BMW 3-Series 2006

planoml

dl, amt-Small world. I will be at Southfork on the 11th also. Just look for the drooling guy next to the E90.

chasscplatz

I have been told that I will be driving THE first '06 3 Series in Charleston. ANOTHER ship came in yesterday offloading hundreds of more Bimmers. There is now a field of them! So close to touch...but they'll be loaded on trucks and trains, soon for the Prep center.

I am not thrilled that mine will have active steering, but that is what 330 was on the ship, so I took it. I was able to negotiate FULL PRICE from the dealer. Good luck with your deal

They dealer is saying May 7th, but has not received the release date from BMW.
Said he'd have it on his lot in the next couple weeks, but is unable to release it until he gets the okay for the national release.

And so it sits three blocks away, covered in wax

giovanni1

I was able to negotiate FULL PRICE from the dealer.

That doesn't seem like much of a negotiation.

Congrats on the purchase and enjoy!

hpowders

Wow! Full price! You sure got the best of that salesman!

novice

DL,

Where did you see that the sports seats were a stand alone option on the E90? My sales rep says no--but I'm wanting him to be wrong...

Thanks,

blueguydotcom

Yeah, get him into the next round of nuclear arms reduction talks with Korea. Maybe he can convince them to only keep what they have and what they're currently making. nothing beyond that though.

dl7265

On the build your 3, when you get to options and click on the discription of power seats it says Power "Sport" seats.Honestly I was never interested in power seats before so I can't say if it said Sport seats before. When I asked salesperson if it was Sport seats same as Sports package I was told yes. $995 for power Sport seats is ok with me, just power not.

Southfork, Ill be the Carbon Metallic Yukon in the parade LOL

DL

bigpapaluke

LOL!!!!

hpowders

I think anyone buying the new 3 right off the boat would do a lot better 3-6 months down the road.
After all, you can get an M35 for just about the same price as the new 330i. In some comparos, the M35 beats the 530i! Nope. I don't think BMW will be able to play the MSRP game for long with the new 3.

chasscplatz

I was hoping for 96% of sticker. But when you get the first E90 on the first day of release...one's negotiation skills are pointless. They were willing to deal on the new '05's, but the residual (I lease) was not favorable.

FYI, the residuals are currently appx. at 58% on the '06's...but they indicated that that may change (get even better) by release date. BMW Financial Services was subject to "work" with the numbers. I'll let y'all know.

blueguydotcom

ED seems like the only logical choice for those who MUST have the new e90. Get it for 5k under msrp and be happy.

selm

I agree with you that ED is the best choice, but how do you come up with 5K? The discount on the 325i is $2,120 and the 330i is $2,540. Plus the Lufthansa deal doesn't save all that much.

fishtook

Funny how human nature works but the way I look @ idrive is this:

* The folks who never figured out how to program their VCR's and the clock is still blinking "12:00" for the last 10 years will absolutely abhor idrive.

* The folks who will actually read the owners manual from A-Z will like it or at least tolerate it because they figured out how to use it.

fishtook

Can anyone that's attended the traveling road show give any feedback ??

Did they let you test drive the e90 on the street or in a parking lot ?? If it was in a parking lot, did they let you drive solo or were you chaperoned ??

blueguydotcom

Look for the pdf I posted as it shows the wholesale ED prices. don't go by the bmw website as that version of ED is a ripoff. An ED 325 starts at 25k and a 330i at 30k. Add 1k dealer profit, then add features.

just check travelocity, a flight leaving may 14 from lax to munich and returning may 16 would cost 730 right now (kinda pricey). that's perfect for me, leave on a saturday, arrive sunday, pick up the car monday, drop it at the port and fly home.

blueguydotcom

Word is NOBODY gets to drive the e90, thus making the 3 across america stand for the number of people who are still willing to go to little more than a pr event.

selm

What dealer is going to give that kind of price break as I was thinking that MSRP was the going rate right now?

bmwccc

So living in the San Francisco Bay Area, my 3 across america event is scheduled for April 29th. Could be one of the last stops on the tour, I have to drive 2 hours to get there for a 2 hour event. Without the test drive opportunity is disappointing but i still may go if nothing else to do.

My question is when do they anticipate having these vehicles on the floor at your local BMW dealership? If it is in May, I might just wait several weeks to see it closer and when it is more convenient for me

Any input?

psyran1

In the ordering guide it seems to indicate that to get the sport seats one must order the sport package. Please let me know what you definitely find out as I have ordered (can still make changes) and would like the sport seats without the harsher ride of the sport suspension.
Thanks

psyran1

Just checked the "build your three" section for the e-90 and there is no stand alone sport seat listed option that I can see. Are you sre you weren't building an e46? Accessory section is not up and running yet so I know it is not there?
Help.

rhody_88

Unfortunately, with respect to the i's, the sport seats with the "thigh support" are available only with the Sports Package. This is the one feature that will either force me to wait until the introduction of the xi's or seek another vehicle.

bartalk3

At a local auto show today, salesman told me the new 3 is arriving at his dealership (central Illinois) within a few days, available for test drives but not sale until the first days of May.

Is that already known on this board (I'm a late joiner)?

dl7265

I should try to clarify . The power seat option $995, says power "sport " seats. Which would be a change from the E46 which only got you power sport seats if you also got the Sports package. Now im having doubts. Does any one know if the "standard" seats are called Sport ? also for some reason ?

fwiw, I like the Sports suspension, wheels ect, Its the offset and 40 series rear's thats making me want to pass.Why not just 4 235/45/17's ?

DL

rjorge3

Funny how human nature works but the way I look idrive is this:

* The folks who never figured out how to program their VCR's and the clock is still blinking "12:00" for the last 10 years will absolutely abhor idrive.

* The folks who will actually read the owners manual from A-Z will like it or at least tolerate it because they figured out how to use it.

I know fishtook, its very funny how we work as humans, at least the VRC is still around and people are still using it in its original form, totally the contrary to the the idrive, which will not even be standard on the 330.......ooppps I forgot, I guess BMW engineers really payed very close attention to the "minority" that hated such a superb and intuitively design gizmo that they decided not to listen to the majority that loved the thing. But I give them lots of credit for designing such bland interior on my beloved 330, that you are almost obliged to get the idrive, so that your 40k plus car looks the way a 40k plus car is suppose to look in the inside.

Sorry but I have to run to set my clock on my VRC, it reads 20:07am, exactly the year you will not see your beloved idrive.....at least not on its current form. Drive a 2006 Audi A6 with MMi and then post again. LOL

You did made me laugh though, I give you that.

p.s. and yes, just in case you ask, I will still get my 330xi with the idrive, not because I want it, but because what I said on my previous post and because BMW are superb cars equal to none on the road (6 Speed manual of course). I do however have the balls to critize (I am not the only one) when BMW designers make a bubu, and sorry fishtook, the idrive its a bubu....at least in my humble opinion........Almost forgot, Shipo, I did not mean to sound condecending on my previous post to you (type idrive on the search field), on the contrary, I just wanted to make certain that you've read other posts and publications. I still will give you, or anyone that drive daily with the idrive sytem the proper recognicion and I know that you will have a much better input that I can give, specially when I only test drove the car with the idrive and read forums and publications on the subject. Just remember, that we post on this forum because of one thing we all have in common.........we love bimmers!

307web

You are not going to find a dealer selling an e90 for 1k over ED invoice for years. Probably ED MSRP or a small discount below.
The E46s we selling for around 1500 over ED invoice and most buyers were probably paying full ED MSRP even for E46s.
ED isn't worth it for the E90 unless you were planning to go to Europe anyway where it would then save you the transportation costs that you would have spent on car rentals and trains.
ED will cost you payments one month before you pick up the car, plus 2 months while the car ships to the west coast. They will waive one lease payment while the car ships back to the US, but you pay a higher money factor for that, so it ends up saving little in the long run. It will cost the the cost of taking time off to go to Europe, the plane fare and the hotel there.
If you were going to have those expenses anyway (due to a planned vacation or business trip) then you save money.

dlaw

Have been waiting to buy the new 330 2006 for a year now. Now I hear the sports package won't be available until September. Is this true? I was hoping to buy in May and don't know if I can wait much longer. Thanks.

araouf

Went to the BC Auto Show (Vancouver) today, just to see the new 3 for the first time. I was actually quite impressed. Here are some pics I took. I wrote a review about it that you can find here at www.e90style.com. There are also about 100 more pics!

wstevec

Thanks for the pictures! These are among the best I have seen so far. I happy to see the sparkling graphite (gray) which is the one I ordered. It all makes it worth the long wait, the fall in my case since I ordered a 325xi.

peakpro

thanks for the pictures.....they are some of the clearest ones on the net....

From every angle the car looks bloated....and I am starting to see why people are commenting about how ugly the grill is.....

It is truly is easy to see why people are polarized on this car.....

:confuse:

rhody_88

Thanks for posting the pix. I was wondering if you know anything re the new standard seats. Are they any larger than the 2005's? A BMW salesman said the interior of the 2006 3 series is comparable to the interior of the 2002 5 series.

dl7265

Thanks , funny the Arctic paint chips I saw looked more like the current grey/green so I had to pass. Maybe was not a good representation,. Nice to see roof racks are available allready. as well. Also the radio is on the top of the center stack where it should be, I was thinking the euro pics we've seen were opposite.

DL

shipo

"You are not going to find a dealer selling an e90 for 1k over ED invoice for years."

Hmmm, I've got to disagree with you on that. I ordered a 1999 E46 328i one month after they were released here in the fall of 1998 for about $1,750 over invoice, and I didn't do any shopping. After the car has been out for a few months, my bet is that if one shops around a deal can be found for ED invoice plus $1,500 or better. Some dealerships won't budge form MSRP, others are more pragmatic. An ED deal doesn't come out of the dealers' allocation of cars, however, it does count as a car sold so it DOES count toward increasing their allocations for future years. In essence, if a dealership really understands the ED program, they find that they have even more of an incentive to discount below MSRP.

In my case, my family and I want to do an ED trip in April of 2006, and I'm betting on being able to secure a deal that is somewhere in the ED invoice plus $1,000-$1,500 range.

Best Regards,
Shipo

chasscplatz

My '06 330 that went into production 3/17/05 has the sports pak (ZSP).

spoon2000

I attended the 3 Across America event last night in DC. There were a couple hundred people there in a hotel ballroom, including some who'd apparently driven in from as far away as the Carolinas. It started at 6, and there were hors d'oevres and a cash bar until 7, at which point the BMW marketing manager spoke for 10 minutes and then ordered the sheets pulled off the two cars: a 2006 325 and 330 (both sedans with sport package). They gave away a Westin gift certificate, and when you left they handed you a plastic bag with a brochure, Sirius radio steering wheel-shaped keychain, poster, and some other literature.

People talk about how rude BMW drivers are on the road, and I can assure you that the people at the event more than lived up to the reputation. I've seen people in Africa line up more peacefully for food, and with the way people were pushing and shoving to sit in the cars you'd have thought there was money hidden in the ashtrays or something. When the BMW rep was speaking at the podium about the innovations in the cars (things like adaptive cruise control and adaptive brakes) people just kept right on talking among themselves. The usual group of camera freaks was there, too, all of whom had to get the requisite shot 20 shots of the inside and outside of each car.

Honestly, the event was not that big a deal, considering that the cars will go on sale at dealerships in less than a month. There were no opportunities to test drive (the cars were inside the hotel) but you could sit in them.

psyran

No not true. ZSP is available now from everything I have read and the dealership did not indicate it is not available now.

psyran

What color is the first few pics? It seems too light for sparkling graphite? Is it arctic? If it is I am liking it and may change order (May production).
Thanks

jon330cic

"You are not going to find a dealer selling an e90 for 1k over ED invoice for years."

Shipo,
Thanks for continuing to emphasize that MSRP is not the only deal available on an e90.

The 3-series is BMW's equivalent to Ford's Taurus (w/no other correlation than production volume, obviously ) It is a mass-production product and BMW's highest volume car by a long shot. Past the hoopla of the first few weeks of the launch, dealers will deal on this car.

Use the Rizzo method, and you will find a dealer that understands ED and realizes that your $1000 is a windfall - free cash that they get for doing almost nothing. And, as has been pointed out earlier in this thread, they get credit for a unit sold without it coming out of their allocation (as long as an ED slot is available and confirmed by the factory).

Big thanks to Shipo and kyfdx for all their helpful info on this forum.
j.

psyran

Read araouf's reviews and learned that the color is arctic. What a dilemma. Thought I would order (already have but can change due to May build date) SG, but really like the arctic. Also seems that many are ordering SG. Based on those pics, I think I will change color.
Thanks araouf for the great shots.
psyran

araouf

Thanks everyone for the comments. As you already know the first color is Arctic. It is a very interesting color and is quite difficult to describe. But I found it to be great looking in person. It also does not seem like one of those colors that would become old after a few years. Dont worry wstevec, Ive also heard SG looks super

The car including the seats does seem roomier inside. I have an E46 sedan and did feel a difference especially sitting in the back seat.

rhody_88

Thanks for your reply re the seat size. I thought I might pick up a 2005, until I sat in the kiddie (non-sports package) seat.

psyran

One more question re: the sports package ( as seen in pics). I am debating ZSP or no ZSP. I like the look and the sport seats, but am concerned if 18" wheels and run flats will create an overly harsh ride. Does your current e46 have 18" wheels? If so please give thoughts re: my above dillemma with the ZSP.
Thanks,
psyran

burry

I stopped by a dealer the day after the 330 pricing was released. I asked if he was willing to negotiate on the ED MSRP and he replied without the slightest hesitation that he would take another $1000 off. I am very confident that he will even go lower especially several months down the road. He deals more in volume than margin and has done many ED sales during the past 10 years . I will not publish the name on this forum but will be more than happy to answer any email requests.

novice

Do you have reason to believe the xi's will have the sport seats as a stand alone option, i.e., without requiring the sports package? I plan to purchase a 325xi so you raise my hopes...

dlaw

Thanks for the responses regarding sports package - turns out it will be available in May - a relief for me.

Has anybody been able to obtain invoice pricing? Seems hard to negotiate with the dealer without knowing invoice price. Are people buying the new 3 seires without having even seen the colors in person? I want to go to the dealer and ask them to place an order for me but I haven't even decided on color. I'm leaning towards titanium silver but curious about sparkling graphite and arctic metallic. In terms of interior colors, I'll probably go w/gray but would have chosen black except I hear a black interior gets dirty easily, has this been people's experience? Thanks.

blueguydotcom

You are not going to find a dealer selling an e90 for 1k over ED invoice for years. Probably ED MSRP or a small discount below.

Well you should tell everybody on other bimmer boards doing it right now.

The E46s we selling for around 1500 over ED invoice and most buyers were probably paying full ED MSRP even for E46s

Hmmm, again, tell some other people that as 1k-1250 was the norm. And it appears to still be with the e90. As ED is pure profit, the dealer lists on another board tell people who to call.

ED isn't worth it for the E90 unless you were planning to go to Europe anyway where it would then save you the transportation costs that you would have spent on car rentals and trains.

right...5k savings isn't worth it. sigh.

ED will cost you payments one month before you pick up the car, plus 2 months while the car ships to the west coast. They will waive one lease payment while the car ships back to the US, but you pay a higher money factor for that, so it ends up saving little in the long run. It will cost the the cost of taking time off to go to Europe, the plane fare and the hotel there.

Cost of taking the time off? plane fare is under 800 bones, hotel if under 80. it's a one night stop over. fly out on saturday, arrive on sunday, stay the night, get the car, drop it off, fly home.

If you were going to have those expenses anyway (due to a planned vacation or business trip) then you save money.

I will probably be stuck in eruope next february but even without that, the trip is not some expensive luxury item.

What's with your negativity?

blueguydotcom

Yeah it is ugly. but i'll drive it from the inside (assuming I get one).

justconvinced

I fell in love with the Arctic metallic at the NY auto show. I would say it looks like a blue/gray/green iridescent. It's gorgeous, but I would also be interested in seeing how it looks outside of the great display lighting conditions.

jC

justconvinced

Pardon my ignorance, but what is the Rizzo method? Tried to check back and see if I missed this, couldn't find it. I've never negotiated price at a car dealership (only ever owned one car, and I bought it online).

jC

rhody_88

No, the sports package will still be required. However, the sports package in the xi is less severe, e.g., no performance tires, etc.

peakpro

I don't think overall the car is ugly but as I stated I can see why others have called the grill area ugly.

I find it somewhat boring and bloated. As many others have.

Good luck with your car.