Downgrading from e92 M3, 420/430/A6 etc

Jumper118 · 11 Dec 2018 at 00:32

why dont you get a small 1.0l pos for daily and keep the m3 for longer trips or weekends?

[TW]Fox · 11 Dec 2018 at 07:36

Jumper118 said:
why dont you get a small 1.0l pos for daily and keep the m3 for longer trips or weekends?

Because then you have to drive around day to day in a rubbish 1 litre car?

theone8181 · 11 Dec 2018 at 07:46

Mulder said:
Maybe I'm just itching for a change. It is tempting to hold onto the M3, but I'm not sure I buy the appreciation argument anytime soon at least. I'll probably take a ~£5-6k depreciation hit for 2 years of ownership, which for a car like that doesn't seem that bad at all. I also rarely get the chance to use the power, so paying for petrol, tax, insurance, warranty etc when I'd probably get more enjoyment out of something less powerful but newer, is getting a bit tiring.

Maybe it'll be better to keep it until the spring/summer and maybe get more money than now, but a 4 series or A6 is very tempting right now...

Commute a different way, i manage to hit the limiter at least once each way from/to work. I agree VED is annoyingly high though.

Scania · 11 Dec 2018 at 09:36

theone8181 said:
Commute a different way, i manage to hit the limiter at least once each way from/to work. I agree VED is annoyingly high though.

I suppose this depends on if your commute is 1/2mile or 50?

Metaphor hitting the limiter or literal? - your usually past peak power, certainly torque - not to mention I killed a car years back by redlining it once too often...

Cristian · 11 Dec 2018 at 09:41

Mulder said:
Maybe I should be thinking about Diesels more then. Better economy but with the power would be nice. Part of me worries the tide is turning against them, likely higher fuel costs, duty etc, but maybe that's a good few years away.

Cetainly should! There's a lot of noise and faff, but Euro 6 diesels are here to stay, and even Euro 5 aren't going to dissapear tomorrow. On the 430d that will mean earlier cars are E5, but all 435D are E6. Up the mileage a bit and you can still find a decent 435D within budget.

Scania · 11 Dec 2018 at 09:52

Mulder said:
Maybe I should be thinking about Diesels more then. Better economy but with the power would be nice. Part of me worries the tide is turning against them, likely higher fuel costs, duty etc, but maybe that's a good few years away.

Diesels are going nowhere for a good while imo, if I were you I’d be more worried about going from a peach of a V8 engine to one that’ll feel pretty naff by direct comparison pretty much no matter what it is.

It’s one hell of a downgrade, and there lies the problem, it’s a downgrade, sidegrading as such isn’t so much of an issue but downgrading is always trickier imo.

Jumper118 · 11 Dec 2018 at 10:49

[TW]Fox said:
Because then you have to drive around day to day in a rubbish 1 litre car?

but that makes the M3 feel much better. you have to have something crap to appreciate the goodness.

LiE · 11 Dec 2018 at 10:53

Jumper118 said:
but that makes the M3 feel much better. you have to have something crap to appreciate the goodness.

In reality that's not what happens. In reality you are driving round in a 1tr POS and it's horrible.

Jumper118 · 11 Dec 2018 at 10:54

LiE said:
In reality that's not what happens. In reality you are driving round in a 1tr POS and it's horrible.

that is completely subjective. Some people find it quite fun. You can park your car right at the front of the car park and not care, you can go foot to the floor for 20 seconds without breaking the speed limit, you dont care about the wheels, so parking near curbs is fine too.

[TW]Fox · 11 Dec 2018 at 10:56

Jumper118 said:
but that makes the M3 feel much better. you have to have something crap to appreciate the goodness.

It's a 2011 M3 not a Ferrari 488. It's not special enough to justify spending most of your time driving around in something awful.

Jumper118 · 11 Dec 2018 at 10:57

[TW]Fox said:
It's a 2011 M3 not a Ferrari 488. It's not special enough to justify spending most of your time driving around in something awful.

its all relative. XD

Scania · 11 Dec 2018 at 11:07

[TW]Fox said:
It's a 2011 M3 not a Ferrari 488. It's not special enough to justify spending most of your time driving around in something awful.

The voice of experience - a man who has to rough it daily in a horrible diesel but has the joy of a petrol straight six sat at home for the weekend.....

Uncle_Gravy · 11 Dec 2018 at 11:57

Scania said:
The voice of experience - a man who has to rough it daily in a horrible diesel but has the joy of a petrol straight six sat at home for the weekend.....

Mulder · 11 Dec 2018 at 11:58

Thanks for the thoughts all. I only drive at weekends otherwise getting a daily driver would definitely be a consideration. I guess that's another reason for wanting to sell it.

I'm leaning more toward a 430D with the right options. I checked one 2014 example on the TfL Ultra Low Emissions Site and it said it was fine, but what's the best way to check whether a car is Euro5 or 6? I can't find anything definite online.

NB - the 328 M Sport above is nice but I'd like something newer for that money really.

wedrum · 11 Dec 2018 at 11:59

just get a mondeo

LiE · 11 Dec 2018 at 12:00

If you do mostly short trips the diesel with it’s DPF may not be a good option.

[TW]Fox · 11 Dec 2018 at 12:11

Mulder said:
NB - the 328 M Sport above is nice but I'd like something newer for that money really.

You'll find it hard to get a newer 430 for the same money as a 328.

LiE · 11 Dec 2018 at 12:16

Also the 4 series boot opening isn’t massive so you may have fun getting a bike in.

[TW]Fox · 11 Dec 2018 at 12:21

LiE said:
Also the 4 series boot opening isn’t massive so you may have fun getting a bike in.

Unless it's a GC but they are even more money.

GinG · 11 Dec 2018 at 12:42

appreciate you are a badge snob, however take out a Superb Estate and see what you think. I felt they are just a bit nicer place to be than the Octavia and if your budget suits looks really smart on he sportline trim.