Anyone ever go the used or CPO route with a BMW 3 series, Audi A4, or Buick Regal (Opel)?

[Anonymous]

Don't want to shell out for a new one and see for 2015 models, really good deals for <40,000 miles vehicles.

-- how much bargaining power do you have if the car is offered for, say $25,000? Can you ask for a couple of thousand less.

-- what about reliability. I understand that BMW can stand for Bring My Wallet, but will German cars go over 100,000 miles without major repairs? Also thought of Lexus but really don't like the styling.

-- is paying for CPO worth it vs. used from a private owner?

[Anonymous]

I would not buy any of those cars unless they are coming with a 3 year warranty. Why is the buick regal priced the same? It should be much lower. CPO is just a BS term used to get you to pay more.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would not buy any of those cars unless they are coming with a 3 year warranty. Why is the buick regal priced the same? It should be much lower. CPO is just a BS term used to get you to pay more.

Regal is lower, it is rebadged Opel with good reliability.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would not buy any of those cars unless they are coming with a 3 year warranty. Why is the buick regal priced the same? It should be much lower. CPO is just a BS term used to get you to pay more.

CPO gives you an extension of the manufacturer's warranty which can be extremely valuable on European cars.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Don't want to shell out for a new one and see for 2015 models, really good deals for <40,000 miles vehicles.

-- how much bargaining power do you have if the car is offered for, say $25,000? Can you ask for a couple of thousand less.

-- what about reliability. I understand that BMW can stand for Bring My Wallet, but will German cars go over 100,000 miles without major repairs? Also thought of Lexus but really don't like the styling.

-- is paying for CPO worth it vs. used from a private owner?

What are you looking for in a car? I just bought a 2015 5 series for a similar price, but there isn’t much wiggle room for negotiating if you do your homework and it’s a good price. Maybe between $800-$1200 on used cars depending on how long the car has been sitting on the lot. Sometimes you can get a better deal if it’s an Audi or BMW sitting in a Honda dealership. Make sure you check what their fees are, some places charge a pre delivery inspection which is total bs.

Most importantly than price, check to make sure cars have maintenance records. I Checked the Carfax of all the cars I looked at and wanted records at the dealer or else I wasn’t interested. Then I followed up with the dealership to ask about the records for that vehicle and if any warranty work was done. I also refused to buy cars with more than 1 owner and any cars purchases/maintained near the NYC area. For BMWs, you can use the VIN to see the options on the car when it was built https://www.mdecoder.com/.

CPO can give you a peace of mind on a vehicle and you will pay top dollar for those particular German cars, but if you know how to find a good car, you can save your money for future maintenance. This is my second BMW and I am meticulous about maintenance and I don’t see why 100k miles would be a barrier for any major repairs.

[Anonymous]

The thing about buying a a used luxury car is you need to understand that the 25K upfront cost for a 3 yo 5 series is not the same as the 25K for a Honda. The difference is maintenance and repairs will be like a European Luxury car, or 2-3x that of the new Honda.

[Anonymous]

A CPO does ZERO to car. Take a BMW dealer all they have to is go on carfax as a dealer and tag it CPO. It is on Honor system.

Now BMW itself to be CPO must be one owner, no accidents, maint up to date, under original warranty, they detail it and add extended warranty. That is the value. The button they click to make it CPO just is a profit maker for them

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Don't want to shell out for a new one and see for 2015 models, really good deals for <40,000 miles vehicles.

-- how much bargaining power do you have if the car is offered for, say $25,000? Can you ask for a couple of thousand less.

-- what about reliability. I understand that BMW can stand for Bring My Wallet, but will German cars go over 100,000 miles without major repairs? Also thought of Lexus but really don't like the styling.

-- is paying for CPO worth it vs. used from a private owner?

What are you looking for in a car? I just bought a 2015 5 series for a similar price, but there isn’t much wiggle room for negotiating if you do your homework and it’s a good price. Maybe between $800-$1200 on used cars depending on how long the car has been sitting on the lot. Sometimes you can get a better deal if it’s an Audi or BMW sitting in a Honda dealership. Make sure you check what their fees are, some places charge a pre delivery inspection which is total bs.

Most importantly than price, check to make sure cars have maintenance records. I Checked the Carfax of all the cars I looked at and wanted records at the dealer or else I wasn’t interested. Then I followed up with the dealership to ask about the records for that vehicle and if any warranty work was done. I also refused to buy cars with more than 1 owner and any cars purchases/maintained near the NYC area. For BMWs, you can use the VIN to see the options on the car when it was built https://www.mdecoder.com/.

CPO can give you a peace of mind on a vehicle and you will pay top dollar for those particular German cars, but if you know how to find a good car, you can save your money for future maintenance. This is my second BMW and I am meticulous about maintenance and I don’t see why 100k miles would be a barrier for any major repairs.

OP: looking for a daily car to work, which is 30 miles away, AWD for bad weather, but sporty and fun. We have a crossover for family trips. Don't want to buy a "maintenance queen".

So is what you are saying is look for used, check maintenance records/fact it is one owner, and skip CPO? Funny thing is, I have seen CPO's in my area for not very much more than a used one. Curious as to why NYC area cars are off your list? Do you look for vehicles across a wide geographic area?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Don't want to shell out for a new one and see for 2015 models, really good deals for <40,000 miles vehicles.

-- how much bargaining power do you have if the car is offered for, say $25,000? Can you ask for a couple of thousand less.

-- what about reliability. I understand that BMW can stand for Bring My Wallet, but will German cars go over 100,000 miles without major repairs? Also thought of Lexus but really don't like the styling.

-- is paying for CPO worth it vs. used from a private owner?

What are you looking for in a car? I just bought a 2015 5 series for a similar price, but there isn’t much wiggle room for negotiating if you do your homework and it’s a good price. Maybe between $800-$1200 on used cars depending on how long the car has been sitting on the lot. Sometimes you can get a better deal if it’s an Audi or BMW sitting in a Honda dealership. Make sure you check what their fees are, some places charge a pre delivery inspection which is total bs.

Most importantly than price, check to make sure cars have maintenance records. I Checked the Carfax of all the cars I looked at and wanted records at the dealer or else I wasn’t interested. Then I followed up with the dealership to ask about the records for that vehicle and if any warranty work was done. I also refused to buy cars with more than 1 owner and any cars purchases/maintained near the NYC area. For BMWs, you can use the VIN to see the options on the car when it was built https://www.mdecoder.com/.

CPO can give you a peace of mind on a vehicle and you will pay top dollar for those particular German cars, but if you know how to find a good car, you can save your money for future maintenance. This is my second BMW and I am meticulous about maintenance and I don’t see why 100k miles would be a barrier for any major repairs.

OP: looking for a daily car to work, which is 30 miles away, AWD for bad weather, but sporty and fun. We have a crossover for family trips. Don't want to buy a "maintenance queen".

So is what you are saying is look for used, check maintenance records/fact it is one owner, and skip CPO? Funny thing is, I have seen CPO's in my area for not very much more than a used one. Curious as to why NYC area cars are off your list? Do you look for vehicles across a wide geographic area?

Ok so a comfortable daily driver. At 60 mi a day, you might want to consider the turbo 4 cylinder for mileage which means looking at a 328i sedan (or my personal favorite wagon), 428i gran coupe, or 528i all in x drive which is BMWs all wheel drive system. If that is too slow, try driving the 340i, 435i, 535i x drove in the same cars. I can’t help you with the other cars without doing any extensive research on maintenance and typical issues.

If you can get a CPO for not much more, make sure it comes with a warranty and you are all set. If you really have to have a warranty, you can get one after market for 3-4 years at about $1000 per year.

As for avoiding certain areas, cars driven around NYC gets accelerated wear and tear from city driving. The streets there are unkind to vehicles so premature wear on suspension components and typical cosmetic wear from parking. I’m probably paranoid then most, but I take into account how the car was likely driven about how it was taken care of.

Lastly, this checklist is a good way to be as diligent as possible. (Which is not mine, but I do all the similar things)
https://www.ammonyc.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/301-03_DC_201_StepbyStep_R1B.pdf

Good luck and let me know what you end up with.