I hate feeling vulnerable. I am going to pick up my new 335i today or tomorrow. This is the time when the sales people have me. They have the car and I have the money. I want to get a Warranty for the run flat tires. Learned that here on one of the boards. What else should I look into? Please tell me what all you veterans have learned.
feeling vulnerable means you dont have much information about what it is you want and how much folks have been paying for them. I find to get the best deal is to be casually talking to sales person during your visits. You dont have to buy right away, just browse and get educated. Just talk cars, not purchase. There is nothing more a salesperson rather do than to give out test drives and talk about cars, its beats being bored at their desk while the boss looks at them trying to figure out if they need to stay or go. there are tons of info on the web,boards and car specific message boards. Normally takes me months to find out what I want and months to sell my car and months to finally purchase a car. A hurried customer is a salesman's dream. I know, I was one and made alot of mistake in terms of options I want, etc. Once you have enough information you'll know when you are ready. And your personal choice to buy additional insurance, etc is strictly personal choice IMHO. No right or wrong. Good luck
Supposedly GE offers a warranty on tires & wheels for about $900 (it depends on the dealership). Considering a wheel is $300 to $400 per plus the tire, one hit might make it worth while. IMO.
Make sure to inspect your car before you leave the dealership, just learned 2 months after that they forgot to install my alarm sytem and it's all paid for! Good Luck!
FWIW... I did not get the low profile wheels and run flats on my 2008 535i. So I felt no burning need to pay the $800 for wheel and tire warranty. However, my tires being Goodyears, I went to my local Goodyear dealer who wrote me a full road hazard policy on all 4 tires for $57, good for the life of the tire. I realize the wheels are the most expensive part of the equation, but in 15 years, I've never damaged a 17 or 18 inch wheel with standard all-season tires enough to require wheel replacement. If I were getting the low profile wheels and runflats, I might have considered differently, though.
