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What follows are my reviews of current and upcoming BMWs...
Why should you care? I dunno. But read on anyways... Thanks!

(Click on any thumbnail to see a larger picture)

First Look: The E46 M3 (Written March 2000)
Admittedly, I was a bit tepid after seeing the first pics of the E46 M3 (Silver is not one of my favorite colors), but after seeing this awesome, "give'm-a-ticket-just-because" yellow M3, I can only say: "Wow!" ...I can only imagine how stunning it must look in red... The details:
Exterior: Essentially the same as the E46 coupe, but with several Motorsport details: A more aggressive front spoiler similar to the M5's; A tiny lip spoiler on the trunk lid, again like the M5; Sculpted side mirrors; Vents on the either side of the front fenders, like the Z3 and Z8; and the subtle, but much-discussed bulge on the hood. Overall, the mods are very subtle, but this definitely is an M-car... And very, very nice... On the down side, the body molding, like the standard coupe, is body colored... Ugh... Too aftermarket and/or Japanese...
Interior: No information here, but expect the luxury to be raised a notch from the E46 coupe...
Mechanicals: For the European model: Six cylinder, 24-valve iron block, aluminum head, double VANOS valve timing, roller valve rockers, 3.2 liters, 343bhp (Yow! That's over 105bhp per liter!) at 7900 rpm; Torque is 269 lb-ft at 4900 rpm... Acceleration from 0-100 kph (62.1 mph) is 5.2 seconds... As in the previous (e36) M3, I would expect the U.S. model will have less power, around 270bhp... The ventilated disc brakes are up about one inch over the coupe: 12.79 inches front, 12.83 inches rear... The huge 18-inch alloy wheels have 225/40 (front) and 355/40 (rear) Michelin Pilot Sport tires (No crappy MXV4s here!)... Finally, the Motorsport-tuned suspension is recalibrated and lowered another 0.6 inches... Looks like the M3 is ready to defend its Road & Track "Best Handling Car Over $30K" title...
Other: From the front, it looks like the M3 has pop out headlight washers and in the rear view, it appears that it has the ultrasonic back up sensors integrated in to the rear bumper... Both are unnecessary gimmicks, in my opinion... Let's hope all of this junk are options... The price?? Well, that's the scary thing... Rumor has the European model at $50K and above... I would expect the U.S. model to be in the $40K range (before dealer gouging)... Finally, BMW plans to offer a "Lightweight" version, which will undoubtedly have sub-5 second 0-60 mph times... Time to take out a second mortgage on the house, then camp out at the local dealer...

V8 M Power: The E39 M5 -- Coming soon!

The Millennium Starts Here: The E46 Coupe (Written March 1999)
The January 1999 issue of BMWCar magazine, which I picked up for $7.95 (Well, the cars aren't cheap, why should the magazine be any different?) and it had the first pictures of the new E46 coupe, due to be released sometime in late 1999/early2000... After reading the magazine preview and scrutinizing the pics, here are my preliminary observations... Note: there were few interior shots (I'd expect it to be the same as the sedan), so my review is limited to the exterior of the car:
Body Profile: Like the sedan, not very much is different from the previous model. But like the E36 coupe, the E46 coupe doesn't share a single body panel with its E46 sedan sister. Many, including myself, have always liked/loved the E36 profile, so this new design isn't a shock to the system. For those expecting otherwise, sorry!
Body Trim: The metallic blue coupe shown reveals that essentially EVERYTHING is metallic blue, including the trim. UGH!! This is a BMW, not a Lexus or Acura! It looks very much like an aftermarket detail job. The body molding and detail trim on the bumpers should be black, to highlight the lines of the car. Without the trim, the front and rear bumpers look big and bulky. The window trim is once again chrome (at least on the 328), like on the E21 and E30 models, and not very fitting for a sport model: Black is definitely the choice here. The fuel door doesn't have a finger notch, so I would speculate that there's some kinda interior mechanism to release the door. Nice, but not particularly necessary. Finally, there doesn't appear to be any keyholes for the door locks, so it must be remotely controlled. Good for anti-theft, bad if your remote's battery is dead. Also, there's been stories about hackers being able to break into keyless systems with a PalmPilot. Ahh, the wonders of technology...
Mirrors: Not very interesting at all, particularly with the lengthwise bulge at the base, where the mirror meets the door. Sorta blah. Functional? Probably. But not anywhere close to the beautiful, sculpted mirrors on the M3.
Glass: Not much different here, though the side glass appears a bit more elongated, with the familiar reverse kink at the rear pillar.
Rear: The lights are much like those of the E46 sedan, with the odd L-shaped pattern (I guess this was done to differentiate it from the E36 models). The heavy-looking rear bumpers have a blacked-out lower rear valance, which was a nice detail that should've been applied elsewhere. There are rear-mounted foglights integrated into the bumpers. I've seen a number of cars with those mounted next to the exhaust pipe (Porsches particularly) and I'm still not convinced of their functionality.
Front: The chrome trim surrounding the kidney grille seems excessively large and isn't a favorite detail of mine, nor are the chromed vertical slits in the grille (again, this is a BMW, not a Jag!). Neither was the decision to make the grille part of the hood (very Benz-like). The nice, double-scalloped headlights of the E46 sedan show up as a single-scalloped headlights on the coupe -- A slight detail difference. Necessary? I don't think so. The lower portion of the bumper/airdam is the most radical detail on the car: It's big and wide, like the maw of a great white shark. It's quite aggressive looking, but the round, bullet-like foglights look like add-ons (PIAAs come to mind), spoiling some of the impact.
Other: It appears that the "iS" designation is no more. The magazine text indicates that the coupes will be badged "Ci," thus 323Ci and 328Ci. I've always liked the "iS" designation. Always have. Does this mean the convertible will be a 328Cic?? Weird!
Summing up: Sadly, The new design isn't particularly awe-inspiring or impressive. But the design is new, and to many, that's enough. Also, it pretty much goes without saying that the bimmer's mechanicals and dynamics are going to be unbeatable. To me, that's the real bottom line (though I wouldn't want my car to look like a Pacer either). Right now, I think I'd lean toward the 323i sedan (red, of course) with the sports package...

Replacing a Winner: The E46 Sedan (Written February 1999)
Well, numerous magazines have reviewed the E46 sedan (BMWCar, Roundel, Autoweek, Car and Driver, and Road & Track - I know: I've got 'em all!) since its introduction in the spring of '98 to its appearance in showrooms at local dealers. And it's pretty much a hands down winner: Mercedes, Audi, Volvo, Acura, Lexus, Saab, et al, are once again left scratching their heads as the sports sedan outlaps them again. Why? Because among other things,"Driving is not about gadgets" (hmm, where have I heard that before?). Let's take an in-depth look at this quintessential sports sedan:
Interior: There's more interior room due to the wider body, though I didn't have any space problems with the previous models. More airbags have been added for additional safety: After a crash, you'll think you're inside a jet-puff marshmallow -- And darn glad of it... From the interior photos, but it appears that the large glovebox from the old E30 design has been thankfully brought back. The E36 glovebox is pitifully small... The European three-spoke steering wheel (with airbag) might show up here... Let's hope so... The dashboard is also somewhat of a return to the E30 design, with a instrument cluster bulge leading to a flat center and passenger area. There's been a lot of carping concerning BMW's interior trim, so now they're offering various colors and accents to mollify the whiners. Basic black is fine: I don't ever recall anyone complaining about the basic black interior of a Porsche 911... In regards to climate control, it appears that BMW has wised up and gone back to the single A/C control approach. The E36's dual-zone A/C was overly complicated and never worked very well.
Exterior: Up front, there are nicely scalloped headlight cutouts, which add an serious, aggressive look to the car. The car is taller by about an inch for more headroom supposedly, but I'm 6'-1" and didn't have any problems with the E30 and E36 designs. It appears that the side window trim has fallen back to the chrome of past 3-series, but the black trim is better... Chrome also appears on the vertical slits of the more-protruding grille... This is a Bimmer, not a Jag! Speaking of the grille, it is now part of the hood, like the Z3 and new E39 5-series... Reminds me of a (gulp!) Benz... The foglights are well integrated into the front air dam. Will they be easy (and cheap) to replace? The body design is not that much different from the E36... The silver (shown above) paint is okay, but the red looks stunning...
Mechanicals: Along with its wider body is a wider track and aluminum suspension parts, which will undoubtedly improve its already nonpareil handling (though some reviews have pointed out that its handling has become "softer" -- oh no!). The disc brakes, front and rear, are larger, with a claimed 10% shorter stopping distance than the E36 model (which was already one of the best). The steering is now three turns lock-to-lock (vs. 3.5) and should improve the cars steering response and maneuverability... The engine is now aluminum with double VANOS valve timing, making a good thing even better... Structurally, more high strength steel has been used to increase the car's torsional stiffness 50-60%... Good for handling and safety... Despite all this cool lightweight stuff, the car is 3-5% heavier (ohhh), mainly 'cause it got bigger overall... And we know bigger doesn't necessarily mean better or safer... Look at the Titanic... New gimmick (?): BMW's Cornering Brake Control (CBC). It's supposed to help handling... Let's hope it doesn't end up like Mazda's and/or Honda's 4-wheel steering boondoggle. As for tires, BMW, for some odd reason, put those awful M+S tires on most of the E36s (except the M3 and sport packages)... Yeech! My E30s had Pirelli P6s or Goodyear NCTs -- PERFORMANCE tires... Let's hope BMW goes back to that trend... Similarly, BMW seems to have trouble staying with a good, clean wheel design... The seven-spoke E46 wheels are only okay... A plain, rather blah design. Five-spoke wheels would've been nicer...
Gadgets 'n' Gimmicks: To keep up with the Japanese car doohickey-fest, BMW has begun to include their profit-margin boosting gadgets. Where do ya start?? How about center arm rests? I never liked 'em -- They're for minivans, boats and lounge chairs. Cup holders?? Much discussed and not required... You should never drink and drive... OR drink while driving... An overabundance of automatic features as well: various memory modes for central locking, seats, lights, A/C and automatic moisture detecting wipers (Sheesh, how tough can it be to turn on your wipers??) Parking distance control, like that offered on the 7-series; Multifunction steering wheel (radio controls, telephone, etc.)... Is the horn button still there?? Hopefully, these gadgets will be offered as options (although dealers make it a habit of loading up the cars with this junk). More performance add-ons, not gadgets!
Other: Well, any price increase is bad... How can I pay my mortgage AND buy an E46? And they have raised the price somewhat... Let's hope for a 2002 in 2002!! The reliability and finish have been much debated... The initial E36s had numerous fit and finish problems (especially that gol' durn glovebox!)... We'll wait and see...