PCetera11

Hi E60 Fans,

I would like to gain some insight from you guys in regards to whether or not the e60 is right for me. I am age 26, I am making over 50,000 right now. I do not own a home, rather I rent an apartment. I save about 1000 a month. I am a lessee at the moment with a 3 series. Currently single but in a relationship that may lead to marriage. No kids. I need the use of 4 doors. I enjoy my 3 series, but yearn for something a little more luxurious, and comfortable. I love the 5 series, and if I could afford it, i would have a 545/550i.

But really, I am at a crossroads. The next 3 series seems to be more adventerous which is a plus and I am not into 1 st year model glitches. So i might pass on the 3, even though I love my current 330. I am a standard driver, and really prefer a stick shift automobile.

Possible cars I am considering.

530i 06 (the dream car)
330i 05 (still love the look)
x3 Stick Shift version
Acura Tl 2005 - FWD big minus
Audi A4 2005.5
Audi A6 2005
Lexus Is300 2006
Boxster 2005
Volvo s60 AWDTurbo
Volvo S40 Stick

My heart really is with the 5. As a business owner, its a real plus to drive clients in the backseat of a 5 verses my 3. A 2 seater really is not an option unless its a base porsche. I then worry that this porsche will get too much attention.

Leasing is best, since the residual and MF are great on 5 series. If I go 5, I will order and recieve the new r6 engine with prem pack, cold weather pack, logic 7, and xenon lights. 6 Speed. Oddly enough, the lease price is decent for this vehicle.

Basically, do you feel a 26 year old is worthy of such an automobile like a 530i. Do you think I should try my hand at a new 330i and then work up to a 5 in three years? The question comes to mind whether or not I intend to buy a home. I do in the future. But I love to drive interesting cars. At the moment I can afford a 5, and the insurance. The monthly payment might be 650 a month, a bit of a jump from my current 330 lease.

I also have a very good price on a loaded acura Tl. I am affraid though i will miss rear wheel drive and the true sports car the BMW is. I need your input. Go back to when you were 26. Did you go and make a mistake on a more expensive car and in hindsight realize you should have done something differently.

I am already sold on the 530i. I think its an incredible machine. It drives like a dream. Idrive, while tough, is something i can master. Love the heated steering wheel. But another part of me says, wait a minute, think things out.

If you have some spare time, please share with me your insight/wisdom/expertise that I may use to help me make a final decision.

Sincerely PC

DXXXi

Plenty of people in their 20's on this board. Personally, when I was in my 20s, I wanted BMWs but drove Volkswagens. I think you have to decide what you can afford for yourself though. I assume that if you are a business owner using the car for business purposes, then you will be able to write-off a portion of the cost of leasing / insurance / etc.

gde

if you are going to be a bear, you may as well be a grizzly

acribb

I think that assuming you don't have much of any other debt, that you could easily afford this car, leasing **OR** buying, even if a modest house payment were to pop-up in the future (assuming your wife-to-be is making around what you are).

I would go ahead and get the Sport Package (fun) and Navigation (since you use the car for business).

ISUK

The new E90 3 series is unlikely to suffer from the same number of faults that have affected the E60. Why you may ask.... Well the majority of issues in the E60 have been to do with i-drive. The same system from the E60 is now in operation in both the 6 series and the 1 series in Europe. The new 3 is therefore going to get the latest version which has had a lot of the bugs ironed out and most of the conflict issues - bluetooth, sirius, nav etc - resolved in the current models. You also have the option not to take i-drive if you choose not to have nav.

The E60 is a great car but if I was 10 years younger and in my mid 20's I'd pick the E90 3 series. Don't go for the E46 3 series. The new car is going to make it look very dated and it also has the old engines. Just look at an E39 next to an E60 5 series and see how old the previous model looks less than 2 years after the launch of the current car.

The new 330i is going to be a better drive than the 530i if you are looking for performance as it is smaller and lighter. All depends on what you want from the car.

kmslo530i

I wouldn't worry about whether you are worthy of the car. Age is no factor. Make a sound financial decision to buy a car that fits ALL of your needs.

I wish I had gotten into a bimmer sooner than I did. But, I must warn you.....once you're hooked, you're pretty much hooked for life

colejl

Age is less of an issue nowadays - affordability is the key

I got my E60 when I was 32, much lower than your 'typical' 5-series owner. But statistics are there to be skewed

m630

welcome PCetera11

first, only you can decide what is best for yourself, but heres what i see...

the new 530i with the R6 will be a bit more expensive and the lease deals may not be so good at first, so I dont know your time frame but keep this in mind

cars are great to have, and i know you are younger than I, but not too much, so i say to you that you should definitely keep in mind that a car will depreciate fast, and property will usually appreciate even faster, so remember that these types of cars are luxury items, they should not replace necessitys (property)

that said, i wonder where you come to that $650/month estimate? it seems very low especially if you are including the insurance, i would think an $800 would be more in line average, especially since there wont be any deals to begin with on the new 530i, and with those options, you are looking at about $52K msrp

to compare, my bother has the new TL, it has everything except NAV included for about $37K, now thats a big difference in price to consider and the car is adequate for most, ...nice styling, lots of power, too

..you really need to think about the rest of your plans and then fit the car in since you still have some life decisions to make.. are you going to want to buy property? are you buying some compressed CARBON in the near future? if you did both of those things, then how much cash flow would you have each month?

finally, when i was 28 I was able to buy my first *new* BMW, which was nearly 5 years ago....im moving up class now to the E60 or E63, but at 28, I would not have felt right in these as I had to earn them myself.... these are big cars that cost alot of money, and if you are getting the car, be sure you get it the way you want it, not stripped down to just say you have the car... the way im looking at the new 5 the way i want it will be nearly 20K in options, now thats alot for most, so take your time and consider how much you really want to spend...

good luck!!

CVTBenhogan

Nobody is too young for a dream car. However, a large car payment can be a big constraint on other things, which are particularly available while one is young. IMHO, for young folks money is better spent on travel, various forms of entertainment, and investments such as real estate and securities.

Why rent both a car and apartment? When you get married, will you have enough money for the wedding and dream house. Here are few wife hints for you.

drunk in cab>drunk in BMW
her opinion > your opinion
her decisions = fact + law :'(
happy wife = dream house + furniture+ working man+flowers
545i>530i


There will always be a dream car in the future and they no doubt will be much better. Live smart, enjoy everything, save and there should be plenty of time to get that future dream car.

just my three cents

CVT Benhogan


I'm driving a 12 old probe right now and getting the 545 this fall via ED. I'll be in a virtual state of euphuria when I finally twist the key.

Guest

Get the 550i 06 or 330i 05.

By the way are you Pete Cetera from the band Chicago?