BMW European Delivery

nkeen

Italy, France and Avignon, huh. Would that put you on the A10 past Genoa in northern Italy onto the A8 in France, past Monaco and through Nice and on to Aix-en-Provence? The road on the Italian side snakes along the coast through tunnel after tunnel. 100 + would be an exciting ride on that. I went in the other direction towards Pisa a few years back, and inland to Florence and Sienna. At one stage the autostrada has no shoulder but is a fast ride. The French have road building down pat though -- their signposting system is sophisticated, clever and effective. I have to confess that 150k was my max, but that was in a Mercedes A140.

nkeen

You were damn lucky. I would not recommend that to anyone - German plates, or not. Try that in the Netherlands and you risk having your car confiscated - for good!

The Dutch are the slowest, most cautious drivers I've encountered -- and they love their caravans (trailers). You'll see them ambling along the summer rural roads of the UK and Western Europe with a queue of traffic behind them. Many of us Brits aren't much quicker -- a steady 40 to 45 amble in a 60 limit is common.

blueguydotcom

You got my route down.

jaspk

Don't believe it. I live in Luxembourg. Last week a friend of mine had just picked up her new BMW and drove to Paris to meet her husband. She got stopped on the Autoroute by the cops for doing 166kph (100mph). Autoroute speed limit was 120 kph. She was fined 90 euros ($120) on the spot and told she would have gotten 3 points if she had French plates. Not difficult to prove who was driving - she was sitting behind the wheel. Moral is that you can drive as fast as you want, but be prepared to pay heavily if - more likely, when - you get caught.

jaspk

How true. They say in Luxembourg that they bring their Caravans, food, clothes, kitchen sink, etc., etc. and the only thing they buy is the cheap gasoline/petrol.

blueguydotcom

Well I never got pulled over by the cops for speeding. I was pulled aside by the cops on my way from Nice to Cassis. I had to pass through a checkpoint and they searched my BMW and asked me a billion questions about my electronics and so forth. They were convinced I was either a drug dealer or a thief who had stolen someone's BMW in Germany and driven it down to southern France.

I never understood why I wasn't pulled over as I was going excessively fast everywhere but then again, I didn't much care what the fines were. I was in Europe for fun. Fines, shmines. And 120 is a cheap fine for doing 100. Heck, that same event in the USA would cost me about $500 total. Actually 101 mph in CA is reckless driving and you get hauled in and hit with a crazy huge fine. $120 for doing over 100? Yeah, I'll pay right now, guys.

nkeen

To keep things in perspective:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/08/24/nspeed124.xml

jb_shin

A bit off the topic, but I seem to remember reading about how speed limit was implemented in UK after AC Cobra was first introduced. Apparently, the automotive journalist took it out to test its capabilities and wrote how fast he was able to go. The government subsequently imposed speed limit shortly after..... Not sure if it is indeed the case, but found it interesting.

nkeen

http://www.classicdriver.com/uk/magazine/3200.asp?id=11841

jb_shin

Good read, thanks.

vinnyny

Six months after my last trip from Amsterdam to Paris I received a credit card bill with a charge of $250 from Avis. Apparently, I got a photo radar ticket outside of Paris and the rental car company charged my account. I disputed the charge and the credit card company took it off my account. I hope you don't get a six month surprise like I did!

blueguydotcom

I won't...I had my own car over there - ED not a rental. The plate's sitting on my desk at work (another one at home). And that was 18 months ago!

It would be funny if I return in 2010 and when they run my passport I had a slew of unpaid parking tickets. Wait, that's not funny. Oh no!

circlew

They have cameras all over Holland but not sure about Germany, Belgium and France.

Regards,
OW

shipo

Germany too.

circlew

At least part of the AB you can relax...I know there are conditional speed limits along that system, however. I was only over there once in and Audi A6. I assume where posted a camera looms close by.

Regards,
OW

jb_shin

Germany also has unmarked police cars on autobahn, mostly VW, sometimes Audi that will pace violators and pull them over. I have seen number of speed traps and instant fine collection in Austria. Most of the UK photo radar locations are well known and marked with street sign (not sure if all are like this) but there are photo radar vans that move around.

circlew

Heck, it's a jungle over there!

Regards,
OW

blueguydotcom

Obviously on the speed enforced portions of the autobahn be careful. I didn't speed in Germany. Flat out, don't want to mess with them.

vinnyny

On my last trip to Frankfurt in July, I didn't have to worry about speeding too much. My rental car was a Fiat Punto. I argued for better, but they had nothing else left. It had no cruise control but I didn't need it because I just kept the pedal to the metal. The fastest I saw was 150k in a 130k zone. Of course with my luck I'll get the ticket in the mail this month...

jb_shin

Guess I had a better luck. I booked a compact, but ended up with an SLK with 5 miles on the clock a few years ago. I had to put it to a good use on the way to Ramstein. :P

vinnyny

You're killin' me! I was on my way to Ramstein as well--three hours in a Punto! (There was a semi jack-knifed on my Mapquested route so I took the old horse trails). But in the end I was tossing back a tall, cold one in Germany so it didn't matter...

ctl

I am new to BMW ED and sorry if this has been asked before. If I want to buy a BMW, want better price (i.e. ED), but wasn't sure if I can make the trip. Is there some way for BMW to drop off the car (say in Munich) for delivery to US for me, short of hiring someone (if that is possible) to do the pick up? Or I should forget about this route and just buy it the typical way?

kyfdx

You absolutely can NOT do that...

The person on the title has to pick up the car.

nivki89

You have to add that person, who's name in a purchase order had to show up in Munich with his US passport.

manybmws

Can the ED price get negotiated lower with the dealer?

shipo

Yes. If you browse this thread you'll find many stories of how various individuals accomplished that very thing.

Best Regards,
Shipo

manybmws

Yes I did that.

But I am looking for someone who placed an order on a new 5-series recently.

Any transaction input is what I am looking for.

shipo

I think that you're over thinking this. Search the web for the ED pricing for the E60 5-Series and then offer $1,000 over ED invoice. Simple as that. That's how I picked up my 530i back in 2002 and the rules haven't changed one bit since then.

Let us know how you make out. ;-)

Best Regards,
Shipo

blueguydotcom

Exactly what shipo said. I did an ED for a 3 series in 2006. Smooth, simple and one 1k over ED invoice. A few guys on bimmerfest seem to specialize in ED for Bimmerfest members. I'd suggest checking out Bimmerfest's European Delivery forum for sure.

manybmws

Don't think I am "over thinking" since I am the one spending $50K+ :-)

Still I need to know ED invoice dollar amounts. If its a simple as taking the ED discount amount off of the US invoice price then great that does simplify it.

I am used to getting very good deals. I paid $40K for my brand new '03 530 that listed for over $48K at the time.

shipo

If its a simple as taking the ED discount amount off of the US invoice price then great that does simplify it.

No, it's not that simple, you'd know that if you'd read the various posts in this thread.

Please, do yourself a favor and search the internet for the ED pricing.

manybmws

I find your posts condescending.

Please do not respond to mine in the future.

Regards...

warthog

Shipo is one the most respected and knowledgeable posters on the BMW boards. You'd do well to heed his advice.

manybmws

I need advice on this from someone who has recently researched buying or executed a transaction to buy a BMW through ED.

If he wants to exclusively deliver his viewpoint then he should start his own blog. It would be a much more efficient less repetitous way for him to tell us all what he knows. The purpose of these forums is to get answers not advice on how to surf the internet.

ED Invoice pricing is not a google search away...

shipo

I've given you all of the advice that you need to easily come up the information that you need. At this point I have no desire to do your homework for you, especially in light of your attitude.

A few points:
- I just did an internet search and the very first result from my very first query came up with a link to the pricing (as did a number of others on the first page).
- Links to the price sheets are spotted throughout this discussion as well as references to other boards that publish them

Have a nice shopping experience and a good trip to Munich.

manybmws

Speaking of attitude - you always have to have the last word...

These responses have no info in them.

Regards,

another view

circlew

I wish you the best in your shopping experience.

Shipo, thanks for your help, as always. I have learned a huge amount from your knowledge and unending spirit of giving on these boards. I wholeheartedly looked forward to the lessons I've learned along the way.

Shipo, now that the US dollar is 1.5 less value than the Euro (like the cars we make here in the US ), how will that affect the ED value proposition?

Happy Holidays to you, manybmw. I look forward to mant BMW's from now on also. Hope I can learn from your experiences as well.

Regards,
OW

shipo

Shipo, now that the US dollar is 1.5 less value than the Euro (like the cars we make here in the US ), how will that affect the ED value proposition?

Tough call on that one. I'm thinking that the the exchange rate won't matter all that much as BMW has nicely hedged themselves by building a number of vehicles over here in the states. International exchange rates and currency hedging aren't even remotely anything that I track or follow, so my comments in this case don't even qualify to the standards of a SWAG guess.

Best Regards,
Shipo

shipo

What are you doing, trying to pick a fight? :confuse:

I simply don't understand your attitude, you asked for advice and I gladly gave you everything that you needed to do the research for yourself. You came back and effectively said, "Not good enough, you should spoon feed me." Now you're ticked off at me for not doing the legwork for you. What's up with that?

Best Regards,
Shipo

tidester

If you don't care to read certain postings then just scroll past them! The topic is European Delivery - and not how we feel about each other.

tidester, host
SUVs and Smart Shopper

circlew

How do you feel about the exchange rate effect on ED? Does that effect the benefit of ED?

Regards,
OW

dino001

There is no additional exchange rate "effect" on ED. Prices (invoice, list, final) are set exactly the same way as prices at any retail point in the US - just lower by certain amount. They move together with US delivery prices. Discount is constant, percentagewise.

blueguydotcom

Speaking of attitude - you always have to have the last word...

These responses have no info in them.

Regards,

Wow. That's pretty uncalled for.

In the spirit of the season, maybe you should:

1. Visit bimmerfest and search their ED forum
2. Perform a search in this thread as he suggested.
3. Google it.

Here's the google with 3 simple key words (bmw european delivery):
http://www.google.com/search?q=bmw+european+delivery&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=- - org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a

pat

Thanks for the google link - that should be helpful for manybmws in his quest for information.

Manybmws, let's remember that this is not the most satisfactory way to communicate. Tone of voice, facial expressions, hand gestures, etc., are all missing and they all go to great lengths to convey the totality of the message. When they are not present, it isn't difficult, unfortunately, to completely misread the intent of the message.

Let me assure you that shipo is indeed one of our very helpful members and no condescension was intended. The intent was to be helpful and it seems that the limitations of this communication medium interfered.

Please accept the offers of help in the spirit in which they are intended. If you do not find any given offer helpful it's best, as Tidester suggested, to just scroll on by.

Good luck and keep us posted on your search!

tidester

How do you feel about the exchange rate effect on ED?

I agree with dino001. It should have little effect. You should note that you will also pay a fee just to perform the currency exchange. That cost is probably also folded into the cost of an imported vehicle purchased stateside but larger importers will get a "volume" discount on the exchange fee.

tidester, host
SUVs and Smart Shopper

pat

Some personally directed posts have been removed. Let it go, please.

randy0

Here's how European Delivery works in the US. It's fairly simple.

You go to your local BMW dealer and place an order for a vehicle, specifying ED. Dealer fills out specific ED forms and faxes them to Germany.

The ED price is based on US MSRP, minus a specific amount based on the model you choose. Additional options do not get an additional discount. So for example, the 7 series has a discount of ~$5500 (forgot the specific amount, but that's close enough). Even if you choose a 750Li loaded with every option available, you're still only getting ~$5500 off the price of the car. All other charges apply (including destination charge, as the car will still need to be delivered to your dealer in the US eventually before you take possession in the US).

Once your car is in process, 2 weeks prior to the car being ready, they will require you to fund the vehicle (all leases/loans must be worked out, etc). A date when the car will become available will be given to you.

When you arrive in Germany, you are given possession of the vehicle, with temporary European insurance that's valid for a couple of weeks, etc. This can also be extended for a fee. You can drive basically anywhere in Western Europe with your vehicle. When you are ready to have it shipped to the US, you drive your car to the nearest port where you are (there is a list on BMW's website) and you are all set. Your car will arrive in the US (via South Carolina) and eventually your dealer within a month or so.

Advantages: If you were planning a trip throughout Europe, this will give you the option of driving your own vehicle during the trip (eliminating rental car fees, train tickets, etc), plus you get to take your car out on the German Autobahn and see what she can really do. You also get a nice tour of the BMW facility, plus other little perks and gifts.

Disadvantages: Once you take delivery in Europe, the clock on your lease or loan starts ticking. You are now responsible for your monthly lease/loan payments, plus if you leased the vehicle, the month (and potentially longer) that the car is in transit will be a month (or more) that you lose with your new Bimmer. Other disadvantages (financially) are the higher cost of airfare, hotels, etc. Mind you, if you're buying a $100k car, what's a few thousand more?

Alternatives: If you're looking at this as a way of saving some money, think again. That's not really the intention of the ED program, just an incentive to offset the costs of travelling to Germany to pick up your car. You're better off negotiating with your local dealer for a better price (and/or better money factor or interest payment) on your US delivered vehicle.

Of course, if you have the time and money, there is a great experience to be had here. Not many people take advantage of this option and it's certainly a story you can tell all of your friends!

I hope this helps everyone. I did not read this entire thread, so if I'm rehashing information already posted, please accept my apologizes. I did read a handful of the messages and other than bickering and questions, I did not see the above posted anywhere.

Regards,

Randy

blueguydotcom

You do not simply walk in and tell the dealer you're doing ED.

1. Get the ED invoice pricing
2. Write out all options and pricing.
3. Specify your exact price you will pay - ED invoice plus $800-1000 for dealer profit
4. Fax or email the dealer - there is no need to waste time in person

Do not talk to a salesman on the floor or go near the concept of paying BMW's posted ED prices. They're inflated and give dealers tremendous profit for close to zero work.

I have purchased cars via ED. My 330i's sticker was over 41k including destination. I paid 35.7k including $1000 dealer profit and destination.

Base price on a 750i via ED is $65,600 including destination but not including dealer profit. MSRP on a 750i is $76,600 including destination. ( http://jon.bimmerfest.com/bulletins/MY08E65E66.pdf ) Even 1-2k dealer profit on a 750i will get you a hefty discount.

dhanley

Randy, there's a few important facts wrong in your post.

Euro MSRP and invoice are lower, and it's easier to get a price close to invoice, because an ED car does not come out of the dealer's allocation.

BMW makes lease payments for months the car in in transit.

The options are discounted as well.

randy0

Wow, thanks for the correction. The information I had was based on a recent dealer experience. The dealer is a crook anyhow, so I wouldn't be surprised if they were trying to screw me. Either way, I decided against ED and worked out a decent deal in the end for US delivery.