[FlyinLow]

That's just 1-2 lakhs lesser than the going rate for the petrol beemers. I suggest you run through the car history as well as the insurance history. What's also a good idea, is to run a background check on the owner. Viz. Driven by owner/ driver / businessman / college kid , if he has more than a few cars, etc etc. It'll give you an idea about how the car may have been driven.
Secondly, if you could hunt for a 2009 or later model as that comes with a newer drive. Don't let the running cost hamper your decision to own a nice car. I agree it may be a bit but then you are already paying one-third to own it. Let the first owner take the bigger hit of the depreciation . Beware of test drive vehicles and those sold by authorised dealers since they would make the car only as good as its sell-worthy . All the best, let us know your decision.

[RS_DEL]

Originally Posted by avisidhu

What you have mentioned is true only if a person goes to market with that kind of budget to begin with, and then realises he on the 40 odd lakhs mentioned above. So he should approach this purchase with a different mindset IMO.

Agreed, your observation is valid. If the OP is not cushioned for the maintenance bills then it is certainly a risk of a much higher magnitude.

Insofar as your observation goes about what people with the budget for new cars do, there I will differ as there are folks who do try to avoid the initial depreciation hit and buy used i.e. barely used.

[maheepgupta]

Thanks for all these replies. I have few things in my mind -

1) Assuming everything is fair (no accidents, valid odo reading etc.) what else should I check for. I am not sure if getting this checked from a street <i>mistri</i> will be helpful but not sure. Is there a way we can check if the car has gone through an accident. Like some tempered seals which are very apparent and visible for a non-technical like me.

2) I spoke about maintenance costs to him and he said I should go for BMW Insurance which will cover everything. Again, I am not sure how effective that is and may be some existing owners will be able to share their experiences on that matter.

3) Overall if German cars are reliable? From what I have read and what I understand, that is like ultimate engineering so I would assume they will be quite reliable. Unless of course I smash the car somewhere.

4) I currently have two SX4s and one Zen and needless to say, Marutis are dirt cheap to maintain and reliability if top notch. I am sure BMW will not be cheap to maintain but if is not reliable either, I don't want to end up in a mess

5) The guy also said that an average service cost (after 10 to 15K run) is around 15-18K. Is that true?


My annual run is not more than 10-12K and that is why I don't mind petrol. Like I said, I was almost settled for XUV and mostly like it apart from few points in terms of over designing and then of course the experience in Mahindra Dealership and workshops. However, charm of owning a BMW is suppressing everything and has left me confused.

Originally Posted by bigron

i am getting 2008 model accords the new shape for 8. Now i am sure the comfort level in the accord is better than the bmw specially the rear and also the maintainence and service would be far more pocket friendly .Decisions decisions.

I agree but somehow I am not able to resist owning a german car.. may be the snob value factor! I like Accord but still.

Originally Posted by the VTEC guy

Even though I am not in the market for such a car with such a budget I have been looking at such deals on Carwale.com. There are some very interesting options available. Mouthwatering in many cases. As many have pointed out be pepared for costly maintenance down the line. In case of BMW there may be some cars with extended warranty coverage still valid. These will be best bet. Even if mechanicals are covered under warranty small accidents will be costly affair as the new replacement parts won't come at depreciated cost like the car itself. Plus cars above 3/5 years old will not have zero depreciation on insurance.

So ultimately if the offer looks good be prepared to spend another 30% of cars price for maintenance over next 2-3 years.

Thanks. I will check for finer details of insurance.

Originally Posted by Harbir

just be careful of the miles. lots of fraud about, including by official dealers.

Really? How does that work? Meter Tampering? I thought BMW iDrive keeps a detailed history about it which I would be able to check. Is that true?

Originally Posted by RS_DEL

Assume for the sake of a comparison that the 535i in the current BMW line up is the closest to the 530i, to get as close to an apples to apples comparison, as is possible. You are looking at a capital cost of 58Lacs or so ex-showroom for the new vs the 20Lac you have been quoted for the used. The price of the new is without registration & insurance. Add that and you are in the regions of 65Lacs or so.

Now the specimen you have seen , assuming it in as satisfactory a condition as is possible given it's vintage, the capital outlay is a third or so of the capital outlay on the new one.

Compute the earnings you can manage on the saved capital outlay. If the earnings are adequate enough for you to cover the upkeep bills and you are really keen to opt for a BMW and are not put off by the inconvenience of maintaining a used car, you have your decision.

Yes the point being made by the others that you will need to make substantial maintenance outlays is valid but is that a deterrent enough, that is all you have to mull over.

Well like, Avisidhu said, I was not really in market for 5 Series. I actually went to check new 3 series and liked it. That much I can afford probably but somehow I was not able to convince myself for spending close to 35L on a car.

Let us see..

Originally Posted by saketa

I was in the same boat as you a couple of months back. I had a budget of 25L and was looking at well maintained pre owned 5s. But somehow I hardly found too many great cars. And those which did look well maintained were not covered by BSI so it just seemed too much of a gamble. The word "expensive" simply does not describe the full extent of pain/expenditure one might incur if you break a headlamp/mess up the tranmission. From what I know of the new 5, transmission breakdowns could set you back by 6-7L easy! Another person on this forum had to cough up close to 45k for a wiper stalk !

45K for wiper stalk!! holy cow! I am comparing that with what I pay in my SX4 Maintenance. I think that is total amount I have paid in 5 years

Thanks for the insights though. I think I am prepared for around 30-40K per year towards maintenance but well. I will read more ownership threads today and see what users are seeing. Also, will check for BSI package and what it will cover.

Originally Posted by mmmjgm

IF the car is under the BSI (BMW Service Inclusive) it should be a good deal, if not walk away. Under BSI every thing is possibly covered, you may even add/upgrade the BSI package, the dealer will be happy to update the BSI package if its within warranty and service records are clean.

Even if the odo is tampered, BSI will give you 100% peace of mind since depending on the coverage possibly everything except for brake pads (this is an auto hence no clutch, lucky you)is covered. Of course tyres are not covered.

Within a family we have bought a BMW 330i which was driven by one of the company officials, it was a steal plus the BSI coverage was thrown in free. Don't ask how it was free. :-)

BEst of luck with the Beemer.

Will cross check about BSI today and post more details here.

Originally Posted by FlyinLow

That's just 1-2 lakhs lesser than the going rate for the petrol beemers. I suggest you run through the car history as well as the insurance history. What's also a good idea, is to run a background check on the owner. Viz. Driven by owner/ driver / businessman / college kid , if he has more than a few cars, etc etc. It'll give you an idea about how the car may have been driven.
Secondly, if you could hunt for a 2009 or later model as that comes with a newer drive. Don't let the running cost hamper your decision to own a nice car. I agree it may be a bit but then you are already paying one-third to own it. Let the first owner take the bigger hit of the depreciation . Beware of test drive vehicles and those sold by authorised dealers since they would make the car only as good as its sell-worthy . All the best, let us know your decision.

Thanks. I will definitely check for the history and other details. The guy is supposed to email me history and insurance records along with some pics. I will post it here as I receive those.

Note from Team-bhp support: Please use the EDIT or MULTI-QUOTE buttons instead of typing one post after another on the SAME THREAD!

[brraj]

@maheepgupta - Actually he is asking more, 20lkhs for a petrol BMW 5 series?

My friend has bought a Audi 2.7ltr tdi for 11lkhs.
Now there is Audi A4 3ltr tdi for sale at 17.5 lkhs.

[saketa]

Originally Posted by akshay1234

If its pre-owned from a BMW dealer, then it might be possible to get a 2 year BSI for an additional price. That would make a lot of sense if you are buying a car which is out of BSI.

Isn't the the 2 year warranty given by premium selection not as comprehensive as BSI? As in I don't think it covers quite a few wear and tear parts from what i remember when compared to the BSI they offer on new cars.

[pganapathy]

Originally Posted by maheepgupta

Well like, Avisidhu said, I was not really in market for 5 Series. I actually went to check new 3 series and liked it. That much I can afford probably but somehow I was not able to convince myself for spending close to 35L on a car.

Let us see..

Look at it this way. Spend a max of 20L on the car and put aside say 10L for service and you truly have an awesome car that you can keep for a long time indeed. This of course assumes everything about the car checks out.

Yes maintenance is expensive and it gets more expensive as you go from 1 to 3 to 5 to 7 series. That said if you can afford it, it will provide awesome comfort and a nice drive

[Warwithwheels]

Originally Posted by maheepgupta

...5) The original owner bought a new 3 series.

Why would somebody who drove around in a 5 downgrade to a 3 in the name of an upgrade?

Its something akin to selling your swift and buying a M800!!

Am not ruling out the genuine reasons for the swap. As others have pointed out, Just do a thorough background check of the previous owner.

Also check for how long the car has been on sale.

Good Luck

[maheepgupta]

The guy is supposed to send me details on insurance and some photos tomorrow. Will post it here once received.

Thanks for sharing the thoughts

[GTO]

If you can spend 20 lakhs for a 4.5 year old 530i, you could easily spend another 2 lakhs for the better 5 series. That is, a 525d or 530d. Look around, there are plenty of examples waiting to be picked up.

No doubt, a 530i for <20 lakhs is a lot of car for the money (have seen some for lesser $$$ too). The reason I recommend the diesel is:

- Far better to drive. I enjoyed the 525 / 530d more than the 530i, which is really dead at low rpm. The diesels are f-a-s-t and have super low end torque.

- The German diesels are usually more robust and reliable.

- Better tank range & fuel economy. Trying doing a 1,200 km round trip in a 6 cylinder petrol which prefers premium fuel and you'll know what I mean.

- Easy to sell off again when the time is up.

With few exceptions, the diesels are usually superior when it comes to Audi, BMW & Mercedes.

[maheepgupta]

Here are the photos guy sent to me. I am still waiting for the history though. I confirmed for insurance and it has got zero dep insurance but no BSI. Which seems to be a negative.

It looks good but I am somehow concerned about the maintenance costs after reading all other threads.

I have a feeling this will be anywhere between 75K to 1L per year and being a Maruti SX4 owner, it is a tough bite for me. I dont think I have spent more than 20K in last 5 years on my SX4 (apart from insurance of course) so thinking.

Gave an offer of 15L to dealer. Let us see what happens.

[FlyinLow]

I don't think the dealer will bite the bait at 15 L.
Car seems nice. It's a tough choice. Look around for a newer car maybe 2009 or later. But under 20L , even this would not be a bad bet. I would settle for say 17.5-18 L and be done with.

[udeybeer]

I went to a used car dealer in delhi while looking for a 3 series and he tried to tempt me with a 2008 bmw 530i in black colour. The car had done around 50k and in black colour. He said demand is for 18 and bit later he said that you can have it for 17 lacs. But the car had cracks in BMW logo on front and rear, even the rubbers which hold the front and rear windshield had cracks all over and it seemed they may leak anytime so didnot paid much interest in car. The way he was eager to sell there may be further room for negotiations even upto 15 lacs. If interested u can check that car, but be careful as he showed me a 325i which was in similar condition and front windshield had black tape on top as rubber was totally cracked. I told him the this needs to be changed and the next day i saw same car in Karol Bagh getting all the cracked rubbers changed.

[punitkakri]

Originally Posted by udeybeer

I went to a used car dealer in delhi while looking for a 3 series and he tried to tempt me with a 2008 bmw 530i in black colour. The car had done around 50k and in black colour. He said demand is for 18 and bit later he said that you can have it for 17 lacs. But the car had cracks in BMW logo on front and rear, even the rubbers which hold the front and rear windshield had cracks all over and it seemed they may leak anytime so didnot paid much interest in car. The way he was eager to sell there may be further room for negotiations even upto 15 lacs. If interested u can check that car, but be careful as he showed me a 325i which was in similar condition and front windshield had black tape on top as rubber was totally cracked. I told him the this needs to be changed and the next day i saw same car in Karol Bagh getting all the cracked rubbers changed.

Hi Udey,
You do need to be careful with the used Car Dealers, the other day i was checking out a 2009 model C220 done 31K...with an asking price of 17 lakhs....But the car was in a terrible condition...the front logo broken, the back logo removed, scratches all over and a dent in the rear bumper. I immediately told the dealer, how could one even show such a car to a prospective customer and quote 17 lakhs for it.. The point is not all people maintain their vehicles and when it comes to the premium segment, the repair expenses can be prohibitive so people let it be...My suggestion is look at authorised dealers of BMW/ Merc who will provide warranty on the used car and the car is likely to be in good condition.

[Harbir]

Originally Posted by maheepgupta

Really? How does that work? Meter Tampering? I thought BMW iDrive keeps a detailed history about it which I would be able to check. Is that true?

Typically it involves hacking the electronics to reset the odo reading. its a computer with flash memory and nobody has yet invented car computers with security strong enough to keep the hackers out.

The manufacturers claim that their systems keep records of all services and thus can verify the service history and thus the miles. I thought that could be trusted till I saw an S350 at a mercedes dealer, showing 22,000km run in 7 years, with the general condition of the car and interior wear and tear indicating that it was a very well used car. But the dealer insisted that the miles were genuine and that their service history file for the car backs that up.

I can't explain it but i walked away.

[pganapathy]

A friend of mine bought a repossessed 2010 530d with 30K on the clock for around 22L so I have to say that 20 sounds high for a 5 year old petrol car. I must admit my friend got a good deal but modern petrol prices have decimated resale values.