[warrenw]

Originally Posted by CosmosMpower

Wow AW looks really good on the M2C. I felt it was pretty blah on the OG M2 but something about the changes to the bumper with the black wheels make it look great.

To be honest, I only got AW because it was the free option - couldn't fathom PAYING for a color lol but I'm really happy with it! It hides dirt well.

Originally Posted by Cavpilot2k

Love me some kimchi. Never ate it fried with rice when I lived there, only traditional cold on white rice.

CHop chae bop is still one of my favorite meals.
And chicken cheese ramen (ramyon).

I lived there for a year in 2000-2001 while in the US Army. One of the greatest experiences of my life. I love Korea and Korean food.

Oh man, japchae is one of my favs, budachigae is another go-to as well - were you into spicy food when you were here? When I first moved I hated spicy food but now, I can't eat anything UNLESS it's spicy! I'm not a fan of cold kimchi though, even when I eat KBBQ I grill the kimchi, I think it tastes better.

Thanks for your service!

Originally Posted by IND-Distribution

Incredible thread!

Might have to hire a security team to watch over that rare M2c there.

Yeah it's definitely gotten attention in the BMW circles - I've even gotten cash offers for more than I paid. Thankfully theft is minimal/non-existent here - before the M2 I never even locked the doors on my car!

Originally Posted by TiAg_E46_M3

WOW! Awesome car especially where you're located. I wish you all the luck tho. For the record I'm Korean so I know first hand, but Koreans (in general) don't care much for their cars esp others. They swing their doors wide open and don't give 2 flippin birds if they ding your car or not.

I really hope you have a private parking spot or even better a garage because the parking situation is a nightmare, where people leave their cars in neutral and push your car to get theirs out??? OMG

But otherwise she's a beaut and really wish you all the best! I would hate for such a beautiful car get dinged by ignorant people who think a car is a car is a car.

Yeah one of my coworkers lives in an apartment building like that, where there's not enough parking so people just park anywhere and you have to leave your car in neutral / unlocked so people can push your car out of the way if they need to.

As for me, I park on the lowest basement level and in the corner, and myself and a few other cars park across multiple spaces. It's a shady move for sure, but the parking spaces are so small here and the M2 isn't compact so no matter what I'd get a door ding every time I park in a regular spot. So I park where a lot of people don't park and take up two spaces. The Ferrari two stalls over does the same thing lol

I'd say you have two groups of people here - those that DO care about their car, so much so that they live in a shit apartment and have a nice G80 or Equus, and people who they have a car but they know driving sucks here so it's beat to pieces lol!

Originally Posted by Aim.F32

Great write up and blog! This has inspired me to think about writing a blog for my new M2C and all the road trips across Europe I have planned.

Keep it up!

Thanks! I look forward to reading yours!

Originally Posted by O Haiii

Awesome story! I'm Korean and this thread made me want to eat KFR for dinner haha. Keep us posted on your journey!

Haha it's a weekly staple for me! 만나서 반갑습니다! When I first moved actually I hated Korean food because of some bad experiences in the states, but once I tried it "from the source" I'm hooked!

Originally Posted by 3rdPedalAddict

It's crazy how everything shuts down during Korean thanksgiving! I'll be visiting next month and i'll make sure I try that goo goo cone. Thanks and good luck with the break in.

EVERYTHING stops. It's crazy, but it's also nice that everyone takes a step back to rest. But good luck getting a train or bus going anywhere, they're sold out a month in advance once ticketing opens! I have some friends who buy as many open tickets as they can once ticketing opens, then once they know what time they want to travel they cancel the other tickets.

Goo-goo cones are amazing, and I'm not just hyping it up. Definitely get the chocolate one!!

Originally Posted by E9TOU

Question: Since you bought a USDM M2C from a South Korean dealer did you pay US MSRP or Korean? I've heard S. Korean car prices are astronomical compared to US so I'm just curious.

I paid US MSRP minus 10%. My car insurance, however, is priced at Korean MSRP, so if I crash I make money essentially.

Originally Posted by Happy Motoring

You're a brave man for driving a nice car there. There's a reason why every car has a dash cam in Korea.

And a dash cam is what saved me when I got in an accident with my other car. Old lady swiped me when both of our lanes were turning left, her dash cam caught it (I was running naked) and both of our insurance companies ruled her 100% at fault because of it. Since then, gotta have a dash cam!

Originally Posted by Trapperj

Curious to learn which route you go for tuning. What fuels are readily available there?
Is E85 available? Good luck & nice ride!

Eh - not the same as the US. Race fuel is extremely hard to come by. As far as premium, they have 98RON which is the equivalent to 93 octane, but that's on the Korean economy. I usually fill up 95RON because that's all I have available to me, and I'd rather pay $3.50/gallon than $6.75/gallon. No E85. For tuning I'll just try to get the GTS map and then leave it alone.

I'm also exempt from having to do Korean state inspections so I could technically get away with a lot of stuff if I wanted to.

Originally Posted by O Haiii

There are actually tons of nice cars in Seoul. Much nicer cars than M2C roaming around all over. By "Nice" i just mean expensive haha.

They have dash cams because they dont have the whole invasion of privacy bs laws like we do here so accident cases are handled nice and easily via dash cam footage.

Yeah there are definitely a lot of nice cars. Motorsport isn't a big thing here, I've been to a few races and barely anybody attends, but you can still find groups of folks who are interested in it.

Biggest hardship with owning a nice car, especially in Seoul, is parking.

And yeah thank god for dash cams!

Originally Posted by Happy Motoring

Indeed, I'd never be able to afford an M2 there. Hell, I wouldn't even be able to afford rent. But cheap food and alcohol are plenty!

Well.... It depends. Rent is really doable it just requires a steep downpayment. You can rent money from the bank for a small 1.5-2% fee, then live either rent free or reduced rent. Then when you move out you get the downpayment back and you return it to the bank. Or you use your own money and then use that downpayment for your next place. In Seoul to live rent free it's usually 300k-900k, for reduced rent the lowest downpayment I've seen is $30k for a two bedroom. Of course studio apartments are a lot cheaper.

As far as food, yeah a lot of things can be cheaper but meat in general is expensive when compared to the US and imported goods always carry a fat premium. If you miss your steaks be prepared to pay!