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Comments
I will be taking October 15 delivery.
Thanks to all of you for inspiration and hints.
Paid only 2200 over ED invoice for the base price. I did not offer 1500 because dealer got me
October pick up not November. I figured that will be fare. And he also sad that because of a 2 and not 3 month he had to take a car from his allotment. I don't know if I can trust him on that.
Here are suggested retail prices for 530 2003 model
Base price USA 41110
Base price Euro delivery 38825
Invoice price Euro delivery 34800 (According to my dealer)
Base price Diplomatic USA 39045
Power glass Moon roof is standard now for 530
that is why there is an increase for base price
Destination charge went up to 695
All other options are at the last year prices
Premium package is now 2300 has same options except moon roof.
If some one interested I have suggested retail prices for 525.
37600 Base US price
34970 Base Euro delivery
I am in central Jersey so pricing should be similar.
without much hassles to you and you get back the
wheel for sheer driving pleasure of your new 530.
My ownership of the car has been over a month now.
And I am happy to say that I am enjoying every
mile behind the wheel. Every weekend, I am taking
it to some hilly routes and enjoying the
"bicycle-like" manuevering that I can do with
the car, at at least 10 mph more than the posted
speed limits.
I was also thinking, I am probably ready to
experiment with some "sporty" tires/wheels on
my non-sport 530i. I think, one option is to
put 235/45R17 wheels/tires that come with SP
with my non-sport suspension. Will it improve
handling significantly? Or how about just a lower
profile performance tires on the same set of
wheels? e.g., Michelin Pilot sports 225/45R16?
Anybody having experiences, thoughts, please do
share.
I'd recommend against both the BMW 530 sport wheels (cross bolt type-42) and the tires (usually Continental ContiSport Contacts). You can find quality wheels on TireRack.com for cheaper than the BMW ones (I think they're around $450 each). And the Continentals are decent, but you can do better. Check the ratings at TireRack.com.
Most certainly, do NOT just wrap lower-profile tires on your 16" wheels. Doing so will effectively decrease the overal diameter, which, aside from looking silly surrounded by more wheel well, will have the unfortunate consequences of artificially increasing both your indicated speed and your odometer readings. When going from one wheel size to another, you should always try to keep the overal diameter change as minimal as possible. See http://www.c5-corvette.com/tirecalc.htm for a handy calculator.
Not planning the upgrades immediately, but
definitely want to be informed fully!
I have now had my 02 530ia for 7 months (7k miles on the odometer). This has certainly been the best car that I have owned. However I wish that I did order the sport pkg and opt for the 5-speed rather than the Steptronic.
Thanks,
Chris M
00 528 1-owner, 41,500 mi, all records
sp/prem pak,steptronic, cd changer, dsp sound (but no xenons, heated seats or fold down rear)
asking $34K, poss could get for $32-33K
good price? thoughts? - thx, this is the most informative forum on the entire edmunds
jeff
The check coolant message popped up on my '98 540i6 a couple months ago. I was on business about 85 miles from nearest dealer. On a hot day with A/C on. But after I parked her, took care of business, and started her back up, the message went away. Never came back on. Every now and then I get a bogus message about rear lights not working. Did it a couple months ago a few times. Had car in for 65,000 mile oil inspection yesterday. Nothing wrong with rear lights. But then message came on today. I again checked all the lights. They are working. But the system did accurately tell me when both my front headlights went out (a few days apart).
I actually posted this on the wagons board, too, but thought I'd see if I could get more opinons on this: I have been offered a price $1670 over invoice for a new 2002 525iT wagon. I have sent some emails and called a couple other dealers and are waiting for their replies as to whether or not they can beat that price. Do you think this is a reasonable price for a 2002, or can I do better?
(steel blue with auto trans, cold weather and premium packages)
Thanks!
2. Has anyone purchased the extended "all inclusive" warranty (from 3-4 years)? I was offered same, the dealer stating that at around 40k a major costly service is required.
As for extending the maintenance period from 3 yr/36K to 4 yr, guess it is a crap shoot. My wife's '00 323iA just had its expensive Schedule 1 service. Came due at about 31,000 miles. Car had had an initial inexpensive oil service inspection at around 15,000 miles. Computer showing car will need its next inexpensive oil service inspection at about 46,000 miles. But it won't need the very expensive Schedule 2 service work until about 60,000 miles. Do you think you'll need rotor work or something else expensive before 50,000 miles? If yes, then buying the additional service interval might make sense. If not, then I wouldn't. (Our local BMW dealer charges $123.29 for the oil service inspection, $842.53 for Schedule 1, and about $1,082.63 for Schedule 2--all using synthetic oil. From his posted service price chart.)
Believe you have one year from date you buy the car to buy the 1 year maintenance extension.
Pricing in SoCal for the 2003 530i is about
$1000 off MSRP, does anyone know where the invoice pricing is for 2003?
Dealers telling me the 2003's will be on SoCal lots around October.
I'm being told if I want a color besides black, white or silver that I need to special order...any advice would be appreciated.
a sale rep seemed offended by such requests.
We only got $120 discount off MSRP for our 2001
525i.
Just curious?
Shopping around really helps,
Ex Spyderred,
Have a friend that lives west of St Louis. That dealer cut me a deal for a 2002 530i $1300 over his cost, which I jumped on with both feet.
If you want a name, let me know.
1. Once I get a verbal agreement on price, I figured I'd get the dealer to send me a written confirmation before putting down a deposit. Is that the norm? Any reason a dealer would balk at that?
2. I also want to get written confirmation that the deposit is fully refundable in the unlikely event that I cancel the order before taking delivery. Sound reasonable? I truly don't foresee this happening, but I want to protect myself in case of some misfortune (like, say, getting laid off, though even then I'd probably not cancel).
3. What "extras" might the dealer try to add, and what should I avoid? I would resist getting anything other than the specific options I want. I might consider an extended warranty, but I also understand that those can be purchased later, prior to the expiration of the original warranty. Is that correct?
Sorry if these seem like dumb questions, but I really haven't dealt with these issues before. Thanks for your help!
1. Getting a written confirmation of the order isn't just "normal," it's exactly what's supposed to happen. Once you agree on a price, the dealer types up an order form stating the model, all options, and will usually include taxes, dealer fees, destination charge, etc. In other words, exactly what you'll end up paying the dealer overall. It will also usually reflect the security deposit you place (which is usually $1000).
2. Unfortunately, deposits are usually nonrefundable. Since they're going to some effort in placing an order explicitly for you (and hence using up one of their production slots), if you back out when the car arrives they're stuck with a car that may not be popularly equipped. With my 530i order, for example, since I ordered a stick, the dealer respectfully asked for a $2000 deposit, because he said they sell few manual 5-series.
3. Some shady dealers still try to sell cheesy "rust protection" or "leather protection," but don't buy into any of that crap. Educate yourself about which (factory and dealer) options you'd like (we can all chime in here about those too), and just give the list to the dealer. Politely refuse anything else. And, yes, an extended warranty can be purchased at any time, since it wouldn't begin until the manufacturer's warranty expired.
Good luck.
As for refund of deposit, I did talk to a dealer last year, when I was looking to order for US delivery. He said that he would refund my deposit if I cancelled, but only after he sold the car to another buyer. Seemed like a fair offer. I thought I'd try to get a similar agreement, though in the case of ED I acutally take deliver in Munich, right?
As for options, I know exactly the factory options I want. The only dealer-installed option I might want is trunk CD-changer. But I figured I'd deal with that as an after-market item. I believe they are not hard to install, since the car is prewired, to my understanding. Any thoughts on that?
By the way, you should be able to negotiate the ED price down to around $1,500 over the ED invoice price. ED list prices ARE negotiable, in spite of the fact that many dealers claim they aren't. And, in some cases they are even more negotiable than US prices because these cars do NOT come out of a dealers allocation. When I was considering a 530i last fall, one dealer offered $1,200 over ED invoice, but only $1,800 over US invoice if I wanted one out of his allocation.
It is my understanding that European Delivery requires non-refundable deposits prior to the actual production date and full payment prior to pick up. Cancelling ED past a certain date will definitely cost you, although I know of someone that had to postpone their trip a couple of weeks and BMW accomodated them.
As for the CD changer, absolutely, it's a DIY job. Check out the good write-up at http://www.eagleglenonline.com/bmw/cdchanger.html. You might also be interested in an MP3-compatible CD-changer at http://www.bmwtips.com/tipsntricks/alpinemp3changer/AKChanger.htm.
2001 Prelude Type SH, 2022 Highlander XLE AWD, 2025 Camry SE AWD
The xenons incorporate a motor-driven automatic height-adjustment which re-initializes every time you turn them on, so unless the motors are malfunctioning or the balance reader is confused, it's probably normal operation.
I just returned from the ED of my new 530i. WOW, what a great program. Now for the really hard part, waiting for the car. It is scheduled to leave on the 8/26 boat and to arrive in L.A. on 9/22. How long does it take after that to get processed and shipped to Seattle?
thanks!
Autoweek M5 review
I'm sure this fault is more glaring in a car where everything else is so amazing, and I doubt it would preclude me from driving one if someone handed me the keys. But, in the spirit of pros and cons, it's only fair to bring up.
But I've also seen reviewers comment on use of "lowly" McPherson strut front suspensions in expensive BMWs. Complain they aren't "sophisticated" enough. I say the proof is in the pudding. M5 is an awesome car, steering included. However, I'm waiting to drive the next generation! Hoping it is improved.