BMW European Delivery

hbou

How soon before my pick-up (4/26) should I expect to receive my pick-up information packet from BMW?

krsipykreme

I got mine 2.5 weeks before my pick up date.

aukema

Do you pay the licensing fee prior to ED pickup or when you pickup the vehicle from the dealer? I appreciate a comment from anyone with ED purchase experience. Thanks.

krsipykreme

u pay for the entire cost a month before pick up or at least start the financing

aukema

Thanks, Krispykreme. Not what I wanted to hear. It seems redundant to pay before you get the vehicle stateside but I guess this is one of the drawbacks to ED. Hate the government using my money before I use the car on their roads.

hgeyer

You have to only pay for the vehicle 30 days prior to delivery*. Licensing should be taken care of when the car arrives stateside. Press the dealer on this!

* - in the states where I've lived, sales tax is charged when the vehicle is licensed.

rfrith

I'm just back (4/14) from picking up an X3. I have the new DVD Europe DVD that we used. Let me know if I can help.

turtleva

rfrith i hope you had nice experience picking up and driving the X3 in EU. I'm heading over on 5/9 and would definitely be interested in the EU DVD. I'm assuming you purchased it and are looking to sell. Send me an email at bsossaj@umich.edu and we can discuss it further. Thanks.

vicmac

Where do I find ED Invoice prices for 04 530i. I am interested in ED but want to know how much to bargain.

TIA
VIc

kyfdx

I can't post the link for another forum here, but I looked up the prices for you.

The base ED MSRP is $3145 less than the US MSRP.
The base ED invoice is $3025 less than the US invoice.

All option MSRPs and Invoice prices are the same, ED or US.

regards,
kyfdx

vicmac

Thank You

rfrith

That seems terrible extreme. The car I did in April, 2003 had only about 10 additonal miles on it. I do know that cars dropped off in Italy are driven to the port but surely not Munich. Why don't you E-mail Mr. Behrends at the Munich drop off site and ask him what happened (Gbehrends@mail.ehharms.de. I've found him to be very helpful.

swschrad

and just establish a second home, don't you know. so much more convenient (and probably cheaper) than having EPA retrofit done car by car....

gretsch6120

307web

I'm thinking about getting new BMW 325 sedan or wagon summer of next year and leasing for 39 months. The current 325 body style should be winding down then and hopefully there will be some very hot lease deals next year (deals that will also apply to ED cars and not just cars in dealer stock).
If I lease in June 2005, I would be return the car in September 2008 and the 2009 models should be coming out by that time.
I'm debating on whether to actually drive the car in Europe during my 1 month trip or just sign for it at the factory and have them send it to the ship immediately. We can get Eurail passes for travel instead.
Sending the car off immediately will give it a 4 week head start back to California so I will have a 8 week instead of 12 week wait to pickup the car at the dealership in California when I return.
Has anyone here leased a BMW through the ED program?

shipo

Regarding ED deals next summer, hmmm, I don't remember hearing of any ED deals for the E39 last year, so you might be out of luck on that one. :-/

Regarding signing and shipping vs. driving your new car, I guess that depends on just how you want to conduct your trip. Fact; doing the Eurail thing is a pain if you take a fair amount of stuff with you. A car is much more convenient. Then there is the whole "Driving Experience" thing to consider. If you don't care to experience the thrill of driving along legally at a Buck Thirty, then ship your car back and gain that Head Start here in the US.

Regarding leasing your ED car, yes, I did it. What would you like to know?

Best Regards,
Shipo

markjenn

How the heck do you fly to Munich, take delivery of a new BMW and manage to put less than eight miles on it? Wow, that's some kind of restraint.

- Mark

rfrith

I don't think you can just sign for the car. You would at least have to drive it to the Harms Office for shipment. In Munich that's about 20 minutes away from the Freimann Delivery Center.

307web

We plan to pack light, so we won't be lugging around a lot of luggage.
I've heard dealing with driving and parking in cramped, crowded European cities is a huge hassle.
We could also stay in Germany for a couple days, and drive the autobahn just to have done that, then send the car back to port.
If the best lease deals don't apply to ED cars, then I might just skip the ED program and get a regular lease next year. I'll have to figure out if the extra lease payments while the car is in transit, plus possible ineligibility for the best promotional lease deals cancel out the the savings from the 7% discount from MSRP and the 2 for one Lufthansa plane ticket.

nyccarguy

you also have to remember that the capitalized cost (selling price) of aquiring the car via ED will be significantly less (than if you buy/lease it here), while the residual value will remain the same. This will make your lease payments much less.

YOu should also figure on a more than 7% discount off MSRP. Many here in TH have purchased BMWs for a price around $1000 to $1500 above ED invoice (which is less than US invoice).

Shipo: Did you ever figure out how much per month you'd save by leasing via ED vs. US delivery?

307web

Something to think about. At $1500 or less over ED invoice it will be a good deal, but if BMW is offering reduced money factors and other subsidies on cars chosen from dealer stock that do not apply to cars ordered for ED or any other purpose, that could cancel the savings. Plus you have to factor in the lease payment you make 30 days before delivery (since the first lease payment is due on the date the contract is signed whereas a loan payment may not start for up to 30 days after purchase) and also the 3 additional lease payments made while the car is on a ship from the German port to the west coast of the USA.
If the value of the airfare discounts, car rental or trains in Europe during the trip plus the ED savings is equal to more than the 4 lease payments thrown away, then it will be a better deal than leasing through normal means after returning from the trip.

nyccarguy

I forgot you live on the left coast! Yeah, you've probably got to wait a few weeks longer than we would here on the East COast.

Shipo: Wasn't there a guy a few years ago that bought his car via ED from a dealer in Jersey and then drove it back to Denver, CO?

shipo

Yeah, he ordered it from my salesman a week or two after I ordered mine. For the referral, my salesman gave me a nice BMW car cover for my 530i. ;-)

Best Regards,
Shipo

kyfdx

All the lease deals apply to ED also. One good thing about leasing ED, is that the car has to be paid for (in this example, the lease has to start) 30 days before the delivery date in Germany. This makes it much easier to take "delivery" (the day your lease starts) prior to the lock-in expiration of the current lease terms (June 30th for the current terms if locked by April 30th).

Of course, the downside, is that you won't get your car in the U.S. until you are probably in the third month of your lease. Although, you may be able to go with a lower mileage allowance to offset part of this cost.

regards,
kyfdx

307web

I'm planning to go to Europe June 2005 and lease one of the last E46 325is at a cap cost of $1000 to $1500 over ED invoice, but I'm considering waiting for the 2006 eE90 models. The price will be higher with little or no discount under ED MSRP, but the residuals on a lease should also be much higher. Hopefully that would make lease payments not too much higher.
I have heard that the new model is supposed to be released October 2005. When you do Euro Delivery are the cars available any earlier? For instance pick it up in September 2005 and then ship it back in October? Or is the availability date for a US-spec car at the factory in Munich the same date as if you pick one up at a local dealer in the US that had been on a ship for several weeks?
Does anyone remember what happened the last time the 3 series was redesigned? Or what happened when the new 5 series recently came out?
Were you able to drive your new 5 Series in Europe before the cars on the ship landed on US shores?

bavarian

As I understand it the BMW factories close for annual vacations in
August and re start production in September. This is the month when a new model sedan would be built. The earliest these sedans would appear Stateside would be October so you would in fact be driving a new model before it was in a US dealer's showroom if you did ED and arranged for a September pick-up.

When I picked up my 325 Ci early last September there was an American couple picking up a new 5 series which arrived in the US showrooms in October.

Someone in an earlier post mentioned picking up the ED car and driving it to Harms then taking the train for the rest of their vacation. The German trains are very prompt, clean and comfortable but
they don't corner like a BMW and their acceleration won't take your breath away...you will be hard pressed to find roads in the USA that are as much fun to drive or as well maintained as the German roads and the lack of a speed limit on much of the Autobahn is a great excuse to open the moonroof and shout "yeehaw" on every bend.
Don't pass on the opportunity to drive your car in Germany and beyond and wave to the trains as you pass them by.

Just my two Euros,

Norris

307web

OK, I'll see if I can delay my trip to September 2005 if the 2006 is available then. This assumes I like the new look and can deal with the pricing increases.

I went to a local Volvo event a few months ago where I got to drive the Euro-spec Volvo V40 before it was released for sale here.
I'm hoping BMW does something similar for the new 3 Series next year so I can drive one before committing to the car. I will at least look at pre-production models at one of the car shows early next year and read all the preview reviews first.

I wonder if Europe will get the vehicle released there first as a 2005 model? If so, there will be reviews in the European car mags that will give some idea of what the US version will be like.

jstchekin

Looking for 545(Auto) + sports and few small things
What are some recent deals?
Should I look at the MSRP + 7% off the base model as a starting point?
What is the wholesale/ED invoice?
Thanks in advance

rfrith

I would suggest using the Edmunds Invoice price minus the European Delivery discount of $3,850 and then add a reasonable profit for the Dealer...perhaps $1,000 to $1,500 as a starting point.

peykan

Hi everybody,
I got a good deal (after many nego.)on an X3-2.5i (2004/05)for ED, but I had to buy one here and right away (my wife needs it NOW). If some one in Maryland or VA is interested in having this deal, I can transfer it. My deal is $1100 over ED invoice. I haven't order it yet. It means you can change the options etc. Let me know! -By the way, this is a GREAT site/people and I have been reading this site for so long!
Regards,

jb_shin

http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/rules/import/ is the place to start. Unless you have cash sitting somewhere and have about 6 to 12 months of patience, it is not recommended as posts above have already indicated.

I just returned from Germany 2 months ago after 3 years there, and believe me, I would have bought a couple of cars if it weren't such a pain.

krzyss

You will be hard pressed to pass high speed trains in Europe. I tried in France and it did not work.

Krzys

PS There was speed limit and traffic.

shipo

I guess it all depends upon where you are going. If I'm going from Marseilles to Paris, yup, the TGV is the only way to go. Been there, done that, it's great! However, if I'm trying to travel from Paris to Belleau to visit the American Cemetery at Belleau Wood, I think that the car would probably be faster, not to mention a hell of a lot more convenient. ;-) Semper Fi!

Best Regards,
Shipo

vancmt

Interested in purchasing a 2004 325i, but struggling to figure out if I am better off going with buying the car via ED or just locally given BMW has a $1200 incentive deal going on right now thru 6/30.

If I were to buy via ED, some confusion on what my price would pay and whether it's negotiable.

For example:
$26,135 - Base 325i
+$385(Rear side impact bag)
+$1,050(Sunroof)
+$995(Power seats)
+$1,275(Auto)
+$475(Metallic Paint)
+$500(Fold down rear seat)
Total $30,815
-$1500 off of MSRP based on negotiated price
New total: $29315

Am I even close? Appreciate your help

shipo

Negotiation is definitely possible for ED, I've done it as have many others. Also, when negotiating price, ALWAYS start at invoice and work up. So, what you would do would be to start with about $24,800 as the base price of a 325i (any dealership willing to negotiate will give you the actual ED invoice price, but I bet I'm within $25), add the invoice cost of the options (including the $695 for Destination & Handling), and then add say $750 for "Dealer Profit". Most (if not all) dealerships will balk at that profit number, so you work up from there.

Good luck.

Best Regards,
Shipo

kyfdx

Chances are, if you want that specific combo of options, you will probably do better buying ED. If you are flexible on options, you can probably do just as good a deal on a car on the lot, taking into account the $1250 incentive and the cost of traveling to Germany. You may be out a little more, because you will probably have to take the premium package to find the rest of your options. That is not a bad thing, as it includes what you want plus some nice little extras and is only about $1K more than what you are proposing.

regards,
kyfdx

explrsport

I have been looking into leasing a 04 M3 with N5, 403, 459, 522, 674, 508, and 737 (looks like some sort of code!). How can I research what would be a good price if I take European Delivery?

shipo

Unless something has changed since I did my ED trip two years ago, I don't believe that the "M" cars get any special consideration with regard to the ED program. So, regardless of where you take delivery (Munich, Spartanburg or your local dealership), the price is the price is the price. ;-)

Best Regards,
Shipo

sapphire1

Where can I get the invoice price for ED for this car:

2004 325i sedan, manual transmission. Options: Premium pkg, Sports pkg, On-board nav, leather, Xenon headlights, Harmon Kardon Sound System, Fold down rear seats, in a metallic blue paint.

I am planning to buy this car via ED. The dealer told me it will be a July production and I can get delivery in August. I read from a few people that the factory has annual holidays in August. I really want to see the production plant.

Has anyone recently gone for an ED? Can you share your experience please?

Thanks.

kyfdx

US MSRP: $38,870
ED MSRP: $36,905

US invoice: $35,590
ED invoice: $33,645

The lower ED price is just on the base car.. All options have the same MSRP and invoice price, whether US or ED.

Basically, just lower the US prices by $2K to come up with the ED price on a 325i.

regards,
kyfdx

sapphire1

I got a deal $1400 above ED invoice, that's $35,045. We "shook hands" on this deal.

There is a $1200 incentive on the 325i sedans (US) right now. Are there any incentives on the EU delivery program? Should I reconsider this deal for any reason?

Thanks.

kyfdx

No incentives on ED. It looks like a fair deal to me. If that is the car you want, and ED appeals to you, I doubt you could do a LOT better.

regards,
kyfdx

planoml

Can you get SMG on a 325? If so, is it the same as the M3 SMGII, or different?

jamesspot

Yes - it is an option only with the Sport Package.
No - it is different than the SMGII on the M3. It does have a sport button which increases the speed/abruptness of the shift and it has an auto mode. But, only two speeds of shifting vice the 6 of the M car.
The Z4 has the same set-up if you can not find a 325i to drive with the SMG.

jb_shin

The hardware is also different. M3 has Getrag and the others, ZF, and I am pretty sure the softwares are different as well.

planoml

Any driving experiences on the SMGII and "regular." Is the regular just a glorified Steptronic? Thanks.

roopak

I am interested in buying a 325xi and considering the ED option. Saw several references to 2003 ED pricing but all searches have turned cold in eurobuyers or bimmer.com. Can anybody help provide the ED invoice for a 325xi? Thanks in advance for your assistance. Looks like all pricing has been taken down.

kyfdx

325i ED base pricing is approximately $2K lower than US pricing.. This is for invoice and MSRP. Options have the same price.

There is another forum that has this info, but I am not allowed to link it here. The "$2K rule" will put you within $100 either way on the 325.

regards,
kyfdx

jamesspot

With the Sport Package, the SMG is a true manual transmission with a hydraulically actuated clutch.
Compared to the steptronic, it offers crisp performance shifts and beautifully rev-matched downshifts. The auto mode of SMG is herky-jerky compared to the smoothness of the steptronic.

The main advantage of SMG is for the driver who WANTS a manual transmission sports sedan, but whose left knee dislikes the constant demands of shifting the car in commuting traffic. Otherwise, go with the step or the manual.

losy

My sister travels to Munich twice a year. It it possible for me to purchase a 530i via ED and have her pick it up while in Germany?