Do people actually purchase new BMW's?

[jeepman3071]

Originally Posted by edyvw

But, I am really interested to hear about those maintenance costs. Can someone here gives us numbers about maintenance costs between X1 and vehicle of their choice?


My BMW has not cost me any more in maintenance than any of my family/friend's vehicles. Even if it did, it's worth the price over driving a mind-numbing appliance an hour+ to work every day.

 

[Ws6]

Originally Posted by jeepman3071
Originally Posted by edyvw

But, I am really interested to hear about those maintenance costs. Can someone here gives us numbers about maintenance costs between X1 and vehicle of their choice?


My BMW has not cost me any more in maintenance than any of my family/friend's vehicles. Even if it did, it's worth the price over driving a mind-numbing appliance an hour+ to work every day.

What bmw do you have that is so awesome than a Japanese or Korean brand cannot approximate it?

 

[jeepman3071]

Originally Posted by Ws6
Originally Posted by jeepman3071
Originally Posted by edyvw

But, I am really interested to hear about those maintenance costs. Can someone here gives us numbers about maintenance costs between X1 and vehicle of their choice?


My BMW has not cost me any more in maintenance than any of my family/friend's vehicles. Even if it did, it's worth the price over driving a mind-numbing appliance an hour+ to work every day.

What bmw do you have that is so awesome than a Japanese or Korean brand cannot approximate it?


It's not even all that awesome, just a 328i. My commute is about half twisty roads and half highway. I spend 10 hours a week just commuting to work, so something comfortable and fun is worth it. For the price I paid for the bimmer + maintenance it would be very hard to find something similar. I test drove a few Lexus and Acura cars, and the ones that were even close were just ridiculously expensive. I also get travel re-imbursement, so it's awesome getting paid to drive to work.

 

[Ws6]

Originally Posted by jeepman3071
Originally Posted by Ws6
Originally Posted by jeepman3071
Originally Posted by edyvw

But, I am really interested to hear about those maintenance costs. Can someone here gives us numbers about maintenance costs between X1 and vehicle of their choice?


My BMW has not cost me any more in maintenance than any of my family/friend's vehicles. Even if it did, it's worth the price over driving a mind-numbing appliance an hour+ to work every day.

What bmw do you have that is so awesome than a Japanese or Korean brand cannot approximate it?


It's not even all that awesome, just a 328i. My commute is about half twisty roads and half highway. I spend 10 hours a week just commuting to work, so something comfortable and fun is worth it. For the price I paid for the bimmer + maintenance it would be very hard to find something similar. I test drove a few Lexus and Acura cars, and the ones that were even close were just ridiculously expensive. I also get travel re-imbursement, so it's awesome getting paid to drive to work.


Isn't the 328i $40-45K stripped out and $50K or so normally optioned?

 

[Skippy722]

Originally Posted by Ws6


Isn't the 328i $40-45K stripped out and $50K or so normally optioned?



BMW shows the current 2020 330i's starting at ~$40k. Pretty nicely optioned as well, sticker on my 300 when new was $40K and didn't come with forward collision warning/stop, lane departure, or panoramic sunroof as standard equipment. Optioned up as similar to mine, but with WAY more options, because it's a package, brings it to ~45k.

 

[Ws6]

Originally Posted by Skippy722
Originally Posted by Ws6


Isn't the 328i $40-45K stripped out and $50K or so normally optioned?



BMW shows the current 2020 330i's starting at ~$40k. Pretty nicely optioned as well, sticker on my 300 when new was $40K and didn't come with forward collision warning/stop, lane departure, or panoramic sunroof as standard equipment. Optioned up as similar to mine, but with WAY more options, because it's a package, brings it to ~45k.


The new 4-cylinder BMW's are legit nice. I looked at it, and yeah, it's good stuff. I'm just scared to own one due to maintenance/reliability long term. Otherwise, an X3 340i looks super neat. Scared of that though, and the X3 and X1 just weren't any better really than the CX5 turbo in any way I cared about, so I skipped the German thing once again.

 

[jeepman3071]

Originally Posted by Ws6

Isn't the 328i $40-45K stripped out and $50K or so normally optioned?



Well yeah but who buys new ones?

Most people I know with BMWs don't buy them new, it only makes sense to buy used. My friend bought a 2015 335i with sport package and full options for half of what the new price was ($60K) at 3 years old and 30,000 miles. For my own situation, my car cost literally half of what the same year Lexus IS and other similar cars I looked at did. That premium for something that theoretically might break less is not worth it. If mine is a money pit I'll just dump it and buy something else with the money I saved. I'm not the average car buyer though since I can DIY and know what to look for.

 

[Skippy722]

Originally Posted by Ws6
Originally Posted by Skippy722
Originally Posted by Ws6


Isn't the 328i $40-45K stripped out and $50K or so normally optioned?



BMW shows the current 2020 330i's starting at ~$40k. Pretty nicely optioned as well, sticker on my 300 when new was $40K and didn't come with forward collision warning/stop, lane departure, or panoramic sunroof as standard equipment. Optioned up as similar to mine, but with WAY more options, because it's a package, brings it to ~45k.


The new 4-cylinder BMW's are legit nice. I looked at it, and yeah, it's good stuff. I'm just scared to own one due to maintenance/reliability long term.


I'd trust it over a 5.7 hemi powered vehicle!

 

[Ws6]

Originally Posted by Skippy722
Originally Posted by Ws6
Originally Posted by Skippy722
Originally Posted by Ws6


Isn't the 328i $40-45K stripped out and $50K or so normally optioned?



BMW shows the current 2020 330i's starting at ~$40k. Pretty nicely optioned as well, sticker on my 300 when new was $40K and didn't come with forward collision warning/stop, lane departure, or panoramic sunroof as standard equipment. Optioned up as similar to mine, but with WAY more options, because it's a package, brings it to ~45k.


The new 4-cylinder BMW's are legit nice. I looked at it, and yeah, it's good stuff. I'm just scared to own one due to maintenance/reliability long term.


I'd trust it over a 5.7 hemi powered vehicle!

Well, yeah...BTDT, lol!

 

[Ws6]

Originally Posted by jeepman3071
Originally Posted by Ws6

Isn't the 328i $40-45K stripped out and $50K or so normally optioned?



Well yeah but who buys new ones?

Most people I know with BMWs don't buy them new, it only makes sense to buy used. My friend bought a 2015 335i with sport package and full options for half of what the new price was ($60K) at 3 years old and 30,000 miles. For my own situation, my car cost literally half of what the same year Lexus IS and other similar cars I looked at did. That premium for something that theoretically might break less is not worth it. If mine is a money pit I'll just dump it and buy something else with the money I saved. I'm not the average car buyer though since I can DIY and know what to look for.

I feel that there is a very good reason for that.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

Originally Posted by jeepman3071
Originally Posted by Ws6

Isn't the 328i $40-45K stripped out and $50K or so normally optioned?



Well yeah but who buys new ones?

I do.

I'm happy to absorb the depreciation because I don't abuse my cars nor defer maintenance/repairs. I don't have to wonder if the prior owner tuned the #@$! out of the engine and thrashed it in the process.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

Originally Posted by Ws6
Originally Posted by Skippy722
Originally Posted by Ws6


Isn't the 328i $40-45K stripped out and $50K or so normally optioned?



BMW shows the current 2020 330i's starting at ~$40k. Pretty nicely optioned as well, sticker on my 300 when new was $40K and didn't come with forward collision warning/stop, lane departure, or panoramic sunroof as standard equipment. Optioned up as similar to mine, but with WAY more options, because it's a package, brings it to ~45k.


The new 4-cylinder BMW's are legit nice. I looked at it, and yeah, it's good stuff. I'm just scared to own one due to maintenance/reliability long term. Otherwise, an X3 340i looks super neat. Scared of that though, and the X3 and X1 just weren't any better really than the CX5 turbo in any way I cared about, so I skipped the German thing once again.


Maintenance is nothing.

Historically there are two or three common and potentially costly repairs within the first 100k miles:

#1 Oil Filter Housing Gasket. Jury is out on the B-series engines. (X3, B58 I6)
#2 Valve Cover Gasket.
#3 Electric water pump & thermostat. Tend to fail sometime between 50k and 100k miles on the N55 I6. B-series are a little different in this regard. The water pump is mechanically driven but the electronically controlled thermostat is part of the pump assembly so you can't replace one and not the other. There do not seem to be any widespread failures.


Someone commented that BMW's are assembled as efficiently as possible, but that efficiency comes at the cost of disassembly for repairs. It can take a lot of time removing parts to finally reach the part you want to swap out. Due to the amount of time invested a shop will suggest to replace some parts pro-actively which drives up the cost. An example would be replacing the valve cover along when having to replace the valve cover gasket. The job will run about $1,000 in labor and the gasket is $45 whereas the valve cover kit is $500. The labor is high because by the time these parts fail the plastic connectors (like all makes) on all the stuff you have to remove have become brittle so you can't just rush it.

DIY can save you a ton of money on repairs.

 

[PimTac]

Why would a valve cover need replacing? I've never heard of that unless it got damaged somehow.

 

[exranger06]

My mom bought a 330ci convertible brand new back in 2005. She still has it, and it only has about 28k miles today. It's her "nice weather" car; she has an old beater for daily driving. It's the first and only brand new car she's ever bought.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

Originally Posted by PimTac
Why would a valve cover need replacing? I've never heard of that unless it got damaged somehow.


For the N55 the PCV system is integrated into the cover itself and there's a diaphragm inside it which can fail. Also in the past BMW covers in general were known to deform or crack ever so slightly due to the heat cycling. The current one doesn't deform but can crack.

 

[gofast182]

I'd be willing to bet that a portion of the people piling on have not owned a BMW, do not intend to own one, and some have probably never driven one but the internet told them certain things about BMWs from some period in time so they must be true, even for newer products.

 

[PimTac]

Originally Posted by BMWTurboDzl
Originally Posted by PimTac
Why would a valve cover need replacing? I've never heard of that unless it got damaged somehow.


For the N55 the PCV system is integrated into the cover itself and there's a diaphragm inside it which can fail. Also in the past BMW covers in general were known to deform or crack ever so slightly due to the heat cycling. The current one doesn't deform but can crack.





That's encouraging.

 

[PimTac]

Originally Posted by gofast182
I'd be willing to bet that a portion of the people piling on have not owned a BMW, do not intend to own one, and some have probably never driven one but the internet told them certain things about BMWs from some period in time so they must be true, even for newer products.




The people that I know that own BMWs and high end cars get them on lease and turn them in after the lease is up. A typical example would be a doctor. He or she doesn't have the time to deal with a vehicle.

I do know someone with a first generation Z4 with the in-line 6 cylinder motor. Now that is a very nice car and he takes care of it and drives it daily.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

Originally Posted by PimTac
Originally Posted by BMWTurboDzl
Originally Posted by PimTac
Why would a valve cover need replacing? I've never heard of that unless it got damaged somehow.


For the N55 the PCV system is integrated into the cover itself and there's a diaphragm inside it which can fail. Also in the past BMW covers in general were known to deform or crack ever so slightly due to the heat cycling. The current one doesn't deform but can crack.





That's encouraging.


Ya well if the cover fails at 100k miles and you changed out the gasket at 75k miles you'll end up wasting money on the cover replacement.

 

[WhyMe]

when we bought our 02 330i sport in 05 it had 27k miles on it. We paid 25k from a local small dealer. thing was a AZ car . we sold it last year with 192k miles on it. in those 14 years and 165k miles i have replaced almose everything in the engine compartment . water pump , pcv cooling etc. also did the lca bushings 3 or 4 times. window regulators were a pain

it was a pretty reliable car that took the wife and then my daughter to school and work . never broke down and left them stranded. ate tires like they were free though. 02 is when they still did not have all the crazy electronics and modules in it. could work on it with little problem. the parts were reasonable because they made a lot of e46 and lot of aftermarket support. without my labor , if we had to bring it into a shop for repair i don't think it would be feasible to own it out of warranty.

the new BMW have way too much electronics and its difficult to work on them unless you really have knowledge and a computer. they also depreciate like a rock . i think it becasue so many people lease them and dump them after so a glut of them brings the market down. if you know anyone that is not mechanically inclined and owns a late model BMW and take it to a dealer they will tell you how crazy the prices are .

would i ever buy a bmw new? probably not . the aura of owning a bmw or benz is just no longer there. its like owning a rolex. used to be exclusive , but too many people have them now. just like having a credit card was 50 years ago