Used BMWs - what am I missing here?

[Anonymous]

My mechanic calls a Toyota or Honda with 100k miles a "new car", and calls BMW's/German cars with 30k miles "old cars".....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My mechanic calls a Toyota or Honda with 100k miles a "new car", and calls BMW's/German cars with 30k miles "old cars".....

This is not what the objective JD Powers reports demonstrate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I scrapped - literally scrapped for $300 - an absolutely beautiful 2003 750iL because it needed a new wiring harness. It was water-damaged from a leak in the windshield seal.

A new wiring harness in most cars would be a few hundred dollars.

The new wiring harness for the BMW was $14,999. $5,000 MORE than the blue book value of the car.


That's why I'll never own another eurotrash car again. Ever. Nothing but Asian or American cars for me.

That’s so f’king crazy. Was it the parts or labor? 15k... wow

There's probably about 3-5 hours labor to do a wiring harness and ECM, so labor would be another $300-$500 over parts cost

They are also made in South Africa and the US so you are paying German prices for a non-German car.

Which models are made in South Africa?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My mechanic calls a Toyota or Honda with 100k miles a "new car", and calls BMW's/German cars with 30k miles "old cars".....

This is not what the objective JD Powers reports demonstrate.

JD Powers report is not objective and can’t be relied on. It’s an industry mouthpiece paid for by industry.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My mechanic calls a Toyota or Honda with 100k miles a "new car", and calls BMW's/German cars with 30k miles "old cars".....

This is not what the objective JD Powers reports demonstrate.

ha-ha, you put "JD Powers" and "objective" in the same sentence, very funny

[Anonymous]

Do not get a BMW, especially not a used one.

My DH had a 3 series, during his ownership of the car he spent over 20k in maintenance and repairs.

You want a nice reliable car? Get a Lexus.

[Anonymous]

You don’t buy a BMW because it’s a good buy. You buy it because it’s fun to drive and looks good. Love our 530 and yes, it is a total waste of money.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You don’t buy a BMW because it’s a good buy. You buy it because it’s fun to drive and looks good. Love our 530 and yes, it is a total waste of money.

Hope it’s a lease. In the lease vs buy calculations, BMW is one of the only times a lease makes sense and that’s because of the awful reliability.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I scrapped - literally scrapped for $300 - an absolutely beautiful 2003 750iL because it needed a new wiring harness. It was water-damaged from a leak in the windshield seal.

A new wiring harness in most cars would be a few hundred dollars.

The new wiring harness for the BMW was $14,999. $5,000 MORE than the blue book value of the car.


That's why I'll never own another eurotrash car again. Ever. Nothing but Asian or American cars for me.

That’s so f’king crazy. Was it the parts or labor? 15k... wow

There's probably about 3-5 hours labor to do a wiring harness and ECM, so labor would be another $300-$500 over parts cost

They are also made in South Africa and the US so you are paying German prices for a non-German car.

Which models are made in South Africa?

https://www.autoguide.com/auto-news/2019/03/where-is-bmw-made-.html

I stand corrected. Some 3 series were made in Rosslyn, SA for 35 years. Now they are made in Mexico.

[Anonymous]

JD Powers is anything but objective. It's pay for play with the industry. Companies can just fork over money and basically get whatever they want said in the "award"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I scrapped - literally scrapped for $300 - an absolutely beautiful 2003 750iL because it needed a new wiring harness. It was water-damaged from a leak in the windshield seal.

A new wiring harness in most cars would be a few hundred dollars.

The new wiring harness for the BMW was $14,999. $5,000 MORE than the blue book value of the car.


That's why I'll never own another eurotrash car again. Ever. Nothing but Asian or American cars for me.

That’s so f’king crazy. Was it the parts or labor? 15k... wow

There's probably about 3-5 hours labor to do a wiring harness and ECM, so labor would be another $300-$500 over parts cost

They are also made in South Africa and the US so you are paying German prices for a non-German car.

Which models are made in South Africa?

https://www.autoguide.com/auto-news/2019/03/where-is-bmw-made-.html

I stand corrected. Some 3 series were made in Rosslyn, SA for 35 years. Now they are made in Mexico.

The article is wrong, they definitely still make US market 3 series in South Africa:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BMW#Production_facilities

https://www.bmwgroup-plants.com/rosslyn/en.html

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My mechanic calls a Toyota or Honda with 100k miles a "new car", and calls BMW's/German cars with 30k miles "old cars".....

This is not what the objective JD Powers reports demonstrate.

JD Powers report is not objective and can’t be relied on. It’s an industry mouthpiece paid for by industry.

Except Consumer reports has similarly poor ratings for Honda, below BMW and other German brands.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:JD Powers is anything but objective. It's pay for play with the industry. Companies can just fork over money and basically get whatever they want said in the "award"

Correct, plus JD Powers is initial quality, where most issues are covered via warranty anyways. You need to check out sites like https://www.truedelta.com for long term reliability.

[Anonymous]

My friend swears by the used BMW thing. They find great deals on them. Her teenage sons lime to work on cars, so they figure out how to get the parts and they either do the work themselves or take the car and replacement parts to a guy they found who works on them pretty cheap. I don’t know...it works out well for them because it’s a hobby and they enjoy it. They are definitely not status people at all. They just truly feel that it’s a cost-effective way to go.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My friend swears by the used BMW thing. They find great deals on them. Her teenage sons lime to work on cars, so they figure out how to get the parts and they either do the work themselves or take the car and replacement parts to a guy they found who works on them pretty cheap. I don’t know...it works out well for them because it’s a hobby and they enjoy it. They are definitely not status people at all. They just truly feel that it’s a cost-effective way to go.

It sounds like tinkering with cars is a hobby, not a "cost effective way to go".