Agree about the shame. Saw a Maxima SE yesterday like my old 03, and as I gazed wistfully at the nice Altezza-like taillights (I really like em), I chuckled at how I can now see past such baubles, at least on anything with a Nissan hamburger (emblem) on it. My new baubles, on my Accord, include the LED tails Just to comment on BMW their 3-series got props as BMWs best models and have proven to be pretty solid cars over the years. Even though CU makes special mention of problems with the cooling systems of the 99 5-series V8 models, Id have held onto my 540 if Id had just a bit more dough and if it wasnt my daily transportation; theres just no other sedan near the price that offers the combination of power, luxury and handling of the 540. Someday (when my Accord is passed on to my daughter in 9 years or so, and pending spousal concurrence), Id like to get an E46 M3 or an E90 335, and I fully acknowledge therell be a trade-off on reliability and ownership economics compared to the Accord. Im not going to paint a blue/white BMW logo on my face or anything, but they are generally well-done cars, especially if reliability north of 70k miles isnt a top priority for you. I wish Honda had copied their brakes as much as they tried to copy other BMW aspectsRegarding domination, Honda & Toyota already completely dominate the entire top 5 of CRs new rankings if you include their extension brands (Acura, Lexus, and Scion).
