So I had to use the Safety Vest on my ED trip...

[AnujS2K]

First, a picture of me taken by a passenger in Switzerland. The facial expression says it all!



This occurred almost a month ago, August 14, 2015. It may have been 7 or 7:30 in the morning. Initially, this incident caused me to feel defeated. All I wanted to do was have the car towed back to Munich or another drop off location and see the car back in New Jersey. After all, I still had another 10 days with the car including a week in Italy and who knows what else can happen. It had only been 40 hours since the first smiles after seeing the car at the Welt and the car had only seen 650km of asphalt.

Let's rewind for a moment

The mood 40 hours earlier:







My family (parents and sister) were going to be the chosen ones to accompany me on picking up this car. After coming up with a plan, my uncle's family (him, wife, and 2 kids) wanted to come. After they signed on to the trip, another cousin also wanted to attend. Okay, great! A family of 9. Lots of memories will be made. We landed in Paris, stayed there for 3 nights and took a train to Munich.

Before leaving for Europe, I had called BMW ED in NJ to let them know that a rather larger group will be going to pick up the M3 and they had told me it will be a maximum of 5 people allowed in the VIP Lounge in the Welt. I found this unacceptable as I want them to enjoy this more than myself so I emailed the Welt. They assured me this will not be a problem.

No one knew the color of the car that I chose. I drove everyone crazy asking them about how they felt about Sakhir Orange and Yas Marina Blue. I even considered Silverstone and for a brief moment, Austin Yellow. On the train towards Munich my cousins/family were making bets. Most votes were for YMB and I don't believe anyone had guessed SO. My sister went as far as stating "I will be pissed if you got Sakhir" -- uh oh. Now when we get upstairs to the Welt, looking down you can see a SO F80 (mine), my cousin comes back to state "I just saw Sakhir and that color is nice! I hope you got that one" -- My uncle later on stated "If I were to buy a car, I would want a color like that while pointing to my F80 which he didn't know was mine yet. He stated the color is very similar to a tomato.







I was shown the car and given the HK Bluetooth Speaker along with a hardcover book on the OG BMW 328. Additionally, I was given a voucher for two safety vests. Oh yeah, back to the incident.

We were in Switzerland on our way to Jungfraujoch (Top of Europe). The Swiss roads are pristine and fun to drive on with all of their views of the lakes/mountains in the Grindelwald region. Anyway, we get into a tunnel and my tire pressure light goes off. I quickly go through the idrive to see what the tire pressure is. It states 0. I am confused as the car still rides normally and then, I felt the tire go flat. I slow down and as I am following my family, I honk my horn and flash the high beams. I pull over at the safest area outside the tunnel. I go outside to see what happened and there isn't a tire on the wheel at all! The only thing left on the wheel is the sidewall. The good thing about Europe is in all of the tunnels and many of their roads, there is a phone or a room where you can call for help (SOS). I quickly ran into the tunnel and call SOS and they state dispatch is about 10 minutes away.

Long story short, the police state this is rare and it must be a tire defect. The car does not have a spare but comes with a tire repair kit. I don't think a tire repair kit will work on this wheel... Now I ask the police if there is a BMW dealer nearby. He states he will call the "Garage" and will have it towed.

After a SUV towing a flatbed arrives, the car is very low and cannot be put on the bed without damaging the front bumper. The two cops go to the passenger side front and actually assist the tow truck driver by raising the car so he can put the car on the bed without damaging the car. Something you would not see in New Jersey!







Anyway, I had to pay out of pocket for this and am now submitting a claim. This incident cost 599.45 CHF. I have also wrote to BMW Special Sales to alert the VPC that a new wheel should be provided due to the damage caused by this incident.

Anyway, on a brighter note, I kept the car for the rest of the trip. So much attention in Italy! People look at it like it is an exotic.

[ia12]

The car looks awesome. Kinda sucks that this happened to you. Hopefully you'll be getting your money back and a new rim.

[AnujS2K]

Just wanted to show the color shifting Sakhir Orange has.

The car in downtown Munich right after leaving the Welt:



Also, do not listen to the people who claim you cannot drive in Italy -- I drove into the center of Rome. Here it is above the Spanish Steps:









On the way to or from Rome



My uncle rented a 330D M-Sport. Great car! I don't think "normal" people need a car more than this.

[Donger Kim]

so one moment you have a tire and the next you have nothing?

[BwoodBMW]

Wait did you get PSS or the contis?

[AnujS2K]

Originally Posted by ia12

The car looks awesome. Kinda sucks that this happened to you. Hopefully you'll be getting your money back and a new rim.

Thank you.

Originally Posted by Donger Kim

so one moment you have a tire and the next you have nothing?

?

Originally Posted by BwoodBMW

Wait did you get PSS or the contis?

PSS. They replaced the tire with another PSS of the same size which they were able to get the same day from their distributor in the mountains of Switzerland. The only difference I saw was the load rating was different from the OEM tire. The OEM front is 255/40/18 95Y and this was 99Y. It was good enough for me with such short notice.

[OneRib]

Originally Posted by AnujS2K

No one knew the color of the car that I chose. I drove everyone crazy asking them about how they felt about Sakhir Orange and Yas Marina Blue. I even considered Silverstone and for a brief moment, Austin Yellow. On the train towards Munich my cousins/family were making bets. Most votes were for YMB and I don't believe anyone had guessed SO. My sister went as far as stating "I will be pissed if you got Sakhir" -- uh oh.[/SIZE]

This sounds vaguely familiar.
http://f80.bimmerpost.com/forums/sho....php?t=1141135

Congrats on the car and sorry about the tire. Something about SO that makes M3/M4 act crazy.

[muhri]

I'm sorry this happened and glad you were able to continue right away. BMW should refund all your money and claim this thru Michelen's tire warranty!
Beautiful car though, did you get it yet or is it still on the ship?

[G30 B58]

Cool story bro.

Can't wait to see it in person.

[GOLFFRR]

Bummer about the wheel, however looks like there was a lot of positives to the trip as well and as always SO looks fantastic! Great choice

[SamS]

Incredible story! Really cool the police helped lift the car so it wouldn't get damaged.

[myzmak]

Wow - crazy.

Did they just put the new rubber back on the same rim? Wasn't the rim all banged up/scratched to hell?

ps - the orange safety vest really works well with the SO/SO car. Can hardly see it at all.....

[e90-4aj]

Sorry to hear about the tire - hopefully nobody else doing ED has this issue

[Mark's M]

You did very well for yourself. Great post and lol, your facial expression was priceless in the one shot!! Glad everything worked out at the end of the day and no doubts you'll be reimbursed for your expenses.

[curvehound]

OP, your story hits close to home. I picked up my SO M3 from Welt about 10 days after you.
Glad no one was hurt and you were able to continue your trip. It does sound scary though - I hate to think what would have happened if the tire had disintegrated while at speed on the Autobahn.


Enjoy the car

Ian

[///M///]

Sorry to hear man. Hope you get a new wheel and get reimbursed for the tire.

[Bluex]

Wow....very odd occurrence! Hope all works out for you in the end with reimbursement. Gotta love another SO F80, but there is no denying the fact that we SO owners truly attract attention one way or another! (speaks of the SO curse in very hushed tones)

[MFore]

This could have been a disaster. Losing a tire in a tunnel or at high speed or both...Im glad it worked out.
That said...on a lighter side, does anyone know what the fine is for not wearing the vest? It might be worth it.

[bob330i]

Doesn't the BMW insurance for your ED trip cover that or am I behind in what BMW provides as far as insurance (if any)? I thought about this when I read the other thread re: taping thinking that all would be fixed when it gets to the US port/prep centers.