I have an opportunity to purchase a 335i coupe at an extremely discounted price but it is a BMW buy back due to a fuel pump problem. What would cause BMW to buy back a car vs repairing at the dealer? Is this (BMW buy back) worth pursuing or am I asking for trouble. Thanks in advance!
At one point BMW didn't have enough fuel pumps to be able to repair cars so they bought them back, however this should be long since over. I had 3 335's. One had 2 fuel pumps, one had 3 fuel pumps and the other still hasn't had one. Depends on the car, but for ti to be bought back it must have had more than one fuel pump. I had an XC90 lemoned a few years back because it went through 7 cooling fan solenoids due to a short circuit. I'm sure it was fine for the guy who bought it after it was finally fixed but I just lost faith in the vehicle as it would constantly overheat and leave my family stranded. So, the car has either been sitting for a long time, or has been lemoned. Personally I would rather look for an 08 at a huge discount than take my chamces on a buyback and be at the dealer all the time. There are lots of deals out there now. I gave up on the turbo motors and went back to the N/A in the M3. Got tired of being at the dealership. It seemed I knew more about the cars than they did.
Thanks for the reply. My thinking has been along the same lines and I too was actually looking at the new M3. I currently have an '08 335i Sedan w/ auto trans but after a year of ownership I miss the manual transmission. In your opinion, was the upgrade to the M worth it? I take you have an '08 M3 by the picture. Is the difference between the M3 and the 335 substantial enough to warrant the price difference? I have yet to drive the new M3 but plan to shortly....thanks again.
I put alot of money into my last 335i turning it into a Dinan S2 and I still find the M3 V8 much more enjoyable to drive. I was in your shoes, wondered if it is really worth it, then I drove one. It lacks the bottom end grunt of the 335i but it is alot more car than the 335i. Handles, stops and gets around quicker than the 335i. More nicely finished and the fit and finish seems better even though I know it probably comes from the same workers and same factory. I had a heck of a time with the seats in the 335i ending up with intense hip pain if I was in it for any more than an hour (old skiing injury). I've not had the same problem with the seats in the M3. Once you get it over about 6000 it absolutely screams. A friend likened the sound to his Gallardo. Not bad for 1/3 the price I figure... On my favorite nearby curvy road I was astonished by how much more capable the car was than the 335i. I don't know if its the steering or the suspension set up but it is just super predictable, understeers much less than the 335i and is glued to the line you pick. I suspect end to end I was 30km/h to 40km/h faster than the 335i was. It gets abysmal gas mileage for the first few thousand miles though. Now that the engine has loosened up a bit it gets about 30% better mileage than it was. The first few tanks were gone in no time. The only other car I've had (and I've had 9 iterations of the 3 series and 1 5 series) that has even close to as much "soul" as the M3 was my 04 330 zhp. I didn't really buy into the M mystique until I drove one. I suggest you drive one back to back with the 335i. They are very different cars. I'm still a huge fan of the 335i, I think it is the best overall value on the market. But its not an M car.
