BMW 335d 12-Month Report and Review – The Diesel Driver – The Joy of Diesel Driving

Delivery at the BMW Welt

It’s slightly over one year since Christian Stampfer and I took delivery of the 335d at the BMW Welt and, other than for the obligatory change from summer to winter tires and back again, the car has not required any service.  It will be getting an oil change at the beginning of January, however.

Getting to Munich from New York was a challenge: thanks to the area’s first snow storm, it took 48 hours door-to-door to get there.  It was of course worth the trip.  Snow was on the ground in Munich and skies were overcast but the BMW Welt was bright and cheerful and festively decorated for the holidays.

Our BMW 335d started fabrication on 2 December 2009 as plates of steel were pressed into the necessary shapes. It entered the body shop at the Munich factory on 8 December and was in the paint shop on the 9th (for a complete look at the factory, including an exclusive photo tour, see Building the BMW 335d).   Final assembly was on the 10th, which was followed by testing and quality control before the car would be transported across the street to the BMW Welt.

The delivery at the BMW Welt was just as I remembered it when, in October 2007, I became the first customer to take delivery of a new car there.  Upon arrival, we first attended to some paperwork and other formalities and then waited in the Premium Lounge, enjoying excellent food and drink, until it was time to engage in the delivery process.

Christian and I were taken through the delivery process by Stephanie Duderstadt, the  same delivery specialist who had presented me with my 550i in 2007. There’s no question that BMW has raised the bar for new car deliveries with the advanced multimedia technology used to provide each new car owner with an individualized explanation and overview of the vehicle using a table-sized touchscreen display.  The delivery continued with a driving exercise inside a simulator, each outfitted with a steering wheel, brake, and gas pedal

At this point, we were escorted by lift to the top floor of the BMW Welt from which we descended the “Hollywood” staircase to the Premiere delivery area.  The 335d was waiting at the foot of the stairs rotating on its turntable (there are 30 of these), with a spotlight focused on the glistening diesel.  As we walked down the stairs, we were able to see a unique view of the BMW Welt’s interior as well as an excellent view of the BMW Vierzylinder (Four Cylinder) headquarters building, a short distance away.

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