Quote:
Originally Posted by
j 
I'll drive it for you.
It depends on your lifestyle how much your car needs to represent you. Personally I'd think better of a well dressed guy stepping out of a well-loved Bavaria with 175k miles on it than one stepping out of a brand new M5. The latter, I might think, was only representing money, while the former, signified taste and understatement.
Sorry, I've been brushing up on my Vaclavian.
Anyway, this is one of the reasons I want to replace my car (a '94 325is). Though I bought it on its merits (RWD, enough power, plenty of comfort, appealing (to me at the time) styling), I loathe its implications and associations. It looks dbagish and arriviste to most people, and with some years on it now, I look like a dated dbag instead of a dbag-au-courant (who would be in a leased '07).
Keep the 94 ( is a E36 right ? )
Those are great cars.
When I had the accident in wich my E36 cabrio got wrecked, I got me a BMW 320i E30 a 1988 model I got for $1500 while I was waiting that the insurance company cleared things and payed me back to get the new car.
It was the simplest model, the only option was the roof opening. It belonged to an older lady and was immaculate.
This was a great car, the feel of it ( pure mechanical and not computer controlled like the newer ones ), the classic look. I really liked it a lot. When I got the new car (a 320 Ci E46 cabrio ) I sold it for $1000 to an student that was indeed happy as a dog with two tails with it.
Then later on I regretted to have sold it. I feel good that is in good hands, but it is really hard to find an old model like this in that clean state.