davanz

Probably the best way to handle it. I do like the idea keeping a car totally stock.

Yesterday as I was going thru a car wash in my M440, one of the spinning brushes snagged my driver side mirror and pulled of the mirror cover piece. It was flopping around in the spraying water, held on by only a wire lead. Later, in the wind tunnel section, I actually lowered the window, put my arm out and held on to it. Otherwise I think the winds would have finished pulling it off. I had the mirrors in the folded back position and I think the problem is related to the mirror design, as it has a projecting "fin" which, when the mirrors are folded back, is sticking straight forward, making them easy to snag. Anyone here relate to this, or have any recommendations. This time it didn't do any damage, no paint scratches, and the cover simply snapped back on, but it makes me nervous about future occurrences. Any one know of any aftermarket mirror of a different design, as I would consider a change out.

As I mentioned earlier, here in East Texas, (my home is about 100 m east of the DFW area), hunting is very popular. Members of my family and some of my employees are avid hunters. I have always enjoyed shooting and firearm cleaning/maintenance. My father gave me my first gun, a 22 Marlin bolt action, when I was 8 years old. And looking at it from a hobby point of view, my attraction to any particular firearm is driven heavily by its style and looks. For example, you have a Browning. I think that the Browing Citori and Cynergy over/unders are one of the most beautiful firearms on the market. And the Marlin 336 lever action is one of my favorite looking ones. I have one in 30-30 caliber. I also have a Winchester 94 in 30-30, not that I need two lever action 30-30s, but I just like the look of both, so I want one of each in my gun safe. My father had a Browing semi auto as his main fowling piece. Are lever action rifles popular in your area? My father was more into duck hunting around ponds and marshes, as opposed to deer. But for some reason, although I enjoyed target practice and general shooting for recreation, I just never develop a liking for hunting. Maybe it was because my father, when I was quite young, used me as his retriever. He would shoot the bird, then it was my job to have my rubber waders on and go find it. But it is more likely because I am just too lazy to get out and hunt, then clean and prep.

Thanks for the reply Dave. First, a little off topic thoughts which you may find boring. If you don't mind, approximately where in Southern UK are you, how far from London? Several years ago, my wife and I were able to take some time off and take a tour of your part of the world. We stayed at the White House Hotel in London, and did the usual tourist things. Saw the changing of the Buckingham Palace guards, toured Warwick Castle, Stratford on the Avon, etc. Sometimes timing works out with unexpected surprises. For example, when we were touring Windchester Cathedral, a choir started practicing, accompanied by the huge pipe organ. It was quite impressive. And of course, we made it a point of trying food of local flavor/popularity. Like plowman's lunch, native beers at taverns, and such. At the time, our daughter was eight years old, and after a few days, she asked me one afternoon, "tonight can we find a McDonalds?". And we did. In all it was a very enjoyable trip, and the weather was cool and clear the whole time. My wife and I still have pictures which help us remember the event with fondness. You mention shooting. What type do you enjoy? Just a coincidence, for years, that was one of my hobbies, mostly clay pigeons with an old Remington 12 ga, and handguns. I am not a hunter, which is really popular in my Eastern Texas USA area. I have no objections, I am just too lazy, and supermarkets have a good variety of meats, which is much more convenient. I still have many of my old guns in the safe, but due to age and time, I don't get them out for pleasure shooting much nowadays. As to my new BMW, I am still getting used to it. I love the way it drives and handles, but am a bit slow in learning all the features and technology. So, again, thank you for the response. And your BMW which was attacked by a tree, a storm, old rotten tree, or what? David

My home is in eastern Texas, so we get very little icy/snow driving events compared to many of you. However, I have been driving 4 WD drive trucks for decades as my personal work truck in my construction business. Not for street needs, but there are occasions that a jobsite may be muddy, sandy, or just soft dirt. And at these times, especially if I am pulling a trailer with a ditching machine or scissor lift, 4 WD makes a large difference. And, when the occasional harsh winter comes along, with a few days of ice or snow covered roads, the trips to supermarkets or other errands are no problem. So that leads to my question here. I recently bought a 2025 M440 XDrive. AWD drive systems can be designed mainly for enhanced road handling on a track for instance, or more for low traction conditions. For any of you who may have a non SUV AWD BMW, and stock tires, how do they handle in snow or ice? In normal daily driving, is enough torque sent to the front wheels to be a real benefit over just rear wheel drive? I hope some here can share you experiences/thoughts.