If you have or have had a BMW is it worth it?

[AnnieW625]

We are looking at buying a new car later on this year or next year. DH keeps telling me that I should get what I really want, which is a BMW 328 sedan (or whatever the base model engine is at the time with a manual transmission; unless I can get a 335d certified). I have deep down always wanted a BMW as a family friend has had one almost continuously since the late 1970s. So if I wanted a BMW we'd probably have to save for another year which we could do because our Corolla is running fine, and has just 150k miles on it. I would also consider buying certified as long as it doesn't have more than 30k on it, but that might be a stretch.

So are BMWs really money traps?

How long have you had yours? (or how long did you have it?)

Would you buy one again?

Would you rec. one for someone who drives 50 miles a day for commuting?

[marymoo86]

I don't know how new ones are but I had an older 325 wagon. Loved it but the transmission crapped out st 45k miles. Luckily it was a CPO. It was a great car but I wouldnt spend the money on one again even though I got it 7k below book. It was my second German luxury car. Will only buy Japanese now. The value wasn't there for me and I didn't feel it would last.

Maybe I got a bummer bimmer. Service is expensive plus you have to use premium gas. Lots of cars are fun to drive with great amenities.

However, if it what you want go for it.

[Twoboos]

I don't have a BMW, but DH has had his for about 10yrs. I think it's had the usual sort of things go wrong for a 10yr old car, I don't recall any major repairs (or maybe I've put those out of my mind! ;)).

I will say, I looooove driving it. It really is a driving machine, LOL. He got a loaner last week b/c they had to do a recall repair (brake lights). It may have been a 328 - oh my, it was SO nice. A little roomier than the 325xi he currently has (New England = need all wheel drive), which is nice. When the 4 of us are in there it feels tight! He is planning on getting another one within a year or two. (Although he's been talking about getting the Porsche sedan instead, which I think is just silly, you don't get a Porsche SEDAN for cryin' out loud. Plus I think it's like a zillion dollars so that's not happening.)

If you are spending all that time in your car, make it one you love. Get it!

[iaam]

We are looking at buying a new car later on this year or next year. DH keeps telling me that I should get what I really want, which is a BMW 328 sedan (or whatever the base model engine is at the time with a manual transmission; unless I can get a 335d certified). I have deep down always wanted a BMW as a family friend has had one almost continuously since the late 1970s. So if I wanted a BMW we'd probably have to save for another year which we could do because our Corolla is running fine, and has just 50k miles on it. I would also consider buying certified as long as it doesn't have more than 30k on it, but that might be a stretch.

So are BMWs really money traps?

How long have you had yours? (or how long did you have it?)

Would you buy one again?

Would you rec. one for someone who drives 50 miles a day for commuting?

We have a BMW 530xi and a Honda Accord - both manual shift cars with V6 engines. Yes, to us, the BMW is worth it. It's super fun to drive - very responsive and the ride is really smooth. I love the 'heaviness' (not bulkiness) of the car, if that makes sense.

That being said, for work I drive the Honda. My commute is 60 miles round-trip and it doesn't make sense to spend the extra money on gas (we fill premium/93 in the beemer vs. regular in the Honda) and higher maintenance/servicing costs.

One thing to consider - I am not sure about our position on this - BMW offers free servicing/maintenance for x years/y miles (I can't remember the details) - if you are out of that it can be pretty expensive for even something like a micro filter change. Part of it is that the car is so computerized that the service technicians can't do anything until the car 'tells' them to - so you are paying for the diagnostic in addition to the already expensive servicing...

My brother and SIL recently got a 3-series (don't remember the model) and love it too.

[Giantbear]

i leased a 550 for 3 years and loved it, it is a real driving machine. It is $$ though, so you really have to love the driving experience for it to be worth it. They jacked the price at the end of the lease on the new 550 x drive, so i went to an infiniti m57. A nice car, but it is no 550

[babychi]

We have a BMW x3 and love it. It's the perfect size for our family of three right now. We drive it maybe 20 miles a day in terms of errands, commuting, and gas is not an issue. Yes, you have to use more premium gas, but it's not that big of a deal for the amount of miles we travel.

We've had ours for a little over 3 years now and I would definitely buy another one or recommend one to a friend. We bought a one year old model used with only 5,000 miles on it, so we got a great deal without taking the depreciation hit.

[Jo..]

I had an OLD BMW that I drove in the early 90's. The sucker was 15-20 years old (I forget the year) and it was a work horse. It never gave me a lick of trouble, despite its age. I WANTED the thing kick the bucket, because I was eyeing little red convertibles, and knew that my boyfriend at the time would be upset if I gave it back to him for no good reason. (it was a gift from him).

As a side note, I did eventually get my little red convertible...a FIAT, LOL...I gave the BMW back and my boyfriend wasn't happy. He said I would be in for a world of trouble, and I was. But that is another story.

OLD BMWs were well-built, and they earned their reputation and high price tag.

In the late 90's, early 2000's, my bosses whole family (boss, brother, father) ALL drove brand new BMWs. They got new ones every year. And the things were ALWAYS in the shop. At that time I thought "They don't make them like they used to".

Unsure of what the status is now, but I am inclined to think that at this point they have cut corners and you are paying for a name/emblem vs true quality.

[Tondi G]

my sister just turned in her X5 lease. It was a fine car for the 3 years she had it.

things to consider

premium gas
more expensive service/maintenance

My SIL had a BMW sedan and somehow managed to kill her transmission in 5 years which was a total bummer. Not sure if she had a lemon or what but she said she will never own another BMW.

[jgenie]

My DH just got rid of a 14 yr old BMW 5 series and I have a 12 yr old 3 series convertible. We had lots of little stuff that needed to be repaired in DH's car and the motor on the convertible top of mine had to be replaced (thankfully before the warranty expired). Neither of our cars had more than 70K miles on them and mine has always been kept in the garage. They are fun to drive but I don't see us buying another BMW in the future.

[pinkmomagain]

My DH had a 5 series for a few years and currently drives the X5.
It's an enjoyable ride. He drives it long distances to see clients in other states. He likes the 3 year service deal. He has had some annoying electrical thing with it that was finally resolved. I don't think his next car will be a BMW, just because he'll want to drive something different.

I say if you want it and can afford it, go for it!

[arivecchi]

We have had our X5 since late 2005. No issues whatsoever and we do a ton of driving as it is our only car and we drive to see family in another state at least twice a month. It was a splurge, but we love our car. Incredible handling, super comfortable and I feel secure in it - especially in bad weather conditions.

I would get the same car if I had to replace it, but we intend to drive it till it dies.

My mom has a 3 series sedan and the only thing I don't like about it is that it is kind of a PITA to put car seats in there. Definitely way easier in my X5, but then again, I've never had a sedan, so maybe that is an issue across the board.

[AnnieW625]

Arivecchi, we drive about 17,000 to 20,000 miles a year, how much do you drive?

If we buy new that is the only way to get the 4yrs/50,000 miles so that impacts this idea greatly as I would want to pay no more than $30k for the car, put about $10k down and then have an auto loan for 3 to 4 yrs. . We hit 50,000 miles on my Pilot at just over 3 yrs. old. My car is just over 5 yrs. old and has 106k on it, it turned 100k in early October and we bought it in Sept., 2006. I just got my second set of new rear brake pads on my Pilot, new stabilizers, and will get new front brakes and another set of four tires (the next ones will be rated to 80k miles though) in the next couple of months. So for three years of brakes/tires the cost of my Pilot is right around $1100. We go to an an independent mechanic.

I too have thought about premium fuel which will be a downside for us, but if Costco Premium (91) is okay that isn't much different than what I pay for Chevron for 87.

To the poster who has the manual V6 Accord sedan I am jealous! They no longer make the Accord with a V-6 and a manual. I am guessing you have a 2007 or older Accord. If I had known they were going to discontinue the 6 SPD. v-6 I really would have pushed for that when I was buying my Pilot in 06.

[flashy09]

I have a new x3 35i and love it! I also had a 328 ..loved it but had some weird and expensive issues such as the ignition refusing to turn off and I drove it home without a key to let it run out of gas ( this was before these new stop/start buttons). 100,000 miles I traded it in with every warning light lit up. I love how fun they are to drive so just put up with a few flaws. Have a Toyota that is unbreakable but just not the same feeling to drive lol!

[arivecchi]

I think we are close to 80,000 miles and we bought our car in December of 05. We have had to change the tires and break pads. We go to a good mechanic we found on yelp for European cars and a tire shop that we also found on yelp now that we are out of warranty and the few things we have had done have not been overly expensive. PM me if you want more details.

[kellij]

My DH had a 328i and I would NEVER buy a BMW again. It was fine, in general. But man, you have to take them to either a dealership or a BMW certified person to work on them. It costs so much more for maintenance than any car I've ever owned. I had a Lexus and it was so much easier. Any place that could work on a Toyota, could work on a Lexus. I just thought it was a lot more inconvenient and cost a lot more, and wasn't any better than any other car. When we decided to sell it, it suddenly got tons of problems and we had to put almost as much into it just to sell it as we got from selling it. It was painful.

Now we have Hondas. :) I'm clearly a low maintenance car kind of person.

[Cam&Clay]

DH has a 2007 328. It's his baby, well, his second baby. He totalled the first one and then bought an identical one used. He has not had any major trouble with it. I don't drive it because I can't drive a manual transmission. I feel that it is small and keep telling him to get a 500 series when this one dies. Since I drive a van, everything feels small to me.

We plan for this car to be DS1's when he starts to drive in (gulp) three years.

[LBW]

We've had lots and lots of BMWs, almost all older models. Everything from a 1972 2002 to our "new" one -- a 2001 325 wagon, with manual transmission, of course. ;)

My husband is a mechanical engineer, and he enjoys working on cars, hence the fleet of older BMWs. He's not so happy with the newer BMWs because the cars are less mechanical and more high-tech. Doesn't mean they aren't good cars, but they really need to be worked on by professional mechanics, not hobbyists like him.

I love our 3-series, even though I mostly drive an Odyssey these days. It's super fun to drive and has had very few problems. I even took it to Limerock race track during my first pregnancy for driver's school! I learned to drive it on the track - super fun!

My in laws are BMW fans, too. (Many of our cars were ones they had practically driven to the ground.) They did European delivery on their last new one -- a 330. Highly recommend the European delivery option. The savings on the car paid for their trip to Europe.

[babybell]

I knew someone who had a 7 series and dumped it after the warranty was up because the repairs cost a fortune. It was a money pit, for sure.

But oh man, did I like driving that thing. A serious car.

[Trigglet]

My Dad has had many BMWs and liked them (though he is now a Volvo man). My MIL had a 7 series that she drove from new for about 17 years - it was a total workhorse and amazing. She just made sure to have all its services done on schedule and as far as I know she never had any major problems.

My favourite car was my BMW 318is - oh man I loved that car. Metallic British Racing Green - gorgeous and a delight to drive. DH wrote it off :mad: and replacing it wasn't an option as it just wasn't practical with car seats etc!

I love BMWs and think they're basically the best designed cars on the road (second only to the old Saab 900s), but then I'm a bit of a car design purist. They are expensive to buy, but if you care about the actual driving experience they're hard to beat. Oh, and I've never bothered putting premium fuel in and neither has anyone I know - I must say I think it's a bit of a con. But I'm not a mechanic, so I don't know that for sure :D

[WatchingThemGrow]

my MIL has one, and she got this one b/c her old one kept stalling in intersections (aack!) and she likes it a lot. BIL took their old M3 and is rebuilding it. Seems impractical for his life of toting DC to school 45min each way, but whatever.

If it were ME, though, I'd get a Lexus simply because our mall has free valet parking for Lexus owners.

[peanut520]

Never again. I just got rid of my 2006 325xi for a Lexus ES *in October. *They fun to drive, love the sturdiness of the drive, and great while you are under the maintenance program and the warranty. *At 90k miles there was almost 6k in repairs (transmissions leak, windshield wiper motor, *seat belt, door lock) that I opted not to have done and trade it in for the Lexus. That doesn't include the run flat tires that are expensive and need to be replaced frequently (think 30k miles if you are lucky). * It is the little things that will add up.*

My mom got rid of her 528 for a Lexus also and has never looked back. It was the car I learned to drive in, my brother took to college a serious workhorse but it was in the shop more than on the road. *

I was told when I had a headlight replaced ($180 -because i could not get my hand between the battery and the headlight unit) that it was nothing compared to the $900 to replace the headlight in a 7 series.*