So I am very close to purchasing an '08 550i from a BMW dealership in California that is selling it as a CPO vehicle. A non-BMW dealer that I am working with here in Texas is going to acquire the vehicle for me and I will then purchase from them.

This vehicle was sold as a CPO vehicle back in 2011. I understand that when a vehicle is initially being offered as a CPO vehicle, if it is not sold to a retail customer, the certification is lost; being that this vehicle has already passed the initial stage and is now being sold on to a third owner (me), will the certification follow the vehicle? Or does the process start all over again? Will it lose the certification because it is not being purchased from the BMW dealership?

 

AFAIK CPO goes with the vehicle till it expires no matter how many transfer of ownership. Im sure some members will chime in.

 

I have that understanding as well. I am just unsure if the process starts all over. If this dealership is essentially re-certifying, if there is such a thing, it seems like it would have to be purchased from the BMW dealership and not a non-BMW dealership.

 

Im not sure about a non BMW dealer but i know that it doesnt reset or start over, in terms of warranty it will be based on the mileage and year on which the warranty started which is 5yrs or 50 to 100k miles depends on what the car has (50k or 100k) years i think its always 5 =)

 

When I say the process starts over, I mean that the vehicle has to be sold to a retail customer through the BMW dealership even the second time around of it being sold.

 

+1

I bought my car from a non-BMW dealer and it was still under CPO at the time. I even got the thermostat and front passenger matt fixed by a BMW dealer and covered under CPO.

 

Are you the third owner?

 

Your new car warranty is 4 years - 50,000 miles, the CPO warranty (which stays with the car) covers you for an additional 2 years or 100,000 miles, whichever comes first. It doesnt matter what dealer you purchase from, BMW, Toyota or Honest Bob's down on the corner. All the warranty information is stored by reading your key or giving the BMW dealer your VIN # Hell, on my 2008 528xi I knew it was CPO when I purchased it, but found out it had the extended maintenance plan the first time I took it in for service

 

This is good to know. So I guess it is only during the initial certification that if the vehicle is not sold to a retail customer, it will not hold on to the certification.

 

No idea about this, but I can tell you I bought my 2007 530i from the second owner in a private transaction, making me third owner, with 9 months left on the CPO. Walked into my dealership after the purchase, gave them the key, everything covered - simple as that.