A long-neglected category here at MWB, but I've got to put this one out there before another poor soul shells out one more hard-earned cent on a BMW. What's the problem you say? 1: I've had at least 20 minor to major defects in 2 1/2 years of owning the car which I purchased with 9 miles on it. It couldn't have been any newer a car unless I put it together myself in Germany. 2: The "free maintenance" plan is bullshit -- it's a pain in the ass to get in -- the BMW paid maintenance is every 15,000 miles. By the time that 15,000 miles is up, the car is falling completely apart. My maintenance is due in 500 miles, my battery light is going on and off, the trunk latch is behaving strangely, the glove compartment lock is broken again, the front end is wiggly, and they won't let me bring it in that 500 miles earlier; I can get the defects handled, but then I gotta go through the pain in the ass process AGAIN to get the oil changed in 500 miles. It's hardly worth the "free" oil change. 3: The brakes are designed to disintigrate every 10,000 miles. I'm about to be on my 3rd set of front brakes. BMW claims this is "by design" and facilitates that famous BMW handling. iGanja has one fo the best handling cars I've ridden in (an Infinity FX),and his brakes don't disintigrate every 10k miles. 4: Side effect of the disintigrating brakes...black brake dust coats the wheels so fast it's hardly worth washing the wheels. Washed them yesterday...they're black already today, I drove 7 miles today. 5: The leather on the seats is as fragile as paper. I carted a 160 pound mastiff around in my Mercedes SL 500; not a scratch on those seats. My 10 pound chihuahua has scratched the hell out of my beemer seats. I won't even bother to go on. Just trust me...neither Consumer Reports nor MWB recommends BMW automobiles anymore. The handling is nice, it's true, but it's hardly worth allt he crapola you have to put up with just to take a corner 1/50th of a mile faster than a soft Mercedes can take it.