ZinMe

I have leased an '05 545i for three years and the lease ends in June. It lacks some options I wish I'd purchased (esp. navigation) and I've become tired of the orient blue-- looks great when clean, but is shows dirt easily and paint marks show a lot. It has been very reliable. I can add aftermarket navigation, but there is always some compomise vs. an indash/idrive nav. (I've looked into every possibilty they are all either too expensive, put the screen in a suboptimal place or create theft issues with portables.) Anyway, I found a titanium silver '05 545 at a dealer with only 2k miles more than mine, but with Nav, L7, head-up, cold weather, satellite radio, sun shades, sport package... and brand new tires. The price is very good IMO consider the equipment, the new tires and the warranty extension (to 6 yrs/100k.) I would be buying from the BMW dealer who leased the car to the first owner for three years.

My only reservation is that the car was owned by someone who for all I know could have beat on it. It drives fine (although feels a little more rough on the road surface probably due to the new tires) and looks great. But I have this nagging feeling I'm asking for trouble. I plan to do the following things to try to ensure I'm not getting a lemon or a car that has been abused:

(1) ask for BMW service records on teh vehicle (it was leased, so should have been serviced by BMW)
(2) check the car for accidents/salvage-- carfax and visual inspection under hood and undercarridge.
(3) give it a good thorough road test
(4) ask for the diagnostic report from the certication (although I don't know what to compare it to...)

What advice can you give about confirming the quality of the car? Also, I can buy my car, which has no options whatsoever other than the sport package from my dealer for about 1.8k less than the loaded version-- but IMO the extra equipment and new tires are worth a lot more than $1.8k. Should I just stick with my car and avoid the potential risk of the other car?

delje08

get the new one, the extension on warranty alone is worth more than 3k, plus with all the additional options. It is worth it. Get all records from dealer.

Trinity Autosport

Get the one with all the goodies!

GQuK545i

True with your 545i you know it well and

the new one wit extra options you never

know what problems you might run in too.

But I still would ask for the records on the

newer 545i if you do want to go with that one.

skylolow

Get the new one.

I think your service history check will either put your mind at ease or break the deal. So make sure you look that over. Dealers usually watch what cars that they CPO (good dealerships) and stay away from ones that have had spent quite bit of time in the shop over the years. Most educated buyers know to check the service history on these cars so it becomes much harder for them to sell the car if it has been problematic. But you do have your dealers out there who will even sell buy back cars. Just do your home work and you should put your mind at ease.

1esquire

I bought my 545 as a CPO lease turn in. I asked them for (1) the service records, (2) the carfax, and (3) the CPO certification sheet. That sheet is pretty helpful, because it is about 3 pages long and shows everything they checked during the CPO process and what they needed to fix, if anything. It shows how much tread is left on tires, how thick the brake pads are, etc. It's nice for peace of mind.

I then got lucky and, after I bought the car, found a sheet tucked in the ski sack that had the original owner's contact info. I emailed him, and he seems like a great guy who took good care of the car (with the exception of the story about him running it up to 130 mph once; not sure why he told me that!).

Anyway, if you have the warranty and all the paperwork, you should not worry too much about the car's history. This is my second BMW that I have bought CPO, and I have been very happy with both of them.

IceyTys

+1 no questions hands down, get the new one w/ the extended warranty. All you need is the dealer service records and a carfax........let us know what you decide and good luck!

ZinMe

Hey guys-- thanks for the advice.... I should be able to see the service / CPO / carfax stuff today or this weekend, so I'll let you know if any major issues come up.

Thx
Dave

BTW, great deal going right now on financing-- I wasn't planning to finance, but they have 2.9% for 36 months and they make the first two paymetns for you, which in this case is about $2k total. Swinging deal. I will probably finance given the low rate and free payments...

TXPearl

ZinMe,

This is the only thing you said that concerns me. With new tires it should feel the same or better than your current car. If it feels rough or loose, there might be an issue.

If you can get past that, go for it - sounds like a great deal. You'll love the HUD.

swajames

agree with the others - the new 545 with the CPO warranty and the options you want is the way to go. The CPO warranty alone is well worth the price of admission and the additional options sweeten the deal. Go for it, and enjoy!