Ok what would you do in my situation?

[nick robinson]

I am in the market for a nice car. I'm 19 and a freshmen at Syracuse. I plan on going into the film industry. I just sold my 96 maxima and I have about 14,000 to spend on the car and should be making 5-8 grand this summer. I found a great 328 iS for sale close by. They are askign 14.5 but it blue books for 12.5 so I think I should be able to get them down a lot. My dad is totally against the idea. He thinks that I will go broke trying to fix the car and maintain it. The car im looking at had one owner, its a 96 with 62k miles. I plan on driving it for another 70k or so miles before selling it.
What would you guys do in this situation? I have the money to buy the car and I really like it. I cant really think of another car I would rather have in that price range. I was thinking about a WRX but they are a few thousand too much. I dont want to take out a loan because I dont want to be driving something i cant pay for in cash. I am having trouble convincing my dad to let me buy this. Note this is my money. I pay for the car, i pay for the gas, oil and insurnace. I still need his approval. His requirments for a car were to be under 14k, reliable and a good rating in Consumer Reports (which i think is BS but whatever). The 328 fits these criteria. His biggest gripe is that if I do have to fix it, it will cost a lot. Anyone have any sugsetions? Is there anything I could say to my dad that would change his mind? I told him already that I wont have the work done at a BMW place, but at an indipendt shop. Someone help!!

[sildergu]

I agree with your dad. Sorry...

[///MZG]

you should be able to find one for less than that. With the current market you can probably afford an M3 if you want. Tell your dad that all cars expensive to fix. I had a honda that cost as much to fix as my M3.

[xmas63]

Nick, I think this car is a fine choice (assuming that it is in exellent running condition, the current owner can provide service records to show that it has been properly maintained, and that you have a mechanic check it out prior to purchase). Here's how to make your case with your dad:

1. While BMW repairs may cost more in both parts and labor, they are so well-built that they will not need repairs as frequently. (I have owned three BMW's and, in the end, I have not found them to be more expensive to maintain.

2. 62K miles is not a lot for a properly maintained BMW. My previous 3-series had 100K miles on it and ran great, at least until I crashed it.

3. The BMW is far safer than most other cars on the market. If there's any question, I can e-mail you pictures of my crash. After my offset-frontal impact, the front-end of the car was completely destroyed, and I walked out with barely a scratch. Plus---and I'm not proud of this---I wasn't wearing a seatbelt at the time. I was so pleased with the results of my real-life crash test that I headed straight to the BMW dealer to buy a new one---didn't even test drive anything else.

Good luck!

[nick robinson]

Originally posted by sildergu
I agree with your dad. Sorry...

How come?

[nick robinson]

Originally posted by ///MZG
you should be able to find one for less than that. With the current market you can probably afford an M3 if you want. Tell your dad that all cars expensive to fix. I had a honda that cost as much to fix as my M3.


Id love to have an M3 but I think insurance would be killer. I will be MORE than happy with a clean 328, throw some rims, suspension and exhust on it and have a kick ass ride. The car I am looking at is at a used car dealer so maybe I should wait around until i can find one froma person?

[nick robinson]

Originally posted by xmas63
Nick, I think this car is a fine choice (assuming that it is in exellent running condition, the current owner can provide service records to show that it has been properly maintained, and that you have a mechanic check it out prior to purchase). Here's how to make your case with your dad:

1. While BMW repairs may cost more in both parts and labor, they are so well-built that they will not need repairs as frequently. (I have owned three BMW's and, in the end, I have not found them to be more expensive to maintain.

2. 62K miles is not a lot for a properly maintained BMW. My previous 3-series had 100K miles on it and ran great, at least until I crashed it.

3. The BMW is far safer than most other cars on the market. If there's any question, I can e-mail you pictures of my crash. After my offset-frontal impact, the front-end of the car was completely destroyed, and I walked out with barely a scratch. Plus---and I'm not proud of this---I wasn't wearing a seatbelt at the time. I was so pleased with the results of my real-life crash test that I headed straight to the BMW dealer to buy a new one---didn't even test drive anything else.

Good luck!


Emailing this entire post to my dad :)

[Filip75]

good luck on this purchase.

The mileage sound really good too. Most cars of 95-96 would have close to a 100K (like mine is 102 now)

[sildergu]

Nick,

I don't mean to be negative. If you'd asked this question a few years ago I would have said nothing but good things.

Check out this thread in another forum. (http://www.unofficialbmw.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=2&t=006206)

Good Luck! Whatever you decide...