BMW and M Power Owners

Soldato
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Only expensive on BMWs because they bundle it in a pack along with other things. Standard on lots of rival cars higher specced models and available on its own in other countries on the bmw its only a £530 option.
It was more a reference to having to keep the midget watered/fed in order to keep it working.
 
Soldato
Soldato
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What's the max one should think about spending on a 440i at the moment? Coupe, ideally a facelift?
Given current market etc, I'm obviously happy spending over the odds but there's still a limit right :D
 
Man of Honour
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What's the max one should think about spending on a 440i at the moment? Coupe, ideally a facelift?

I think you'd have to be mad personally, you won't get one for much under 30k which is an absolutely ridiculous amount of money to spend on what is essentially now a 10 year old 3 series. They are quite dated inside. Can you afford an M4? At least you then end up with something reasonably special for the money which won't be quite as much of a depreciation nightmare when the market corrects itself.

For 30k I'd rather sacrifice 2 cylinders and get a couple of extra doors and go for a 330i, a completely new and thoroughly more modern and better car. The previous gen 3 series on which the 4 was based was never a brilliant car but the current 4 series really is.


Given current market etc, I'm obviously happy spending over the odds but there's still a limit right :D

These silly prices don't go away until people stop being happy to do this.
 
Soldato
Soldato
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I think you'd have to be mad personally, you won't get one for much under 30k which is an absolutely ridiculous amount of money to spend on what is essentially now a 10 year old 3 series. They are quite dated inside. Can you afford an M4? At least you then end up with something reasonably special for the money which won't be quite as much of a depreciation nightmare when the market corrects itself.



These silly prices don't go away until people stop being happy to do this.
There are quite a few on approved bmw website for under 30k
 
Caporegime
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I think you'd have to be mad personally, you won't get one for much under 30k which is an absolutely ridiculous amount of money to spend on what is essentially now a 10 year old 3 series. They are quite dated inside. Can you afford an M4? At least you then end up with something reasonably special for the money which won't be quite as much of a depreciation nightmare when the market corrects itself.

For 30k I'd rather sacrifice 2 cylinders and get a couple of extra doors and go for a 330i, a completely new and thoroughly more modern and better car. The previous gen 3 series on which the 4 was based was never a brilliant car but the current r series really is.




These silly prices don't go away until people stop being happy to do this.

Which with the continued shortage of decent used cars might well be not until 2023 after the new car market gets back to normal/
 
Man of Honour
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Which with the continued shortage of decent used cars might well be not until 2023 after the new car market gets back to normal/

Which unless you only keep cars for 12 months puts those spending silly money on older mass market cars at massive risk. 2023 isn't that far away...
 
Soldato
Soldato
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I agree with Fox here. Check out the G20 330i - it’s a very reasonable upgrade over the F30

Though, it won’t be the car for you if you’re set on having a 6 cylinder coupe :)
Exactly. I'm not after a coupe as such, I'd happily take a 4 series GC or 3 series but I just want a 6 cylinder
 
Soldato
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Exactly. I'm not after a coupe as such, I'd happily take a 4 series GC or 3 series but I just want a 6 cylinder

The only way you'll be doing that at the moment is to pay well over the odds and then live through financial ruination in 2 years time when it's lost about £15k of value.

I just gave up looking for a 440i GC, they're getting to be increasingly stupid money.
 
Soldato
Soldato
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The only way you'll be doing that at the moment is to pay well over the odds and then live through financial ruination in 2 years time when it's lost about £15k of value.

I just gave up looking for a 440i GC, they're getting to be increasingly stupid money.
Comparative to the competitors eg audi s5 and the c43 the 440i is well priced though, presumably I guess because it is previous generation?
 
Man of Honour
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Man shouts at basic economics

Yes because it's that simple, right?

There are a number of unique and unusual circumstances that have come together to seriously disrupt the market resulting in significant price inflation in used cars across almost across the board. This is effectively unheard of - outside of rare exotic models and sought after new cars with a waiting list used cars do not appreciate, they depreciate. Basic economics, right? Until the last 12 months, where everything has changed.

The long term trajectory for the value of normal cars is not up. The market will eventually correct itself leaving a bunch of people who seemed to think paying massive amounts of money for ordinary cars was a good idea because hey, basic economics, right? So if you don't need a used car right now really the best thing to do is not buy a used car right now. When the market goes crazy, don't join the market.
 
Man of Honour
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Comparative to the competitors eg audi s5 and the c43 the 440i is well priced though, presumably I guess because it is previous generation?

All three are actually of the same generation - but the 4 Series is older because its platform came out first.

F30 3 Series platform (A 4 series is a 3 series, but when Audi made the A4 Coupe seem special by calling it A5 BMW had to follow) is 2011-2020
A5 is 2016 to present
C Class is 2014 to 2021.

So you can see why the F30 feels so old and out of date inside - it's been around for ages - and why the A5 felt so much fresher - it was 4 years later to the party. Ok there have been a few incremental upgrades on the way, the later 3/4 Series had the newer iDrive etc but the cabin itself was average when new and worse now looking back.

Usually this stuff isn't relevant because as a car dates, it gets cheaper. Who cares that a 3 Series is a bit old hat inside when it's £10-15k instead of £35k? Not many people. Only because of the weird market it isn't £10-15k instead of £35k...

The F30 wasn't an amazing car when it was fresh and new in my view - I am a huge BMW fan (To the point that half this forum thinks I think they can do nothing wrong) but to me it's clear that it won't go down as being one of the great 3 Series. By massive contrast the new G20 is an absolutely brilliant car - so much so that you need to really, really, really want those extra 2 cylinders for it to make sense to buy the old one instead.

And this was before the price went mad! As I said above I'd feel a bit disappointed to drive off in an F30 for £20k let alone nearer £30k.

The exception to this will always be the M power models - these are more special, will always hold more appeal and will likely perform better residually. So if you must spend a small fortune on a dated 3 Series make sure it says BMW M POWER on the engine cover.
 
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