Originally Posted by bmwpwr' post='424445' date='May 14 2007, 09:59 PM

Hello 5 Series World!

I have been on this site for about one month now (about the time I have had my car) and this is my first OFFICIAL post. I have been reading many of the numerous posts and looking at many of the members pictures. I think I have waited for so long to post because part of me has just been intimitated to post something. Most of the people on here seem like a pro and an advid 5er owner. I didn't want to come off as retarded and ask some questions that I could find out for myself. I.E. What is OEM..LCI...M Kit...etc. Now that I have researched some of the 5er slang and acroynms I feel confident in sharing my experiences and thoughts.

My 5er Story:

I bought my first BMW about a month ago. I live in Southern California and as you can guess, I am not foreign to nice rides and have the option to go down the freeway and find Infiniti, Audi, Lexus, Jaguar, Land Rover, Mercedes :thumbsdown:. I thought about the G35, A6, IS350, etc. but realized if I were to spend 40+gs on a car, BMW is the best route. I used to drive a Land Rover Discovery II (2003) when BMW owned and manufactured them, so I was accustomed to the detailed work of a BMW engine. NOW, the hard part was to figure out which BMW I not only wanted but was practical and I could drive for about 6-7 years and still have the best resale value. I am a very critical thinker and often to my own fault, choose the safe option. My choices came down to a new 328i Hardtop Cabrio, a new 335i Coupe, or a 2006 530i with about 9000 miles. I went to Southbay BMW and man did the guy try to sell me. He put me in a 335i DECKED OUT cabrio and took me on the road and told me to drive it like I owned it. He told me I deserved it and that it fit me perfectly....all the BS that comes with any commisioned salesman. What I still fail to understand is why he would show me a 56k car when my budget was 10k+ less. Did he think his crafty sales tactics could pump 10gs out of my pocket??? I toured the dealership and drove the 328i coupe and the 335i sedan. I guess the 335i coupe was completely out of stock and is really hard to come by. He said the ones that were on the boat for May were all sold and that it would take 3 months for me to get a custom one built from scratch. Yes, I know ED would have been the ultimate, but I just graduated college and started a job. Telling my boss I was going to Germany for 2 weeks to pick up my BMW might have not left the best impression. Anyways, I liked the 3er ALOT. The speed of the 335 is uncomparable and I have to say, it would have been a pleasure driving down PCH (pacific coast highway) in a convertible. I also felt the dealer was somewhat right about getting a coupe because it fit my age and character. I am 22 and I love fast cars and the flashy appeal (sorry, thats what West LA does to you). I figured if the dealer could give me a deal I couldn't afford to pass up, I would pull the trigger and order a 335i coupe. The convertible was nice and all, but small when it came down to it. I like traveling with friends and snowboarding, golfing, and such. So, we went into the office and I thought I would be getting a new 3er because I wasn't looking for a huge discount. I knew the car was a hot commodity and maybe I could at least knock off 1k or so. DENIED! The dealer wouldn't budge. He told me the car was so in demand that he couldn't give me any discount! I was shocked. He told me he was their best salesman and that he has too many people willing to fight over the car that it didn't make sense to sell it at full cost. That is when I grew impatient and thought, I didn't need to stay there if he wasn't making a effort for me to stay. Some things I learned up to that point was 1. Buy at the end of the month. Salesman are more anal about their Quota. 2. DO NOT buy in the Southbay, Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, Orange County, of SoCAL. There are wayyyy too many willing rich people who will pay anything to drive off the car that day. 3. Call around to different dealers and leverage them against each other.

All three things I didn't do... hahaha. but I figure they have to have more success at getting a dicount then I did. So, I left the dealership dismayed and feeling that 40k wasn't enough to buy a BMW.
I will continue my experience later. I know I haven't even talked about my 5er yet but this post is ridculiously long and I don't want to bore people. If I get some replies, I will continue my story tomorrow. If I don't get replies, I'll post anyways..... just because I'm so damn excitied.