Fantastic appropriate usage information! I wish all those dumbknuckel California drivers (especially those dimwitted bay area BMW drivers where I'm from) would know and learn this useful correct usage information!
I see now why a BMW automobile owner saying the ridiculous statement "I drive a Beemer" is doubly hilarious (as you can't "drive" a Beemer and he doesn't even own one in the first place!). I love knowing the nuances (such as the SLOCAGE referred to before) in California license plates (which Californians seem particularly susceptible to as compared to the more hardened east coast variety). (I know you capitalize Californians in English; but do you capitalize "East Coast" in English usage?).
There is no solution for stupidity but ignorance can be cured in this one usenet message where we try to say everything correctly if we are intelligent enough to learn how. I did a search on rec.motorcycles (and was amazed to find out how literate they seem to be!) to get some of the names correct below.
Are these these are now the proper verb-adjective-noun combinations for 2 and 3 wheeled BMWs? - I ride a Beemer. - I ride a BMW motorcycle (by steering the bike from the front). - I ride a BMW motorcycle (by sitting on the back of the bench). - I ride a K-series bike. - I ride an air-head BMW.
Likewise, are these now correct usage for 4-wheeled BMWs? - I drive a Bimmer. - I drive an E39. - I drive a 2003 E39. - I drive an E series automobile. - I drive an E-series sedan. - I drive an M series automobile. - I drive an M-series hatchback.
-- We are adding the the knowledge of the otherwise nitwit California BMW owner!