You mean the ASR button? I got that aswell. Prevents wheelspin when accelerating, but I doubt it's a full fledged launchcontrolOh man, it's amazing. Though, I'm not used to Diesel, Turbo, Turbo-lag, or a Direct-Shift-Transmission. The raw torque the diesel provides is amazing; I wasn't expecting something that didn't just feel 'peppy' (a common word for toyota engines), but actually feels like there's a large V6 under the hood.
The transmission is equally impressive. In regular ol' automatic, it doesn't go to full rev, and it changes fairly often. However, the shifts are so smooth you can barely feel them. And < 20mph it behaves like a manual-clutch and there's significant engine braking.
Then there's 'Sport Mode' which gives you the full range of the engine, but burns fuel like mad compared to standard; it also has a 'Launch Control' drag-racing feature. the manual says 'This may be illegal in your area'.
The best part is Diesel at my local station is $2.55/gal. 87 is $2.67
Yeah, BMW drivers have had a bad rep out here for a long time, but lately I've noticed them more with a preening 'hey look at me' attitude than an 'I own the road' get up.
In my area the major jerks on the road are now the full-size truck drivers. It has become fashionable for young tough-guy wannabe alpha-males to increase their toughness by going out and buying full-size trucks. They throw on an aftermarket muffler kit and promtly fall in love with the sound of their exhaust pipes.. then come the over-sized tires and low-n-behold their badassedness has increased 100 fold. Of course it hasnt really, you arent your car.. what it has done though is proportionately decreased their patience and tolerance of other people sharing the road with them. Just try going somewhere within 10 miles an hour of the posted speed limit while driving in front of one of these goofs and the next thing you know you've got Jeff Gordon pulling a NASCAR moment barreling around you full speed, dollar bills literally flying out of the tail-pipe, only to be staring you down while stopped at the next red light 200 feet up the street.
They really believe they intimidate people with these antics. Add some puffy creatine enabled water-muscles, cheesy tribal tatoos, hardcore baseball cap/dark sunglasses with the 'trying so hard to be mean and cool' heavy-metal tunes blasting and you've got the American chav.
..and to stay on topic, I drive a 2001 Honda Accord V6 black with about 80k miles on it. 'BUT CAN IT CRUSH OTHER CARS!?'