to buy or not to buy

[syahril]

Dear All,I’m planning to get an E46 unreg. year 2001/02 (RM130k) as I can’t afford to get a new one. But my concern is the maintenance of the car. It seems like everybody is saying that I need at least 1k extra for maintenance of the car. Meaning that in a year I must at least spend about 8K for repairs and all.Every month I have to pay the bank the sum of about 1.6k for 9 years. That is still under my budget. But from what I’ve heard the maintenance cost will kill me. How is this so? Aren’t BMW are a good car??? It is an expansive car and shouldn’t it be more reliable compared to other car?? I heard that it is quite common for the sensors to fail and there are a lot of sensors in an E46. The power window and transmission also giving a lot of problem. I don’t want to spend all of my money just on the car.I appreciate some feedbacks from all of BMW owners. Thanks

 

[vobs]

Hi

To buy or not to buy i think ur decisons already made up regardless how much it cost for maintenance.

on one hand, logically speaking u should not venture into something u cannot afford in the long run....BUT if u dont venture, u will be thinking of it and lose focus in ur life and have nightmares of not owning what u want/like

So, which u can tolerate more? the cost or the nightmares....urs to decide!

 

[JoeYazid]

Learn to manage the system, not the car. Try to clear all the fault messages every month if possible and not when the car is due for servicing. This is the least you can do. .[/quote

'All the orang kampung' knew already that you have yr own diagnostis tools. No need to tell others ....... neway boleh pinjam tak ?????

 

[kl_mafia]

to be perfectly honest, my coupe is the cheapest to maintain among all the other cars that i had in the past.


i only spent like rm 280 every 3 months for normal servicing. i dont thrash my car.

but i spent quite a bit on beautifying the car...

 

[wglee]

syahril,

The E46 is obviously not as cheap to maintain as a Proton. Neither is the E46 as reliable as a Japmobile although it is not far off. However, if regularly serviced, the E46 is not quite the headache that some would lead you to believe. As an owner of a 5 year old E46 325i since new, I can tell you my car does not cost me RM1k a month to maintain.

 

[Schwepps]

I’m planning to get an E46 unreg. year 2001/02 (RM130k)

Luxury cars are chockerblock with electronics, which is what allows them to perform magical things (like adaptive braking and steering in the E90) As you know, electronic parts are uneconomical to repair. If one goes on the blink, you just replace the board, transducer, actuator or whatever. Electronic parts have a normal lifespan of 5 to 7 years, and the E46 you're looking at is entering that age. Take extra care to find out as much as you can about its maintenance history. Some 5 year old luxury cars will be trouble-free for years to come, some will be major migraines.

Good luck with your purchase syaril!

 

[aramis]

I bought my recond E46 320i a year ago. I service my car every 10000km, ie around 6 months. No problem so far. Just the regular wear and tear.

 

[Mouse]

If you are a person who follow preventive maintenance, such as change A part at xx...KM, changing B part at xx...KM then u might need to keep some money for this after u buy the car to make sure that it wont give u any unwanted problem. better pay abit now than having troble later and pay more for damage.

 

[daan]

I had my e46 318i for 6 month now. So far i have spent RM 370 for repair and maint.

 

[E36Turbo]

I guess it reallyyy depends how you treat the car.. but just incase, you should at least put away some $ ...

 

[khisham]

....look at all the figures involved...
....be realistic & disciplined with the figures....
....ensure you intend to treat your car with the BEST care...
....look at the figures involved, again...

 

[khalidm3]

9 years loan? RETHINK!!!

 

[chairoger]

Buy a Bimmer if you have spare cash and NOT when you are stretching your budget for it.

 

[tull the prigger]

9 years loan? RETHINK!!!

True! How about starting off with E30? RM1.6k for 9 years at 5% is crazy

 

[syahril]

thank you so much for your all kind reply..
maybe i should start with an E36 first..
thanks..

 

[syahril]

well guys..
here's the situations.. to be honest..
i'm earning only 4700 at the moment.. so i'm willing to pay 1500 for a car..
but from what i heard, the maintenance of the E46 is a bomb.. depends on luck if the car is in good condition. For an E46 320i an 325i is about 135k and the interest rate is 2.8%. (i'm talking about the unreg. 2001 and 2002).

And if i were to get a toyota or honda, i will still be looking at a BMW and hoping to get one. So in other word, i wouldn't be satisfied with the car no matter how new or how long the warranty is.

E36 is already like about 8 years already. So i'm guessing the maintenance work is much more frequent and maybe expansive, i don't know.. that's what i heard laa...

 

[NKTOB]

well guys..
here's the situations.. to be honest..
i'm earning only 4700 at the moment.. so i'm willing to pay 1500 for a car..
but from what i heard, the maintenance of the E46 is a bomb.. depends on luck if the car is in good condition. For an E46 320i an 325i is about 135k and the interest rate is 2.8%. (i'm talking about the unreg. 2001 and 2002).

And if i were to get a toyota or honda, i will still be looking at a BMW and hoping to get one. So in other word, i wouldn't be satisfied with the car no matter how new or how long the warranty is.

E36 is already like about 8 years already. So i'm guessing the maintenance work is much more frequent and maybe expansive, i don't know.. that's what i heard laa...

Hey there...future beemer owner!

Everyone has a dream car...My philosophy is, if today one can live the dream...then why still want to keep it a dream?

I believe, many of us have gone thru the same predicament as you. As u have read the earlier postings, owning a E46 is actually not so much of a hassle...

The trick is, if u r getting a 5-6 yr old ride, definitely many wear & tear parts will be due for change!

But, honestly...end of the day, after owning an E46...it's not so much about u staring at it, but others will be looking at u & ur ride as well!

It does come with a sense of class, respect, achievement ( pamper oneself, u have made it ) to finally owned an Ultimate Driving Machine that's Sheer Drving Pleasure!

Lastly, pls take ur time to get one. Patience is virtue here...and one must be financially prepared! Meet the rest of the E46ers....u'll get the best insight of it all!

Happy Shopping!

 

[JoeYazid]

Syahril,

My advise to is to start with e36 first either 325 or 328, not to worry about the number of years or mileage as long as the previous owner maintain it properly.

With 4.7K per month, You should spent max 1K for loan per month. Have a good life with the extra money. No point spending yr money newer car and end up no more money to enjoy yr life.
The most important is you are driving a car with a roundel.
The extra money also can be use to beautify yr car.

just my 2 sen.
YAzid

 

[Schwepps]

You're capable of running 2 threads...so maybe can get a 2nd job? (Jes kidding! )

Hmmm...you're right that you should go for a Bimmer if you yearn for one more than a new car. But frankly, on RM4,700 you shouldn't take such a big risk and I think you should go for a cheaper E36 or E46. The years/mileage don't count so much past the 5th year. By then, if it's good, it's good. If it's a lemon, it's a lemon.

Take your time to find a good one. It's worth the trouble and the hunt is part of the fun too. Good luck bro!

 

[initialM]

I go for E39 for that price.