ARE BMW DRIVERS A-HOLES?

What's the difference between a BMW and a porcupine? ARE BMW DRIVERS A-HOLES?

By ROY NAKANO If you drive a BMW, it's pretty easy to develop a superiority complex. Let's face it, BMW redefined the sport sedan category with the 2002 back in the 1960s. BMW sport sedans seem to win just about every Car and Driver magazine comparison test. They've become a status symbol for the young, upwardly mobile professional. They are, after all, the Ultimate Driving Machines.

Given this backdrop, it's no wonder that some BMW drivers think they own the road. LA CAR resident road runner Spinning Blue Propeller posed the question on AutoWeek's Combustion Chamber as well as on Bimmerfest, one of the most popular BMW bulletin boards on the Internet: Are BMW drivers A-holes?

Bimmerfest's VanF says, "Before I was a BMW owner, I remember teaching my then teenage son to drive. We were on an interstate and a BMW passed us going very fast and cut in front of us as he passed us. My then teenage son said, 'Dad, those BMW drivers think they own the road.' I said 'No, that's not true son - they know they own the road!" Confesses VanF, "I find when I am in my BMW, I do not truly break traffic laws, but I do bend the hell out of them!"

Petra from the Combustion Chamber testifies: "Just this very afternoon, a Silver M3 pulled out near me in what was clearly a traffic violation, and proceeded to pass me at a tremendous pace shortly before stopping hurriedly so as not to miss the gas station he was headed to. Something inside me said at that moment, 'Do people think that, just because they have 330 horsepower, they can drive dangerously?'" Adds Petra, "Now that I think about it, I must come to the conclusion that not all M3 drivers are pricks, such as this one. But the BMW brand does seem to almost magnetically attract all types of pricks, jackasses and abusers of public roads, does it not?"

Bimmerfest's Jimmy325 confesses, "A lot of BMW owner's that I know are a-hole drivers. I am one too. I've driven with several as well. I try to take my a-hole-ness to the track in a more contained and safe-er (relatively speaking) environment. Nothing wrong with being an a-hole when not endangering other traffic on the road. Heeee."

Mgorgel of Bimmerfest also confides, "Well I have some friends that would qualify as a-holes. One friend has a new 745Li and he uses the 405 as his private racing track, doing 100 mph and passing left and right flashing his lights (while driving with his fogs on). The other has a 2002 M3, and his average mph does not come under 70 mph. I drive very fast at times and pass left and right too, but I will always let the guy in the 5-Series go in front of me :-)"

Of course, BMW doesn't not have a monopoly on A-holes, and most are probably very courteous drivers. Several on the boards pointed to SUV drivers as being just as bad or worse. Bimmerfest's Bten laments that he drives an SUV that happens to be a BMW. "Guess I (really) am one."

But, which came first? The chicken or the egg? Bimmerfest's 1RADBMR wants to point out, "I definitely drive more aggressively, but I blame it on the car. Those who can, do...yada...yada...yada. Otherwise, I'm a really, really nice guy."