I've been wanting to get into a BMW for years. My finances are finally at a point where it's reasonable. I found a nice 2005 330i ZHP (41.4K miles) under CPO at my local dealer. It doesn't seem to have any options above and beyond ZHP. I'm not sure if it's a good deal. It's marked at $29,999. I was told the current promotion is 2.9% APR from BMW financing. Due to my hand wringing over the car and warranty, they offered to either decrease the price by $2k, or throw in the extended factory warranty. He then discovered he was wrong and it's 3.9% APR, and offered to price it such that the monthly payments would be those of 2.9%. After more hand wringing, he asked what he'd have to do to get me in the car, and offered to let me borrow it for a few days. A long story short, I've got the car until Monday, and I'm still no closer to making a decision. I'm not a haggler, so any advice is appreciated.
That is really, really expensive... that's almost the price of a new BMW but with 40k miles. I can find you a 330i from a private seller for $22,000.
If I get it from a private seller, it's not CPO. I've had family get BMWs from private sellers and end up with quite the non-wear-and-tear maintenance bill. Is the CPO worth it? How much more should I really expect to pay for ZHP?
Well shouldn't a 2005 still have a year left on its warranty? Or does that only apply to the original owner? Either way, $29k is still a lot to pay for a car that's over 3 years old and has 40k miles on it, but I guess it's true that it cost a lot more when new, so if you think it's worth it, then go for it. I hear the CPO warranties are pretty good...
You are correct. The original factory warranty expires 1/22/09. I've come to the same conclusion you have. While CPO is nice, $29K (or even discounted to $27K) is way too high. I'm probably going to wait for a good deal to come along via private party. In this case, any buying advice is appreciated.
Well... figuring that you have more than a few months on original warranty the choice is yours. Remember that the warranty is either 4 years or 50,000 miles, not both; whichever comes first. Then the CPO warranty kicks in. 2 years or 100,000 miles. Now the key issue here may not be the price or warranty but having the opportunity to own a ZHP. Something that most pay a lot extra for on other models just to get it up to that level of performance. Of course, you could opt for an M3 and that would be that. But that wider rear rims and tires, performance camshaft brings out the best of the 330 series; all you need to do is a tweak on the OBD, some cool exhaust, and a cold air induction and it should pop more horses on to gallop with.
The 330i ZHP would actually be the car I would buy if I had enough money to buy a brand new car. It is, in my opinion, the pinnacle of BMW design inside and out, and I'm sure it's nothing to be unimpressed about when it comes to performance. They are a rarer breed than your garden-variety 330i, but I'm sure you can find one somewhere other than a dealer. I do have to agree about the warranty though. I assume the time will pass faster than ~50,000 miles will, but another 2 years for a warranty isn't bad, but is it really worth 8 grand more than what you can get a privately-sold 330i ZHP for? I'd say you could buy a current ZHP with some part of the original warranty still in effect and this way you could see if anything is actually wrong with the car, and if there is, the warranty is still there to get the initial quirks out.
Here's is something that you can do for yourself. Go to any BMW dealer site and quiry the pre-owned section.... find the 3 series and then price a 2005 330CI/330I ZHP model and see what you get. If you can find it cheaper... buy it there. Nuf said.
First off, I HAVE searched the dealer sites. Second, none of them, at least in my region, allow you to drill down to the detail of options when searching. Third, the selection in my region sucks. I was merely asking if the price sounded reasonable to more seasoned afficionados, and if CPO was worth the extra cash. Thanks for the non-advice though. The dealer is twisting the knife. He's dropped it to $25,888. Apparently they advertised their 2005 stock as all being that price over the weekend. I'm in for another sleepless night agonizing over price and whether I can bear to park it in an urban environment without a garage. I'm not sure my wife would forgive me suggesting we move into a house just for a car
Well, the price sounds reasonable considering the model you are looking at. If you just want a plain 330i... then imo that price is a bit high. $25,888 for a ZHP is good. You've had our opinions... what did you expect to pay for one? Seems like you are not one to commit anyway and are beating around the bush... you have a good one and hope you get what you want. Have a great day.... Aloha!
Make sure the car is exactly what you want. Does it have all the options you want? I think you said it didn't. Seems to me that you could get a more "optionized" ZHP for $26K. I would consider getting a ZHP from a private seller and then spending some of the savings on an extended warranty. You should definately come out cheaper than $26k after all that. It doesn't really sound like you have found your perfect car...my $0.02...
I assume BMW will only let you buy an extended warranty on a car that still has some warranty left, but I get your drift. I've come to a similar conclusion. I can wait for a good deal to come along again, since I'm in no rush. Everyone in these forums have been great, and I can't wait to become a full member once I get my bimmer. Thanks.
You can get extended warranties from private parties. Some banks even offer them. Go to bimmerfest.com and search for extended warranties. You can also check E46fanatics.com for the same thing. There has been a lot of discussion on both. Do some research and I know you can save lotsa moneys! The other thing you could do is buy a ZHP from a private party on the cheap. Pay the $50 to have it THOROUGHLY checked out by an independent mechanic. If they find problems...negotiate with the seller to fix them or lower the price. Then, take the money you save...$2k or so...and put it into an interest bearing account, and DON'T TOUCH IT! Use that money for repairs or whatever comes up. The upside to this is that it is all YOUR money and you can get it back if you want. Plus, when you use some, repay your account over time. Plus, the interest you earn will help to replenish the funds. And when you sell the car...you can keep the money! Bonus!
Consider this... Consider this...when BMW was switching over from selling E46's to E90's there was an incentive on to get rid of E46's on the dealer lots. Some cynics said it was because they did not want people comparing E46's with E90's because the E46 would come off better. Anyway, I was just past buying a used zhp back then and was shocked to see quite a few BMW dealers offering NEW E46 zhp's for about $35,000. New! I had just paid $31,000 for a two year old zhp with 17,000 miles and would have been happy to get a new one for a few thousand more. In short, I think that $29,000 is on the high side.
I have an '03 330iZHP - The car is an absolute DREAM! IT has had it's issues so the warranty and the CPO came in VERY handy. I paid 31k but only for 17,000Mi. and they had just put brand new rubber on it. A little high on price but I was willing to pay a little more for the warranty. WAY different than a 330i even with the sport package.
What issues? What are your issues? I have put on just 12,000 miles in the three years I have had mine and issues are few: a ignition recall, the Alcantara of the steering wheel failed (really stpud choice on BMW's part) and the wheel was replaced with a leather M wheel (much better), and I think either my ignition program is funny or my Vanos is acting up because the power porpoises on hard acceleration (dealer found nothing wrong). I like it, but do not "love" it as I hoped I would. Really miss low-end grunt of earler cars I've owned. The 335d diesel sounds interesting, in that regard, but the E90's are so homely, I don't think i could do it. The E90 looks like something Buick would buiild. - Geo
I assume you're financing the car? Assuming you keep the car long enough to pay it off... If you figure $29000 for a used car and the length of the loan, for example 4 years on an almost 4 year old car, your payment is X per month and the car is 8 years old when it's paid off. If you configure a new 1 series carefully, with only what you want on it. You could get one for maybe $3-5000 more, but finance it for 6 years. The payment is probably close, or less, and when paid off, you'e got a 6 year old car instead of 8. AND you have a new car warrante and "alledgedly" maint. free. (but I would not reccommend doing some things on the free maint, like 15000 mile oil changes) There are many programs online, through many banks and credit unions to figure a loan payment amount. It's fund to play with... Good Luck - we have a 328i convert and love it.
$50??? I don't know where you are going to find a mechanic that will do a thorough check for anything like $50. That's less than an hour's time and will get you not much. Much better is to take it to a BMW dealer shop and pay the couple hundred they will charge for a real check-out.
Keep looking Hi from New Mexico. I just purchased an '04 330CI Performance Package for around $20K from a dealer. The car is seal gray with the cloth interior. It was a lease return with 53K on it. I don't think an '05 should cost more than $22-25K. I shopped around for 6 weeks and found several on Autotrader and E-Bay, some being sold by dealers, some private. In fact, as of a few days ago, I saw a couple of ZHPs-- one black coupe for $19.9 and a red sedan for around $21K. Check out those two sites. If you really want a ZHP (as I did), be patient and you'll find one.
