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      05-29-2016, 11:43 AM   #1
sr2002
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Advice: First time buyer: F30 328i

Hello this is my first post, I'm planning to buy a CPO or Loaner BMW 328i Tomorrow, I would appreciate some words of advice from you all.

My local dealer has the following vehicles available:

2013 328i 16k miles: PREMIUM PKG,NAVIGATION SYSTEM,VENETIAN BEIGE; DAKOTA LEATHER SEAT TRIM,2-WAY POWER GLASS MOONROOF,Leather Seats,Sun/Moon Roof,Navigation System,BMW ASSIST W/ENHANCED BLUETOOTH & USB,MINERAL WHITE METALLIC,8-SPEED STEPTRONIC AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION.
For 27,000$
Single owner personal vehicle with extensive maintenance record and clean car fax

2015 328i 11k miles: MOONROOF,DRIVER ASSISTANCE PACKAGE,Sun/Moon Roof,GLACIER SILVER METALLIC,HEATED FRONT SEATS,ANTHRACITE WOOD TRIM,BLACK; SENSATEC LEATHERETTE UPHOLSTERY,PEARL GLOSS CHROME HIGHLIGHT TRIM FINISHERS
For 32,000$
BMW loaner of the same dealer I'm buying from, Carfax looks clean, maintenance records arent very detailed on the Carfax atleast.

I was initially set on the 2013 car, but the factory warranty is only covered till April 2017. I was planning to get the extended Gold warranty for approx. 2000$ which bumps the price up to about 29,000$. In this case the delta between the 2015 option and this is only 3000$. Whereas the 2015 model has lesser options but has a factory warranty till June 2019.

Can you please tell me the pros and cons of the above options. Will spending the extra 3000$ and getting the 2015 model have higher benefits? What would be a better value?

I may get a different car in 3-4 years, I probably will not drive this car for the long haul as I'm a recent graduate and this is my very first car .

Another question I had is, the 2015 car is not a CPO (aparently loaners are not sold as CPO), in which case what warranty coverage will this car have ? Will I need to spend anything out of the pocket for regular wear/tear components for the next 3 years ?

Is there any downside to buying the loaner (apart from it possibly being thrashed or even driven carefully .. who knows)?

I saw there were quite a few 2015 320i for the same price as the 2013 328i , but the engine on the 320i will not be to my taste. Any other reason I should possibly consider the 320i?

Also, please let me know if there are any additional tips for me when buying a BMW, like what to look for, what to ask. This is the first time I'm making such a big purchase.

This is probably a wrong question for this board, but any reason I should look at Audi or Mercedes? (I'm a fan BMWs but, if there are factors like value or cost of ownership etc involved I would like to know if I'm making the right decision. I still have student loans lol)
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      05-29-2016, 12:00 PM   #2
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sr2002 View Post
Another question I had is, the 2015 car is not a CPO (aparently loaners are not sold as CPO), in which case what warranty coverage will this car have ? Will I need to spend anything out of the pocket for regular wear/tear components for the next 3 years ?
It is not correct that dealer loaners are not sold as CPO--I have one. I bought it with 5,400, CPO Elite. You should ask the dealer why that car is not CPO.
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      05-29-2016, 12:13 PM   #3
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It is not correct that dealer loaners are not sold as CPO--I have one. I bought it with 5,400, CPO Elite. You should ask the dealer why that car is not CPO.
None of the 2015 loaners, including the 320i s with as low as 3,000miles are listed as CPO. Maybe its some kind of a new policy?
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      05-29-2016, 12:37 PM   #4
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do either of the cars have xenon or led? i'm not sure how much you care about lighting but i've read so many threads/posts on here that they overlooked it and wanted to add it later.

that goes for any package/option that you desire. make sure it has what you want or know what you can live without...

adding options afterwards is usually very involved and costs a lot.
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      05-29-2016, 01:04 PM   #5
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No, neither have Xenons. But I dont really care much for that. The loaner has assitance package, which has backup camera, which certianly is a useful featuer to have. The 2013 have Nav, which I doubt I'll use.
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      05-29-2016, 01:28 PM   #6
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You should care about lighting, if you drop $30k on a car without it you will kick yourself later. Those prices seem really high for those cars, have you checked around?
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      05-29-2016, 01:43 PM   #7
sr2002
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I see. I looked at other dealers in the area and didn't find any 328i with that much of mileage for less. Most of them are close to $40k on the 2015. But I'll look again. I was planing to talk them down to 30k on the 2015 plus I'll be getting 1500$ rebate for new college grad discount. Do you guys think I should keep looking? I don't mind having a few less features if I'm getting a steal of a price. Most important thing to me is the engine and driving dynamics. I am in the Dallas area, I know it's too much to ask, but if any of you spotted something better please direct me to the website
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      05-29-2016, 02:08 PM   #8
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And to add to that. I was initially planing on buying a CPO infinity Q40 2015 for about $27k.. So my initial budget was around $25k to finance and rest on my trade-in and down payment. So realistically, I really dont want to spend more than $30k on a car right now.
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      05-29-2016, 02:39 PM   #9
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Have you driven one yet? The first thing I would do is go drive some cars, different specs/options and see what you like. Iirc the Nav computer was updated to NBT mid 2013 or beginning of 2014. Besides xenon/LED lighting this feature will be one you kicked yourself for later if you isn't get it. Once you have driven one with what you like broaden your search. The market is about to be flooded with them so there will be deals to be found.
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      05-29-2016, 02:40 PM   #10
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I'm in a similar boat but will most llikely wait a year. I would not buy a new one without lighting package, but I suspect they are hard to find on cpo cars since many who lease may not care about it. As for nav, keep in mind that the 2013 has an older nav system than current cars. You might want to look at a 2015 or 16 with nav and see if it matters to you. Personally, buying a car near that price range without the backup camera would bug me, especially if you have had one in the past. I have a tight parking situation at home that makes it indispensable. It's also good for parallel parking. If this is your first BMW and you think you won't hold on to it, I'd at least test drive the 320 to see if you like it. You will have more maintnnce problems than you expect, but the good news is that BMW treats you very well when problems occur. The 320 would limit your exposure until you determine if you can live with the cycle.
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      05-29-2016, 02:41 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by etinifni View Post
Have you driven one yet? The first thing I would do is go drive some cars, different specs/options and see what you like. Iirc the Nav computer was updated to NBT mid 2013 or beginning of 2014. Besides xenon/LED lighting this feature will be one you kicked yourself for later if you isn't get it. Once you have driven one with what you like broaden your search. The market is about to be flooded with them so there will be deals to be found.
Sorry for the silly question, but why do you think there will be a flood of them soon? Is there a best time of year to look for a cpo?
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      05-29-2016, 02:48 PM   #12
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Originally Posted by der_kommissar
Quote:
Originally Posted by etinifni View Post
Have you driven one yet? The first thing I would do is go drive some cars, different specs/options and see what you like. Iirc the Nav computer was updated to NBT mid 2013 or beginning of 2014. Besides xenon/LED lighting this feature will be one you kicked yourself for later if you isn't get it. Once you have driven one with what you like broaden your search. The market is about to be flooded with them so there will be deals to be found.
Sorry for the silly question, but why do you think there will be a flood of them soon? Is there a best time of year to look for a cpo?
Most people that lease cars do so for about 3 years.
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      05-29-2016, 03:01 PM   #13
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I see. I did drive the 328i yesterday, the 2013 model that I mentioned and immediately fell in love with the solid ride quality and the accelaration this thing has. I'm coming from an old 2002 Camry V6, so pretty much anything from the past 5 years is going to feel like an upgrade to me.

If I talk the dealer down to 30,500$ or something in that ball park, do you think it would be worth it?

In like mentioned earlier, the Loaner cars don't seem to have the lighting package. Rather I have seen may 2-3 328i s with lighting package that have less than 30,000miles and are at the 30,000$ mark. Most are $35-38k and are usually owned by a person rather than a loaner.

With the current 2015 that I had posted earlier, it does not have an owner, as the title was never issued (probably used by the dealership for demo or something). So, technicaly I will be the first owner if I decide to go for it ofcourse. 11k miles seems to be low but is kinda high compared to other loaners I saw in another dealership. But the price for the loaners from another dealership were close to $38k with lesser options than this one but 2016 models.
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      05-29-2016, 03:32 PM   #14
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Originally Posted by sr2002
I see. I did drive the 328i yesterday, the 2013 model that I mentioned and immediately fell in love with the solid ride quality and the accelaration this thing has. I'm coming from an old 2002 Camry V6, so pretty much anything from the past 5 years is going to feel like an upgrade to me.

If I talk the dealer down to 30,500$ or something in that ball park, do you think it would be worth it?

In like mentioned earlier, the Loaner cars don't seem to have the lighting package. Rather I have seen may 2-3 328i s with lighting package that have less than 30,000miles and are at the 30,000$ mark. Most are $35-38k and are usually owned by a person rather than a loaner.

With the current 2015 that I had posted earlier, it does not have an owner, as the title was never issued (probably used by the dealership for demo or something). So, technicaly I will be the first owner if I decide to go for it ofcourse. 11k miles seems to be low but is kinda high compared to other loaners I saw in another dealership. But the price for the loaners from another dealership were close to $38k with lesser options than this one but 2016 models.
Having the xenons or even LEDs will definitely help resale value IMO. I'm not a fan of the led output on the newer F30's. I personally wouldn't buy a car with standard halogen lights. Just read through the forums and buy the most car you can afford. It will most certainly be cheaper than trying to retrofit anything. If you buy a CPO car from a private party you can pay to have it transferred to turn iirc. BMW changed the rules recently so don't take anyone's word as gospel without verifying it.
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      05-29-2016, 03:43 PM   #15
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Of those two cars I think I'd recommend the 2015 loaner....WITH CPO Elite. There is no policy that says they can't CPO it. They just haven't. With this car you can use your recent grad discount, you get more new car warranty and you get more included maintenance.

I would suggest that you drive a 320i, just for comparison. It has basically the same motor as the 328i, just de-tuned a little.

Black leatherette will be a little rough in Texas, but with tinted windows it can be livable.

There have been little tweaks and improvements from model year to model year, so the 2015 will have somewhat better performance than the 2013.

What is the top end of your budget?


edit: Autobahn has a 2013 Modern line, asking $27,880, last seven of VIN F442805 that looks like it would be nice. They don't have photos up yet. It has premium package and oyster leather. It has about a year of new car warranty left, then two years of CPO warranty. You should be able to get it down to between $25k - $26k. http://shopautobahn-bmw.ebizautos.co...x?iid=15052668

Use www.bimmer.work to check the equipment on cars you're looking at.
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      05-29-2016, 03:45 PM   #16
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It seems like neither car has a sport package. The seats and suspension are must haves for me, as are xenons. I like the nbt nav and hk stereo as well but your priorities may vary.
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      05-29-2016, 03:51 PM   #17
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It seems like neither car has a sport package. The seats and suspension are must haves for me, as are xenons. I like the nbt nav and hk stereo as well but your priorities may vary.
Aye. I got tired of searching and it came down to a 2012 28i Modern line almost fully loaded (no sports/technology package) with CPO warranty until 2018, and a '13 Sportline with same miles no warranty and less options (no xenon, PDC, etc). I went with the one that had the warranty. I miss not having the sports seats but I think I made the correct choice, plus I'm really not a fan of the red stitching and trim.
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      05-29-2016, 04:11 PM   #18
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http://www.audidallas.com/certified/...8d968288f0.htm

Saw the above as well, probaby not quite the performance of the BMW 328i but has better equipment for the same price. Just posted that as comparison, I know this is BMW forum ...

The Maximum I was planning to spend was 30k$ .. I dont yet know what my APR is going to be. I dont want my monthly payments to exceed 500$ for 60months. This will pretty much be my first loan for a car, so I was told the APR might be high.

Will asking a better price (perhaps $30k instead of $32K) make this a better deal, since it has no packages apart from the driver assistance package?

Or do you think I will get better deals for that price?

And as for the 320, I don't know I can try to test drive it, but I know I wont be hapyy with that choice over time.
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      05-29-2016, 04:23 PM   #19
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Secondly, I forgot to ask

Warranty/service plan for the 4years/50,000miles on the 2015 model

The 1year warranty/service plan + CPO + gold warranty on the 2013 model

Are the above really as robust and better value as far as out of pocket cost over the next 3-4 years as everyone claims? Or does Audi also have something equivalent? I'm just asking this to make sure I'm not just blinded by the awesome test drive experience I had yesterday .. I havent driven an audi yet by the way.

I doubt I will keep this car for very long time, I might trade it in in 3 to years once the warranty is up and get something else by the way. So the small things like Xenon or Leather .. may not even be somthing I will deal with all my life lol ..
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      05-29-2016, 04:25 PM   #20
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You should try the Audi. They're good cars. That one is fwd. Keep in mind ALL Audis are built on a fwd architecture. If that's not a big deal to you you just might find you like the car really well.

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      05-29-2016, 04:30 PM   #21
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On the 2015 328i the warranty and maintenance clock started the day it went into service, so you won't get the full 4yrs/50k miles on either.
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      05-29-2016, 04:39 PM   #22
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Yes, I realize that I will only get 3 more years and about 39,000miles of the whole coverage. I'm seeing some Audio A4s in the 30,000$ range with better equipment. Is the BMW warranty/maintenance coverage better than Audi's ? As far as out of pocket cost over the next lets say 3-4 years?
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