2013 and earlier - BMW 5 Series Prices Paid and Buying Experience

radiowave

It depends heavily upon where you live. Are you in Indianapolis?

madmonkay

Hi everyone. I am thinking of purchasing an '04 BMW 525i in the DC metro area and was wondering if anyone got any good deals? I'm not sure where to start first, but if someone got a good deal, please share. I really like the new design and would appreciate any information.

thanks!

bentleyfam25

If you work the phones, anyone should be able to get about $1K over invoice for a 525, auto, cold weather, premium pkg. Beat them up and you might get a couple of hundred less, but don't count on it. Got mine for $42.3 tonight, or $2.2K under MSRP. I beat them up. Takes about a month of negotiating. Work the phones for four dealers. Several useful posts above on strategy.

Happy negotiating.

stormace

I am in the market to get a 2004 530i. The options i am getting are:
Silver Titanium
Black Leather
Premium Package
Premium Sound
Auto Transmission
Xenon Lamps
Power rear Sunshade
Navigation

Edmunds TMV says $54,030...a dealer quoted me $53,300. Is that a good price? Please post reply.

bentleyfam25

With all respect to Edmunds fine site, their TMV is not accurate for E60's, IMHO. Depending on where you are, about $1 - 1.2K over invoice should be what you settle for on this car at this point in its market cycle. That's lower than TMV. Look at the history of posts on this Board for a lot of good advice on getting a good deal.

Good luck--

madmonkay

Thanks guys for the info. I will try to work them and bargain. So, I guess I'm expecting to pay 1K over invoice. Its good to know before talking to them. Here goes a month of bargaining!

tentwalker

I'm looking to buy a 2003 530iA or 540iA in Philadelphia PA area. I am looking for brand new or very low miles (like a demo car) Was interested in peoples opinions about the relative benefits/drawbacks between the two engines, relative to gas mileage, acceleration, etc.

Also, any opinions or advice on pricing. Drove an 03 540iA w/ sport and premium packages with 6k miles priced at $52,000.00. Seems high to me but the dealer doesn't seem willing to deal, thoughts?

tentwalker

I'm looking to buy a 2003 530iA or 540iA in Philadelphia PA area. I am looking for brand new or very low miles (like a demo car) Was interested in peoples opinions about the relative benefits/drawbacks between the two engines, relative to gas mileage, acceleration, etc.

Also, any opinions or advice on pricing. Drove an 03 540iA w/ sport and premium packages with 6k miles priced at $52,000.00. Seems high to me but the dealer doesn't seem willing to deal, thoughts?

bentleyfam25

Work the new york area, by phone. Use thoughful, professional and patient negotiating. Work towards the end of the month. It can be done, but starting with "I read I can get it for $1K over invoice on Edmunds" won't work. Talk confidently and intelligently about costs, fees, lease tradeoffs. Put together a spreadsheet with the key facts and keep your facts consistent throughout the negotiation with at least four dealers. Choose the units and features you want and stick to it, clearly and with patience. Exprect that the profit on a 545 will be higher than a 525. Take your time. Read the previous posts on here. It can be done, but you won't get there in less than a month at the moment.

Good luck--

stormace

So if I get it to around 2k under MSRP is considered a good deal? 2k under MSRP is about 2k over invoice too. Considered good for the BMW 530i?

stormace

You said "Got mine for $42.3 tonight, or $2.2K under MSRP."

That price does not include the tax and license, correct?

bentleyfam25

Correct. That is what it is, and I don't count it in negotiations with a dealer.

Some have proposed that BMW corporate pays a $$ premium to dealers who get all "excellent" in the post-deal surveys, so I suppose you could argue you should get a discount for that. I've never seen anyone prove that such a BMW program exists, tho, so that's on the weird end of the scale.

stormace

is it true that there is a 1.2% price increase beginning on Jan 1st 2004 for BMWs? I got told that by a dealership.

cricketcrazy

The price hike is a real thing. For every car that leaves the factory after 31st Dec 2003, will have a price hike. The hike is $600 for 530 and $700 for 545. How do I know? Because I paid for it when I ordered my new 545 that is going to go in production in Feb 04. The hike doesn't apply to cars that are on the lot or the ones that are in transit. Basically, any car that BMW can apply the new sticker on, is affected.

riez

What is it now? Up to $1.28 or thereabouts? Had been around $.85 less than 2 years ago.

nrsi

Looking to buy new 2003 525i or 540i sport wagon. Anyone know where I could find one?

chapans

I ordered a 04 530i, with SP,Prem. sound,auto,zenon,leather. recieved 2,200 off sticker in St. Louis. looking back i think i could have got at least 2,500. good luck all.

savora

Hello,

I am new to this forum and would appreciate your advice.
1) I went to the BMW website and it seemed that leather increased the MSRP by $1500 or so. Does that mean that leatherette is standard?
2) I am in the phoenix area and was interested about buying experiences in AZ, CA or NV,
3) I am concerned about maintenence costs after the 4 yr/50K warranty runs out. Is getting an extended warranty worth it?

Thanks in advance

joatmon

1. Yes, leatherette is std.

2. Can't help here.

3. Yes, a warranty is helpfull, but get a "good" warranty company. There are many stories floating around about warranty companies going BK. A thought, try a 3 or 4 year lease. Your costs are somewhat fixed going in.

Good luck,

Jack

riez

savora... Be very afraid of 3rd party warranties that are not directly tied to a manufacturer. Too bad BMW does NOT offer one. Other marques, like Lexus, Infiniti, Lincoln, GM, etc. do offer them.

Here was a headline to a small story in last week's Omaha World-Herald: "Car warranties are investigated." An Austin, Texas, judge ordered "First Automotive to stop dealing in contracts in Texas without financial backing." Article is about a company, Warranty Gold, that was selling policies underwritten by another company, National Warranty Insurance Group, that "is currently under liquidation by a Cayman Island court order." About 67,000 customers nationwide left with "worthless policies." Warranty Gold then switched to another underwriter, First Automotive Services Corp, "which doesn't have financial backing to pay the warranties, according to the Texas Dept. of Licensing and Regulation." Scary?

Sylvia

There are many discussions about Extended Warranties in the Finance, Warranty and Insurance message board. You might want to read up on EW's there.

savora

Thanks for the input. I will do some more research. It does suprise me though that standard is leatherette. I think since most people have leather, the MRSP price is deceptively low. I wonder if that was true for prior 5-series?

warthog

on the E39, but I think most units shipped to US had the leather option or the Premium Package, which included leather.

bentleyfam25

Those who have leatherette haven't complained about it -- the most visible difference in the E60 would be the lack of wood trim. I think the moonroof is now standard(?), but I'm not sure. You should ask the Board if anyone has ordered leatherette and if they've been happy with it. You can certainly order it that way, but you'll wait six weeks to get it. Most cars imported use the premium package, since that's what people want.

joatmon

People like it and most can't tell it from leather. Leatherette was std on all E28, E34, E39 and E60 base models. MBs (MB-Tex) is also good stuff.

'Course, who wants to buy a new BMW and lie in bed at night worrying that your friends and neighbors finding out that it's not leather? Horrors!

Moonroof became std on E39s in 02 or 03 I believe.

Happy Motoring,

Jack

designman

Totally agree. Leatherette is fine. Most people don't have leather sofas in their homes anyway. Ironic how they MUST have it in cars... probably a Jones thing.

bentleyfam25

...it seems to me that the E60 premium package is pretty expensive for what you get for the money.

Might be worthwhile to forgo it, and buy the wood trim on the aftermarket...

saugatak

"Most people don't have leather sofas in their homes anyway. Ironic how they MUST have it in cars... probably a Jones thing."

I'm sitting here in my leather underwear trying to figure out how you arrived at such a flawed conclusion.

joatmon

If you pass on leather, or the premium pack, be concerned about resale. You'll get most of your money back with leather or prem pack in 2 - 4 years. If leasing, or running it 'till the wheels fall off, you'll do fine without.

BMW knows this, so they do get top dollar for the prem pack. What would you expect.

Happy Motoring,

Jack

designman

saugatak...LOL! I stand corrected and will defer to your empirical findings.

savora

mlock6

I received $1500.00 off MSRP. I think it was a good deal. I have a prem pack, rear shades for the kids and zenon lights. The dealer worked hard to get me 3.6% financing. I appreciated the knowledge and professionalism.

atomicpunk

On December 27, 2003, I bought an E60 for $800 under invoice. I took a chance on the dealer's company car that had 1,000 miles on it. It's an automatic with the Premium Pkg, Sport Pkg, Xenon lights. Has the Anthracite Maplewood Trim (looks like black onyx) and brushed steel accents on the interior (looks way cool). Cream leather interior and Mystic Blue Metallic exterior makes it dreamy.

I originally focused on another car on the showroom floor. Had the exact same specs, only 6,500 miles on it. I tried to get the dealer to $46,000 (started out at just over $44,000). Was hitting the mileage issue really hard. Dealer ended up at $47,500 and wouldn't budge. His last move was to offer the one I bought (which he thought had 1,600 miles on it -- turns out it was set to kilometers and really had only 1,000 miles). I still thought I could get him lower, so I didn't pull the trigger.

Called around to two other dealers in my metro area, then one in a town about 100 miles away. Nobody would sell their comparable car (all the dealers have Mystic Blue E60's with the same specs -- it was BMW's US marketing icon, I guess) for anything less than $49,000. So I called the original dealer back and we settled on $47,500. The kilometers/miles glitch was an unexpected, pleasant surprise.

The car has been an absolute delight. I love the design inside and out. I love the iDrive too: the clean, sleek dashboard is such an improvement and I think it is the direction all manufacturers will be heading. Once again, BMW leads the way. This car is, to my mind, the perfect mix of sport and luxury.

Complaints? The passenger side cupholder was broken when I bought it and the dealer took until yesterday to fix it. They had to order the part. The radio/cd occasionally has these static fits that, apparently, required replacing the radio amplifier (which is accessed through the liner of the rear interior, by the back windshield). Dealer's service department just found out that what used to be a 1-hour job on the E39, is now a 6-hour job on the E60. They had to call the national service department to learn the fix. So, for the most part, what little dissatisfaction I have has more to do with the service end of things. I'm thinking hard about getting that extended warranty. ;-)

riez

atomicpunk... Not sure you are comparing apples to apples. You essentially bought a very low mile used car. So you'd have to adjust for that fact in any price comparison. People don't normally talk invoice on what is really a used car purchase.

My local BMW dealers routinely sell off their demonstrators, service loaners, etc. They'll even sell you one if that is the only item they have that you are interested in. That was how my wife bought her former '00 323ia. (When my wife walked their lot and told them what she wanted, they didn't have one, but the sales guy then pulled a near exact unit out of their fleet. They had to clean it up and take the plates off, but they sold it on the spot. Her's had 18,000 miles and she bought it CPO, but she also bought it about $7,000 under MSRP.)

bentleyfam25

I'd feel 1K miles is essentially new. Can't really say when I'd feel a demo is "used" (subjective call depending on the car) but this seems like a fair deal for atomicpunk, as below invoice in today's market. I'd be thinking used around 2500 miles, or if not owned by a dealer. No real justifcation, of course, just an opinion.

Always interesting to me how tastes differ. I can't stand the anthracite/titanium combination, even though the blue/beige combo is attractive. Almost turned off permanently to BMW by the antracite/silver interior combo when I saw it on the first E60 on the dealer's floor. Each to his own, of course. Enjoy the car, atomicpunk.

riez

bentleyfam25... One consideration is that those first 1,000 miles, during the critical break-in period, were not done by you. All you can hope is that whoever drove it for the 1K followed the owner's manual.

For me, no more than about 300 miles (for a car that sat on the dealer's lot for some time) is still "new". After that, it has been "used" and thus is now "used".

bentleyfam25

But I lease them anyway. Doubt that first 1K will make a difference in 36 or 45K miles, so I have a more liberal view of what's used.

Cheers--

atomicpunk

Like I said...I "took a chance." It seems to be turning out in my favor. Regarding the "when is it used?" issue: all I know is I've got 2,500 miles on it now and every one that gets in still remarks about the "new car smell." I think I'll go with the rule that "so long as it smells new it's new." :-) Seriously, buying a fleet vehicle is always a risk. I wouldn't recommend it in most situations. But $800 under invoice for a car with 1,000 miles on it compares quite favorably to $2,000 over invoice and 200 to 300 miles on it.

jazz0427

Negotiatied for $2,500 off of MSRP and payments of $569/month with $3k out of pocket. Automatic, premium package, and Xenon headlights.
Excellent credit. Any idea if this is a good price? Any feedback will help. Thanks.

designman

Atomicpunk, considering the current market I think you got a good deal. Furthermore, from reading your posts it appears that you are really in love with the car —this is the most important thing—this is the way it should be. Good luck with it and enjoy it!

saugatak

you took a chance on a fleet vehicle and it worked out (sounds like testers didn't abuse the car too badly) so you got a great deal.

however, no matter what happens, remember you are always . . . .

the atomicpunk

atomicpunk

Saugatak,

You, sir, are correct.

church38

Have the opportunity to order a 2004 525i from the factory in Munich, Germany. Options are as follows: Premium Pkg, Sports Pkg, Cold WX Pkg, SMG Manual Transmission, Bi-xenon headlights and Nav Sys. My cost: $45,715, Additonally, I will pay no sales tax. What do you think?

warthog

does your flight leave?

330iii

What state do you live,or are you planning to register the car in? I wanna move there!

church38

I'm stationed in Germany, will rotate back to the Good Ole USA in May 2004 to Texas. Spoke with the Texas DMV, as long as the vehicle is registered in USAREUR (which it will be) I get away from the sale tax, every state handles it differently though. DMV said it would cost me $194.80 for registration/tags and title. I guess I need to add that to my price: $45,715 + $194.80 = $45909.80. Seems like I would still be getting a good deal on the car. (comparatively)

krish5

Hi,

I thought if you are stationed in Germany you will not be eligible to order BMW through "Eupore Buying Program". Is it not true?

I live in Texas, thinking to factory order 525i. Did you get the 7% discount from the MSRP? Even for optional items?

designman

church 38, I'm curious why you're getting SMG. Also, did you test drive it? I was interested in it and test drove an 03 M3 with SMG... didn't care for it. I heard the 04 versions are improved and would be interested in hearing anything you or anyone else has to say about it.

dchan777

jazz0427,

Is the 569 with or without tax?

church38

krish5, don't believe that military service members buying BMWs in Germany is considered the European Program. They have a military BMW program here, you can find a BMW dealer selling cars with American specs outside of just about every installation. Don't beleive there are any discounts on the packages, they claim the base price at which the vehicles are priced is a substantial savings in itself.