Best luxury car below $40k

[earlyretirement]

My wife was deciding between an A4 and a BMW 328i. She loved both but it just came down to the Audi not being in stock with the one she wanted and it would have taken 3 or 4 months to order it.

Meanwhile the BMW they found one across the country like she wanted and transporting it here. I was amazed at how motivated the BMW dealerships are. Edmunds.com is the BEST way to buy a car as you have dealerships fighting after your business. We were getting $500 above dealer’s cost, then $250 over then $100 over and then even found a dealer that would give it to us at dealer’s cost which I’ve never before in all my years buying cars have seen.

We were all set to pay cash for the car but then they offered 1.9% financing if we financed it with BMW financing and then to boot, if we did, they rebated another $750 to go through them. So the financing costs very little as we put down a big down payment.

Plus they said we can have free weekly car washes for 2 years…… amazing how competitive they are right now.

Meanwhile, I went to the internet manager at Audi where I recently bought a Q7 to see if he can match BMW’s deal and offer the car AT COST and also got him to agree to it.

So car buying these days is definitely much easier using online sources like Edmunds. Love it..

[Coronita]

[quote=kev374]I would go either with the Acura or the Infiniti. The G coupe is really nice if you like sporty, the Acura TL now has SH-AWD so works great if you go to the mountains skiing etc. I owned an Acura 3.2TL Type S a few years back and loved it! I have owned a Nissan Frontier for the last 7 years and not had a single problem with it. To me that adds to a good ownership experience.

The BMWs are fun but they have recurring issues that require trips to the dealership, after a while it gets old…you ask yourself why you have to deal with this after spending 50k on a car.

Also note that Acura and Infiniti USED to be cheaper than BMW and Mercedes, this is no longer the case..both are now pretty damn expensive as well.[/quote]

Nissan’s have a pretty bad reliability record these days too….

[Coronita]

Bump…

http://www.autoblog.com/2011/10/14/2012-bmw-3-series-unveiled/

Meet the new 2012 F30 3 series….

I think finally BMW is turning around in the design department, after the fiasco with Bangle….. Looks like a smaller 5 series…. Should be a blast to drive, especially since it’s slightly lighter than the e92 (88 lbs). Bimmer’s going full blown turbo..

328 will be 4 cylinder turboed 240hp/260 lb-ft tq… Not bad at all for a 4 cylinder.

335 will remain the N55 single turbo inline 6, but now gets start/stop technology for combined 32mpg…

ActiveHybrid is coming in Fall..

My favorite is the did NOT put an electronic parking brake in, but opted for the traditional manual handbrake lever… yippee….

If you’re in the market for a 3 series, the outgoing model will probably take a pretty big discount this year….The F30 3 should pretty good if you can wait…

[an]

[quote=flu][quote=kev374]I would go either with the Acura or the Infiniti. The G coupe is really nice if you like sporty, the Acura TL now has SH-AWD so works great if you go to the mountains skiing etc. I owned an Acura 3.2TL Type S a few years back and loved it! I have owned a Nissan Frontier for the last 7 years and not had a single problem with it. To me that adds to a good ownership experience.

The BMWs are fun but they have recurring issues that require trips to the dealership, after a while it gets old…you ask yourself why you have to deal with this after spending 50k on a car.

Also note that Acura and Infiniti USED to be cheaper than BMW and Mercedes, this is no longer the case..both are now pretty damn expensive as well.[/quote]

Nissan’s have a pretty bad reliability record these days too….[/quote]
Nissan is pretty bad in JD Power Initial Quality but Infiniti isn’t. Infiniti is doing better than BMW & Audi: http://www.jdpower.com/news/pressrelease.aspx?ID=2011089

#1 is still Lexus, then Honda & Acura. Too bad those 3 make such boring cars.

[joec]

[quote=earlyretirement]My wife was deciding between an A4 and a BMW 328i. She loved both but it just came down to the Audi not being in stock with the one she wanted and it would have taken 3 or 4 months to order it.

Meanwhile the BMW they found one across the country like she wanted and transporting it here. I was amazed at how motivated the BMW dealerships are. Edmunds.com is the BEST way to buy a car as you have dealerships fighting after your business. We were getting $500 above dealer’s cost, then $250 over then $100 over and then even found a dealer that would give it to us at dealer’s cost which I’ve never before in all my years buying cars have seen.

We were all set to pay cash for the car but then they offered 1.9% financing if we financed it with BMW financing and then to boot, if we did, they rebated another $750 to go through them. So the financing costs very little as we put down a big down payment.

Plus they said we can have free weekly car washes for 2 years…… amazing how competitive they are right now.

Meanwhile, I went to the internet manager at Audi where I recently bought a Q7 to see if he can match BMW’s deal and offer the car AT COST and also got him to agree to it.

So car buying these days is definitely much easier using online sources like Edmunds. Love it..[/quote]

I also check truecar to see what people are paying. As flu said, the new 3-series BMWs are coming out next year so the current gen is being heavily discounted like pretty much below dealer invoice easy.

We’re in the same boat and considering the new 3 as well as Lexus (weak performance though). With BMW, you can also consider taking European delivery which will save you about 12% I think. That translates to about 5k or more which will cover your whole vacation to Europe. You can also join BMW CCA (club) for another 500-1000 discount depending on model…as well as loyalty cash, and sometimes, they have discounts for driving events, etc…

[Coronita]

[quote=joec][quote=earlyretirement]My wife was deciding between an A4 and a BMW 328i. She loved both but it just came down to the Audi not being in stock with the one she wanted and it would have taken 3 or 4 months to order it.

Meanwhile the BMW they found one across the country like she wanted and transporting it here. I was amazed at how motivated the BMW dealerships are. Edmunds.com is the BEST way to buy a car as you have dealerships fighting after your business. We were getting $500 above dealer’s cost, then $250 over then $100 over and then even found a dealer that would give it to us at dealer’s cost which I’ve never before in all my years buying cars have seen.

We were all set to pay cash for the car but then they offered 1.9% financing if we financed it with BMW financing and then to boot, if we did, they rebated another $750 to go through them. So the financing costs very little as we put down a big down payment.

Plus they said we can have free weekly car washes for 2 years…… amazing how competitive they are right now.

Meanwhile, I went to the internet manager at Audi where I recently bought a Q7 to see if he can match BMW’s deal and offer the car AT COST and also got him to agree to it.

So car buying these days is definitely much easier using online sources like Edmunds. Love it..[/quote]

I also check truecar to see what people are paying. As flu said, the new 3-series BMWs are coming out next year so the current gen is being heavily discounted like pretty much below dealer invoice easy.

We’re in the same boat and considering the new 3 as well as Lexus (weak performance though). With BMW, you can also consider taking European delivery which will save you about 12% I think. That translates to about 5k or more which will cover your whole vacation to Europe. You can also join BMW CCA (club) for another 500-1000 discount depending on model…as well as loyalty cash, and sometimes, they have discounts for driving events, etc…[/quote]

joec,

FWIW: back in February, I was able to get an F10 5 series 100 below invoice in L.A. ….And the F10 was already the new body style…So, you *should* be able to get an E90 way below invoice, because what I don’t think we know is how much incentive the dealer is getting from the factory in terms of meeting their quotas, etc. That stuff doesn’t show up in edmunds, and varies depending on how well (or not) dealer moves cars off the lot…I can tell you, you can cross off the list any san diego dealer and the temecula dealership..There is no way you will get a better price down here versus in L.A. I dealt with all the dealers in S.D. and L.A., and the best dealers could do down in S.D./Temecula was to give me an offer $1200 above what I paid. If you need a referral, I can give you where I went, and who I worked with..He deals directly over email, so you don’t even need to go there.

Also, one big drawback i think with the F30 3 series will be..I believe it will also have electronic steering. It’s alright for a daily driver…But I’m not so sure if it’s going to be so wonderful if you plan on tracking the car…I wouldn’t be surprised if the first thing people try to do is figure out the “how to retrofit a steering rack from an e90 into an F30” mod…

[patb]

Chevy volt.

It’s targeted as a high end product.

Cheap on gas, more power then you can imagine

[an]

[quote=patb]Chevy volt.

It’s targeted as a high end product.

Cheap on gas, more power then you can imagine[/quote]
You must have very low expectation in the power department.

[joec]

[quote=flu]

joec,

FWIW: back in February, I was able to get an F10 5 series 100 below invoice in L.A. ….And the F10 was already the new body style…So, you *should* be able to get an E90 way below invoice, because what I don’t think we know is how much incentive the dealer is getting from the factory in terms of meeting their quotas, etc. That stuff doesn’t show up in edmunds, and varies depending on how well (or not) dealer moves cars off the lot…I can tell you, you can cross off the list any san diego dealer and the temecula dealership..There is no way you will get a better price down here versus in L.A. I dealt with all the dealers in S.D. and L.A., and the best dealers could do down in S.D./Temecula was to give me an offer $1200 above what I paid. If you need a referral, I can give you where I went, and who I worked with..He deals directly over email, so you don’t even need to go there.

Also, one big drawback i think with the F30 3 series will be..I believe it will also have electronic steering. It’s alright for a daily driver…But I’m not so sure if it’s going to be so wonderful if you plan on tracking the car…I wouldn’t be surprised if the first thing people try to do is figure out the “how to retrofit a steering rack from an e90 into an F30” mod…[/quote]

flu,

Sure, let me know where you purchased from in LA. I’m not surprised LA prices will be cheaper than here considering more dealers and LA being more competitive. Same for gas too usually I think.

Does your F10 5 series also have the electronic steering? I read a little about it, but we won’t be tracking the car or anything at all. I don’t think I’ll be doing any tracking for another 10-15 years at this point with low funds and small kids to deal with.

We’re considering leasing (for the business) the new 3 since we actually would like to get the new M3, but that won’t be out till 2013 for MY2014 so when the lease is up, maybe we will switch to that instead. I don’t think they have discounts for the M3 though with European Delivery.

Thanks for all your info and time!

[GoUSC]

Second (or is it third fourth or fifth???) the 3-series BMW. Once you drive one you’ll understand. I currently have an M5 and X5 (diesel) and they still remain the best all around sports (sporty) cars on the market. Mine have all been very reliable and a blast to drive…

[Coronita]

[quote=joec][quote=flu]

joec,

FWIW: back in February, I was able to get an F10 5 series 100 below invoice in L.A. ….And the F10 was already the new body style…So, you *should* be able to get an E90 way below invoice, because what I don’t think we know is how much incentive the dealer is getting from the factory in terms of meeting their quotas, etc. That stuff doesn’t show up in edmunds, and varies depending on how well (or not) dealer moves cars off the lot…I can tell you, you can cross off the list any san diego dealer and the temecula dealership..There is no way you will get a better price down here versus in L.A. I dealt with all the dealers in S.D. and L.A., and the best dealers could do down in S.D./Temecula was to give me an offer $1200 above what I paid. If you need a referral, I can give you where I went, and who I worked with..He deals directly over email, so you don’t even need to go there.

Also, one big drawback i think with the F30 3 series will be..I believe it will also have electronic steering. It’s alright for a daily driver…But I’m not so sure if it’s going to be so wonderful if you plan on tracking the car…I wouldn’t be surprised if the first thing people try to do is figure out the “how to retrofit a steering rack from an e90 into an F30” mod…[/quote]

flu,

Sure, let me know where you purchased from in LA. I’m not surprised LA prices will be cheaper than here considering more dealers and LA being more competitive. Same for gas too usually I think.

Does your F10 5 series also have the electronic steering? I read a little about it, but we won’t be tracking the car or anything at all. I don’t think I’ll be doing any tracking for another 10-15 years at this point with low funds and small kids to deal with.

We’re considering leasing (for the business) the new 3 since we actually would like to get the new M3, but that won’t be out till 2013 for MY2014 so when the lease is up, maybe we will switch to that instead. I don’t think they have discounts for the M3 though with European Delivery.

Thanks for all your info and time![/quote]

Sure PM me if you want to me to give me the sales guy. Nice dude. Does everything over email.

Unfortunately, the F10 does have electronic steering. When I am in sports+ mode, the electronic steering tightens up, to simulate a stiffer wheel, as well as provide slightly more exaggerated road feel (simulated steering feedback). I don’t think it actually compromises the steering itself…For normal people, it probably can’t tell. But for me it took some use too. I don’t track the it, so don’t know who it would do on a track. The 550 unfortunately also got heavier, but the handling is pretty good still with the sports package. I think the most annoying thing is the electronic parking brake.

Even with the european discount on eligible cars, there are some conditions. You can’t bring it back until you drive X number of miles..Me, I sort of like instant gratification :).

[Coronita]

[quote=GoUSC]Second (or is it third fourth or fifth???) the 3-series BMW. Once you drive one you’ll understand. I currently have an M5 and X5 (diesel) and they still remain the best all around sports (sporty) cars on the market. Mine have all been very reliable and a blast to drive…[/quote]

Is your X5-35d the e70? If so, how is the gas mileage on your diesel?… I’m getting about 21 combined on my x5-35i. Some folks say they can get about 27 with the 35d…

[Author]

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