Gordon Sivley's 2000 328i

Contact: Gordon Sivley
BMW CCA # 196322
Pearsivley@aol.com

I picked up my 2000 328i in Munich in late June, 2000 using the BMW European Delivery process. This was something I had wanted to do for years and it was a great experience. I had three weeks in Europe with the car and it had over 3000 miles on the odometer when I dropped it off for shipment home. This got me past the break-in period so I could really open it up on the German autobahns. Cruising at 100+ through the scenic countryside was a wonderful experience.

My wife and I visited Germany, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, France and the Netherlands during our trip. We drove up the Grosglochner Hochalpenstrasse in Austria - the highest road in that country - which ended at a glacier on the highest peak in Austria. There were dozens of switchbacks and dizzying drop-offs, many with no guard rails. It was fun but a little tense in spots. In Italy, I quickly realized that I needed to learn exactly how wide the car was as I negotiated winding one-lane streets through mountain villages. I managed to escape with no scrapes but I had to put in many kilometers of precision driving. Most of the time we drove in Germany and France, we were on minor roads which wound through pretty river valleys with picturesque villages and castles and mountainous areas with spectacular scenery. We had an altogether wonderful time and could experience our new Bimmer in its "natural habitat".

Details on the car: Steel Blue 328i sedan with Sport Package and Premium Package; Sand leather interior. I added the Xenon lights, H-K high-end stereo with trunk mounted CD changer and (when I got the car back from Europe) upgraded to Cross Spoke II (bolted) wheels.

Attached is a photo of the car near Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria and one near Munich taken the day I picked it up.