[vivalaReagan]

traded my 2007 x5 4.8 for an m235i last week.

i visited my local dealer with the plan of jumping into a new x5 but the incredible price hike and the limited supply deterred my quest. consequently, i told my sales rep that i would wait until the new model fervor died down and asked him to please keep me posted on inventory and discounts. as i was walking back to my x5, the dealer was pulling their first m235i onto the lot. my salesman was genuinely excited to finally see one in person & (wisely) suggested we take it for a spin. he grabbed the key from the tech who had driven the car around to the front and tossed it to me. after a 20 minute test drive, i was sold.

i really loved my x5 and may end up in a new model in the future but this car is amazing. i have also previously owned a 335i vert and an e46 325i many years ago (all great cars). however, nothing drives quite like this m235i.

i tinted the windows and hard-wired my v1 this week. i'll post updated pics soon (the pics below were taken at delivery). cheers!

[FunRevn]

Congratulations, nice car. Enjoy and looking forward to hearing more about how well it drives.

[five3three]

That's awesome. To go from walking in to buy an X5 to this shows how much fun this car must be to drive. I am excited about mine but I have to wait a few months until I take delivery.

You definitely got lucky to find one of those on the lot. I have yet to see one in person and I have had an order for over a month and I live in a metro area as well.

[vivalaReagan]

Originally Posted by five3three

That's awesome. To go from walking in to buy an X5 to this shows how much fun this car must be to drive. I am excited about mine but I have to wait a few months until I take delivery.

You definitely got lucky to find one of those on the lot. I have yet to see one in person and I have had an order for over a month and I live in a metro area as well.

you're exactly right, this car is a blast to drive. i was set on a new x5 but this car blew me away and i knew i had to have one.

i live in a relatively small town and i don't think many folks knew bmw had created this car. after i purchased it, the dealer needed the rest of the day to finish the prep and scheduled my delivery for the next day. during that time, my rep said at least a dozen people were interested in purchasing it, including a guy who called from out of state because he couldn't find one locally and his dealer didn't have an available allocation for two months. unbeknownst to me, i visited the dealer at the exact right time. a few hours later and it would have been gone.

congrats on your order; it will definitely be worth the wait! plus, you get to select exactly what you want. post some pics when you take delivery.

[italia]

Looking forward to seeing pics of it tinted.

[ryanSTL]

Please post a few side & rear pics of the tint! I am so torn between blue and Alpine White (which looks great w/ tint)

Congrats on the car and such lucky timing at the dealer!

[xbook]

Congrats

[lbahoshy]

Congrats! Excellent choice. Love that colour on this car.

[vivalaReagan]

thanks, everyone.

it's raining intermittently but i was able to partially back it out of the garage during a lull in the rain for some pics of the tint. it's extremely overcast, so these pics aren't the best. i love the estoril blue color and it looks even better with the window tint. i'll get better pics when the weather clears.

[vivalaReagan]

also picked up this little bauble at delivery.

[oscr972]

Congrats and enjoy....good timing is the key to a good life and you seem to have it in this case!

[vivalaReagan]

Originally Posted by oscr972

Congrats and enjoy....good timing is the key to a good life and you seem to have it in this case!

oscr, thanks for the well wishes. not sure if you intended the puns in your reply but, either way, well played. well played, indeed!

[YYZF22N55]

Originally Posted by vivalaReagan

thanks, everyone.

it's raining intermittently but i was able to partially back it out of the garage during a lull in the rain for some pics of the tint. it's extremely overcast, so these pics aren't the best. i love the estoril blue color and it looks even better with the window tint. i'll get better pics when the weather clears.

What % tint are those and are they ceramic? Looks amazing! Enjoy.

[BEM-S4]

Looks great congrats. Curious on the V1 hardwire, you go fuse box in trunk? Tap mirror?

[vivalaReagan]

the tint is 15 all around (nothing on the windshield) and it's not ceramic. thought about a 5% or matching 15% brow but wasn't sure how it would look. if anyone has done this, please post up pics.

i tapped the mirror for the v1 install. it's much easier than running wires down the a-pillar, past the curtain airbags, and all the way to the trunk. total install time was literally 20 minutes & would have been shorter if i wasn't afraid i was going to break the plastic mirror housing.

a few pointers if you're planning to tap the mirror wires:

1) use a credit card to separate the plastic housing right down the middle (read this on another bmw forum & it's spot on). don't worry, it won't break.
2) use the invisicord wire taps and when you think they're in all the way, push one more time. mine kind of "clicked" when i did and they're noticeably more secure. btw, +12v goes into the brown/green wire and the ground goes into the brown/black wire.
3) buy the knock-off invisicord from ebay. i've read criticisms of it but have used it in three different cars over the years and never had a problem. in fact, i purchased two sets & keep one in the glove box in case a set fails, which has never happened. two pair were still about half the price of the brand name.
4) unplug the mirror before you insert the invisicords. you'll gain better access to the plug and won't risk blowing a fuse while you push the pins into the plug. once the pins are secure, reinsert the plug and make sure you push the entire plug back down into its small crevice. you'll know what i mean when you see it.
5) run the cord up inside the plastic cover & tuck it in the roof liner and back down to the detector. based on reading mike valentine's commentary, a higher mount is better and will pick up threats over hills a bit faster. i mounted mine at the top of the windshield until my new blendmount is delivered. i highly recommend you spring for the $130 for one of these awesome mounts. it firmly secures the detector directly under the mirror & looks factory.

hope this helps & sorry for the long post.

[vivalaReagan]

oh, and one more tip: sit in the passenger seat for the wire tap installation. it's so much easier not having to fight the steering wheel. i moved the seat really close to the dash so i had back support and could easily see behind the mirror.

[BEM-S4]

That is awesome, THANK YOU! I was planning to do the same myself but didn't want to be the first, wiring scares me. One quick question, what length cord did you go with? Know the come in a variety of lengths and can hide some in headliner but don't want too much extra.

I have this mount for my Passport, assume there's one for the V1 if you're still exploring options. Works great unlike the suction cups that were constantly falling off. I personally don't like the mirror mount but that's just me. Price is great too.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/181171438994

[vivalaReagan]

i bought the 12" with the built-in fuse. the length was perfect as i was never fighting for more cord to work with and i didn't have much to tuck into the headliner. don't hesitate to ping me in this thread or send me a pm if you need help.

thanks for the mount recommendation! i'll look for a v1 version and check it out; can't go wrong for $8. do you find the adhesive strong enough to endure over time, especially in the heat? also, does it adhere well enough to the dot matrix portion of the windshield? thanks in advance.

[BEM-S4]

Don't have my M235 yet so no direct experience with that specific windshield, but in the past I have mounted with the top edge of the mount even with the bottom row of dots. Aesthetically it usually works out well and that way I know it's even.

The only other thing I have done in the past, and this sounds WAY more ghetto than it looks when finished, is to grab a pack of these and some cap nuts from home depot. Remove suction cups, insert these in holes in mount clip and cap with nuts. Using some rear view mirror adhesive stick to windshield. Bonds super quickly (i.e. hold for 2 mins) and it will NEVER come off.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Shepherd-...9450/100372181

I have that setup in my Saab that I keep in Chicago because I've had it so long, can take a pic tomorrow if you're interested in going that route. Actually looks pretty damn good. I've been using the eBay one on family cars since I found it and no one is reporting any trouble.

BTW, you can buy similar 3M adhesive tape used on the eBay one. On my old Touareg I used the same stuff to mount the license plate EZ Pass directly on my bumper. It was on there for two years and when I took it off to turn in the car I was literally jumping up and down on it trying to get it off. This was after 3 years of baking in sun, freezing, getting wet, etc.

[BEM-S4]

You could also probably get away with a dab of the mirror glue on your suction cups and be done with the whole mess for $5. The glue is clear so you'd never notice. Might even be a little better, the suction cups provide some cushion. With the more firm mounts, you need to shove a small piece of the same foam tape I referenced above in between the mount clip and detector to eliminate vibration. Again, can take pics if it'll help you out at all.

[SW19]

Love this pic,enjoy your new car.

[vivalaReagan]

thanks for the creative ideas. i'm looking for an inexpensive solution for my jeep wrangler since i leave the top & doors off most of the time. i want something that can be abused and will allow for constant removing/replacing of the detector every time i leave the jeep open in a parking lot. i like the $8 version you linked since it's low profile and doesn't scream, "hey, there's a radar detector locked in the glove box" when the jeep is left open. i also won't mind if someone steals it since it's only $8.

i have the blendmount on two other vehicles & already ordered one for my m235i since i like the more permanent solution/look in a "lockable" vehicle.