I am in St. Louis. I told them I didn't want anything less than what I am already driving. I asked them directly if they have a 7 series ("No, all out.") OK, how about a 545 or 550? ("Hold on...." [He returned and said the porter will pull it up.])

What I found out was that it was most likely a sales guy's car because it reeked of nicotene and stale aftershave. A smell so bad that it had to have been collecting it for the entire 10K miles which are on the auto. No worries! I detailed it when I got home; switched off the DTC; and happily powerslid out of my neighborhood.

I'm not being unduly hard on the car. I just respond whenever it says GO! I'm actually driving it like I drove the 02 540 I had for several years.

Here's the low-down, though....
- Has sport package on it and it handles very, very well. No body roll
- Spend 10 minutes reviewing and programming iDrive; then 10 minutes using it while you're driving; then you'll realize what BMW was trying to do. It's actually pretty handy.
- The powerplant pulls mightily all the way through 80+. It begs to be floored.

Overall.... I think that's what I'd buy as soon as the Bangle butt and Dame Edna face get toned down in 2009. Spy shots look pretty favorable.