[The Beast]

I thought 2-3 years, but I love the car and there is nothing else out there that I really like yet... No point selling and buying another newer one, never understood people who do that! So for now I'm thinking I'll have it for 4-5 years

[Nalod]

Originally Posted by NewM3driver

Why own a depreciating asset? Lease the car, INVEST your money.

I appreciate your paying the depreciation on my 28k mileage 2013. I invest my money, use some profits and sell old car, then buy a 3 year old car 58 cents on the dollar, keep it 5-6 years. BMW has so many of these leased cars, they gave me 0% loan!!
My payment for $20,000 is $417 a month, 38mos warranty, prepaid maintenance. A lease would be at least $7-800 a month. So I put another $400 a month back into my investments, that's $4800 year just for my car fund. That gives me a nice slush fund for future repairs when car is paid off/out of warranty and equity to buy next car when ever that happens. 25 years ago I put $10,000 into the market and leased. Just 6 years ago I jumped out and used some of that money to buy a 328i coupe CASH that was also just 3 years old. 6 years, it depreciated only $2500 year!!

I liked leasing for years and years. For now, it does not make sense FOR ME, but that because Im ok driving a car that's 4-5-6 years old. Im more financially motivated than I was in my younger days. Cashflow is easier now. I put only about 8-10k on the car. The more equity I have invested/saved, the less I want to spend it. Im ok driving a 3 year old car, that's changed over the years.

[550Reasons]

I've owned my f10 550i for 37k miles and 2 years (has 52k miles now), I will own it for at least 1 more year or right around before 75k miles (when 3rd party warranty expires)

[Russkey]

I switch cars once in 4 years. This time, I decided to keep the car for 1-2 extra years. It still looks great, drives great, fast enough ttv8, full of technologies that some companies only start to offer now.

[Quicksilv3r]

Mine was a CPO w/ 38K miles on it, and I've been thinking that once the factory warranty & maintenance plan expires at 50K miles, I'll turn it in for something else. I don't see myself keeping it for more than a year. It's a great car, just too big for a single guy w/o no kids or animals.

[Trian]

Originally Posted by Quicksilv3r

Mine was a CPO w/ 38K miles on it, and I've been thinking that once the factory warranty & maintenance plan expires at 50K miles, I'll turn it in for something else.

Do you own the vehicle or lease? If you own, you should consider selling it or trading it in between now and maybe 45,000 miles. Having some warranty left over gives a lot of added value to a potential new buyer.

[BigKutta]

My F10 is now 4.5 yrs old but hardly feels that old...to me its still my new car. I plan to keep it 8-12 yrs. 8 years with me, and then my daughter will start to drive and she's already called for it.

My e46 was 10yrs old when I sold it...biggest regret of my life

[Bbb34]

Originally Posted by Trian

Having some warranty left over gives a lot of added value to a potential new buyer.

Very true, but it'll also, no matter how you slice it, cost you more to upgrade (monthly payments you may not have now), money that could be spend on potential repairs (assuming you like the car), or if lucky keep in your pocket/invest. I've been debating this for a while now myself.

Originally Posted by BigKutta

My F10 is now 4.5 yrs old but hardly feels that old...to me its still my new car. I plan to keep it 8-12 yrs. 8 years with me, and then my daughter will start to drive and she's already called for it.

Spoiled brat, that one.
We're pretty close on "daughter starting to drive" timeline. I keep telling mine to treat it right, since it might be her first car. Though if I'm serious, probably not the best idea, RWD with 300HP.

[Nalod]

Originally Posted by Bbb34

Very true, but it'll also, no matter how you slice it, cost you more to upgrade (monthly payments you may not have now), money that could be spend on potential repairs (assuming you like the car), or if lucky keep in your pocket/invest. I've been debating this for a while now myself.



Spoiled brat, that one.
We're pretty close on "daughter starting to drive" timeline. I keep telling mine to treat it right, since it might be her first car. Though if I'm serious, probably not the best idea, RWD with 300HP.

When My daughter got her license my friend offered back to me an older S class I had had for 7 years and the car my daughter "grew up" in. The price was not a problem, it was the mantainence.

My formula for both my kids was: Subaru outback 4 cyl for the boy, Mazda 6 4cyl for the girl. Mid size with lots of air bags. Not fast cars either. I buy them 4 years old, 45,000 miles for about .50 cents from MSRP. I refurb them with updated audio, blutooth, what ever, new tires and mechanically very strong. I sit the kids down and tell them I expect this car to last 7 years (thru college) and I will keep the cars in great shape but if I need to replace them, they will be of lesser quality. The boy had the Subaru 8 years and we sold it for $5000 with 150k miles on it. I paid $12,000. The girl still has the Mazda and only has 108,000 in year 6. She graduated college in 4 years and is working. I recently restored the headliner, new blue tooth, struts and spark plugs. Very inexpensive car to run! Great MPG and super reliable. Both Cars are Manual transmission cars. I enjoy steam cleaning the Mazda interior and polish the exterior! Car looks great and we are stretching the value. Its a good teaching example that "Taking care of things" can matter. She values the car and my efforts and tries to keep it clean. That's my formula. The boy certainly protested from time to time about wanting more and he is now an enthusiast having purchased a 3rd car for him and his wife, a Honda S2000 that he tracks from time to time. Its a super fun car. He learned to do the maintenance on his subie and now does all his own work on his three cars. Both are college grads and working!!! Life is good!

I think if you have the temperament and patience, giving a kid a BMW is great. Good safe car!

[Bbb34]

Originally Posted by Nalod

Both are college grads and working!!! Life is good!

I think if you have the temperament and patience, giving a kid a BMW is great. Good safe car!

Nice, you did well, and I'm glad to read both cars were manuals.

Call me "old school" but I think nobody (my kids included), no matter the income, should have car like 5 series for their first car.

Used cheap car, safe of course, but just "good enough" so it's not breaking down all the time is a way to go. They can then scratch, dent, abuse it and slowly build their skills and get better cars if that's their thing.

I just believe that they would learn to appreciate finer things in life more if they get there slowly, instead of simply feeling entitled to them.

[Quicksilv3r]

Originally Posted by Trian

Do you own the vehicle or lease? If you own, you should consider selling it or trading it in between now and maybe 45,000 miles. Having some warranty left over gives a lot of added value to a potential new buyer.

Own

[gabypr]

I bought mine in February and my loan is for 6 years so I hope to keep him for around 6 to 8 years.

[ArchJR]

Typically I keep a car for 3 years since I lease them for my company, but this one has me contemplating a purchase at lease end. I drove a new A4 for a weekend and thought the interior design/technology would win me over, but it mostly reaffirmed my affectation for my BMW's more conservative and vault-like interior. My hope is that the next 3-series takes a huge leap in interior quality, as I prefer a smaller car but felt the interior on my last 328i was lacking after a couple of years.

[Keyser Soze]

I've had mine since I picked it up in September 2012 after ordering it. It only has 23k miles on it (short commute, had other cars to drive) and haven't had any problems with it and it's nearly paid off - so I guess I'll hang on to it for another few years and hope for the best! My indy mechanic is pretty much up to speed on F10 at this point so hopefully they'll have no probs doing oil changes, running syschecks and replacing bits as needed.

I could go for a 435GC or even an M3 but I just don't feel like paying for it right now. lol

The perfect combo for me would be an M3 and a people/junk hauler crew cab pickup truck or Tahoe/Yukon SUV.