Big E60

Thanks for the feedback. I appreciate the advice. I may consider a 550 now.

ta0sum

one word - Warranty!!

user440

I know there are other threads that cover this, but check the insurance rates on a 545i vs a 550i. I do not recall the exact quote, but the 550 insurance was > 50% higher if I recall.

1600

That is ridiculous. The rate remains almost exactly the same, except for the "normal" rate increases.

user440

Are you going to somehow magically prove what my quote was?

I compared samples of 530's, 535i's, 545i's, and 550's and used the same baseline mileage of 50,000 miles on each. 2007 530's and 535's were within ~5-7% or so of the 05 545. 07 550's were as stated, ~ >50% higher. You mileage may vary with your insurance provider, location, record, etc.

1600

Maybe your agent was dizzy that day and used an M5 as the basis instead of the 550i. I live in NYC, probably the highest rates in the nation. All I can say is that the rate was virtually identical. The OP should do his own check. I just did not want him to be unnecessarily scared away from what you had to report. You drive 50000 miles per year
or is that the mileage you purchased the vehicle with? Mine was new, but I thought only the miles per year driven was an insurance rate determinant. (of course accident claims could cause the rates to skyrocket, of which, I have none....knock wood)

user440

Right, and my experience is just a datapoint and that is all that it is. Quote was retrieved from the web so there was no human factor on the calculations. The 50K miles was just a baseline mileage I used getting quotes on all cars I was looking at, so I had a fixed number to compare each against. I took three separate snapshots (quotes) and the rates were comparable on the 550 each time. Perhaps it was my personal data-set (37yo, drive ~23,000 miles a year, live in good neighborhood, no accidents) or perhaps it was in the algorithms the company used. I was shocked to find the 07 550 so much more expensive to insure than the 07 535i which is relatively close from a horsepower standpoint. The insurance per HP on the 535i was cheap compared to the figure on the 550. Again - single data point, and as you said it is important the original poster query his own insurance company.

Big E60

I will definitely get a quote from my auto insurance company before I decide on which model.