Review coming soon!
RNR Automotive Blog
Just another car guy talking about cars.
Monthly Archives: November 2015
1999 BMW 328i Review
Just from judging from the title of this review, you guys are probably thinking that I have an obsession with the 3-Series. That can be justified considering that I have reviewed a 1990 M3, 1994 325i, 2001 330i, 2009 328i, 2010 328i, 2011 335i, and a 2013 328i, and now I can add the 1999 328i to the mix. What makes this car so special? Well for starters, it is a manual transmission model of the coveted E46 generation. I say coveted because to this day, many car enthusiasts still regard the E46 generation (1999-2005) as one of the finest 3 Series ever produced. As with most nameplates, the 3-Series grew in size and comfort with every iteration, but this E46 represents a fine balance of what the 3 Series used to be: handling and poise in a right-sized package. Now for the traditional history lesson, the 3-Series debuted during the oil crisis. Replacing the 2002, the first 3 Series, the E21 (1975-1981) generation, was sold only in a two door format as a coupe or convertible. Known for its memorable driving dynamics and perky engines combined with its tidy size, the E21 cemented BMW’s reputation as a maker of ultimate driving machines. Five generations succeeded the E21, and with the exception of the latest 3-Series, the successive generations have all upheld the BMW tradition of providing excellent handling and performance in a luxurious package. The generation in review is the E46 which debuted in the United States in 1999. Whereas the previous generation (E36) didn’t deliver the driving experience as expected of a BMW (but it still drove quite well), this generation set a new performance benchmark for its class. This was the car that made other luxury brands take notice, and it is not hard to see why. In 2002, more than 560,000 units were sold worldwide, an impressive achievement for a luxury car. Even though I have already reviewed a 330i some time ago, I wanted to try out the less powerful variant, a 328i, especially with the manual transmission. Continue reading
2012 Ford Mustang Boss 302 Review
If you think I do too many reviews of the fifth generation Mustang, you may be right. So far, I have done a 2012 Mustang V6, 2014 Mustang 5.0 GT, and a 2005 Mustang V6 (all manual transmission coupes of course.) Well, now I have an additional manual coupe to add to the list: the 2013 Mustang Boss 302. The history with the Mustang harks back to the 1960s, or more specifically 1964 when Lee Iocacca came up with the idea for a sporty and practical vehicle for the masses. Equipped in many body styles as well as numerous powertrain configurations to suit the American tastes, Mustang sales skyrocketed. In just 18 months after it debuted, the Mustang sold over a million units. For six generations, the Mustang has successfully cultivated its heritage while morphing into a household name. The Mustang also introduced several notable special editions such as the Shelby Mustangs, Bullitt, and the Boss 302. Due to the success of the first Mustang, Chevrolet scrambled to develop a worthy adversary which would become the Camaro. Boasting small and big box V8 engines, the Camaro proved its advantages over the Mustang which featured smaller engines. The original Boss 302 was Ford’s answer to the Camaro. The 302 name is derived from its 302 cubic inch engine. This car was developed in secret, so if anybody asked what car this was, the employees in charge of this car always referred to it as the “Boss’ car”, hence the Boss designation. It was also developed for a racing homologation series, hence the mechanical modifications. The first Boss 302 was sold in 1969-1970, and it was revived in 2012 with production ending in 2013. Think of the Boss 302 as a Mustang 5.0 liter V8 GT with mechanical and visual tweaks. If you want to go for a more extreme version, there was a Boss 302 Laguna Seca edition available. It featured more extreme suspension tweaks, the deletion of the rear seats for a brace to enhance structural rigidity, and it came in four colors with a red roof and red accents. With that said, as soon as the opportunity to review a Boss presented itself, I just knew I had to do it. Continue reading
2 Year Anniversary!
Hello RNR Automotive Blog Readers! Two years ago on this date, this blog was created. I know that this year, I have been less frequent in publishing reviews, and I wanted to apologize for that. School keeps me busy, and so does work, and unfortunately, that has left me little time to do anything else, let alone write reviews for my blog. However, I haven’t forgot about you guys, so I will try my best to work harder at bringing you these reviews for you to read! I have great cars for you read about. I’ll let the cat out of the bag just so you can know what to expect in upcoming reviews: Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT, E60 BMW 550i manual, 2015 Scion TC manual, 2015 Lexus IS250, 2015 Mercedes-Benz C300, 2015 Ford Focus ST manual, 2013 Subaru Impreza WRX manual, 1965 Ford Mustang, 1989 Nissan Skyline GT-R manual, and many more. My schedule next semester will be much easier and will allow for more free time, so hang in there! In the meantime, I will do my best to get these reviews underway. With that said, I just want to thank you guys for another great year for the blog. Without your support, the blog would not be with it is today. I want to thank my family and friends for their support. I personally want to thank my friend Miranda for always helping me out as my unofficial editor of the blog. Without her input, my blog would probably be filled with numerous grammar errors. With that out of the way, for last year’s anniversary, I did a review of my 2004 Honda Pilot. This year, I will post pictures from Fall Break that I enjoyed with a couple of friends. Update: Neela (that’s her name) just hit 182,000 miles! And she is still running. 🙂 (Hope I didn’t jinx it). I hope you enjoy the pictures. Thanks again for your support! Here’s to another great year! Continue reading
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