW coped with what Europe could throw at it.
First stop, obviously, was the ring. On the drive there I suffered in the traffic a bit, but still managed to get to around 160mph. Guess it's not limited then...
Nurburgring by
Jason.Easton, on Flickr
Out on the 'ring it performed as you'd expect, much better than I could. It was my first time on a track with it, and I was massively impressed with the grip levels. The main issue I had (other than my own talent limits) were the brakes, they were cooked within half a lap. More annoyingly I had an issue with one of the rear heat shields, when it got hot it warped and was in contact with the disc. A poke with a screwdriver sorted it, but still annoying! Didn't ruin my time there though, and has left me wanting more track time with it. I did 5 or 6 laps in all, I didn't really time them but going by my Go Pro footage I was lapping anywhere between 9 and 10 minutes.
racetracker_3300197_46764 by
Jason.Easton, on Flickr
racetracker_3309770_46761 by
Jason.Easton, on Flickr
racetracker_3310079_46760 by
Jason.Easton, on Flickr
racetracker_3308152_46763 by
Jason.Easton, on Flickr
Next stop was Munich, probably my favourite city in Europe and I always include it in these little trips. On the route down I managed to hit 170mph, car felt stable as a rock, the only issue being wind noise through the windows! Got there fast and was still climbing too, not sure what it can hit but maybe I'll find out on another trip.
Before we left for Italy a couple of days later, there was just one stop I had to make...
IMG_5777 by
Jason.Easton, on Flickr
For the route down to Italy, I decided to do something a bit different. Normally I take the Stelvio pass, but this time thought I'd try out San Bernadino Pass instead. I was not disappointed, even if the weather was a tad misty!
San Bernadino Pass by
Jason.Easton, on Flickr
San Bernadino Pass by
Jason.Easton, on Flickr
Of course this route also meant tunnels, and I'm very glad mine is as loud as it is. My Mrs did get fed up when she was trying to sleep, mind you.
The rest of the drive was pretty familiar, and I was glad we'd pushed the boat out a little with the hotel when I saw the parking.
IMG_5804 by
Jason.Easton, on Flickr
For the route back I chose to try out the St Gotthard pass, and in particular the old cobblestone route.
IMG_6018 by
Jason.Easton, on Flickr
IMG_6017 by
Jason.Easton, on Flickr
IMG_6019 by
Jason.Easton, on Flickr
Pretty interesting little road, but I preferred the Banardino. We had a couple of nights in Cologne before coming home.
Overall, I was very impressed with the levels of refinement. This is a ten year old car with a loud exhaust, and yet even after the longest drives I felt awake and alert at the end. In my epic trip to Sicily a couple of years back, some of the 12-15 hour drives in the old Skoda were killer. Pretty sure I'd be okay in the BMW! The seemingly endless power and torque were a godsend on European Motorways, and especially on the Autobahn. Even when Dutch tourists got in my way, I was very quickly back up into 150mpg territory. And most importantly, the Mrs enjoyed it. Which is always good!