Officially looking for my next ride!
 

Summers drawn to a close, and i'm now realistically looking for a car wohooo!

I've decided on a BMW 530i, 2007+ in white. Yeah i know its gonna be quite a power drop from the vette (350 to 255hp) but I think the reliability, lack of noise, and ride comfort/styling (and fancy factor) will be my compensation. I've contacted dealers thru the BMW CPO website with what i'm looking for but its supposedly gonna be tough to find one with the heads up display option...which I REALLY want because i STILL regret not getting it in the vette :(

anyway this is gonna be my car for the next 5 years at least (till i pay off the 70-80k of student loans i'll have at graduation) so if youve got any feedback on the car choice i'd appreciate it (anyone have one??) my range is 30k or less so if you see one anywhere let me know!

They're really nice cars, but you can pick up a nice 335i in that price range as well and IMHO it's a better car hands down.

Yeah i like the 335i, I've already heard reports of turbo failures though...i really dont want to deal with that. Even BMW says "life average is 6 years" and with me, u or any of the guys on this board driving we'll be juiceboxing it the day we buy it...
After the vette i just want something that runs nicely and that i dont have to keep taking to the shop...comfort/convenience over power

and the 335i doesnt have a spare tire, after the vette i hate run flats too...driving with normal tires and a AAA card isnt really that practical haha also the 530 gets better mpg in real world driving based on forums i've read (23 for the 335 and 29 for the 530) which is nice because i'll be driving a lot next year when i'm on call/rotations


plus everbody and their mom has a 3 series :P

I think if the keep the car "stockish" and don't go too crazy with mods you wouldn't have to worry about it. If you are that concerned just get a CPO BMW and you're covered. Oh, and 335i>530i everyday of the week.

yeah cpo would be the only way i'd get a 335, its usually over $30k tho for a CPO one sadly...still i'm looking around my brain and wallet want a 530i, my indian side says get a IS350 haha but again the prob i have with the 3 series and IS is that they're everywhere, i'm sick of looking at em so its harder for my heart to accept purchasing one :P

You should get a bike. As circumstance would have it, my awesome Bandit is for sale (gotta raise some scrilla for business). :) It's faster than your Vette by a lot, comfortable (it's a standard not a super sport), will get 30 something mpg on regular, costs almost nothing to register and insure, you can split traffic and park more places.

El Bandito

I'd rather have an IS350 or 335i than a 530i. What about a Pontiac G8 GT? It's bigger, still has a V8, is cheaper to operate, etc. I really like this color too...

Oh vettezuki...i'd LOVE to have a bike, but i really need a sedan/more seats! So...i'd have to get like a honda accord along with the bike...hmmmmm hahaha, realistically tho a bike is probably gonna be wayyyy later when i'm grown up, living in an apartment its just a matter of time till someone hurts the bandit or the car...poor vette has lots of door dings too :(

I refuse to buy another GM car, unlike the fanboys who's spell i was under before, i refuse to accept the 30 page lists of "common problems" that every high end GM product seems to carry with it... so no G8 GT, i used to love them too...but i just want peace of mind. After the celica/supra/LFA are shown in october i MIGHT just opt for the IS if i havent found a bmw by then, toyota is still my fav company (remember the original chetanmobile? 219k on the clock, 1981 corolla wagon baby, it was still running when i let it go!!)

I would definitely NOT buy a BMW then either. The out of warranty costs tend to be very high. I think I'd but an IS350 - great car :bigthumbsup:

BMWs CPO is 6yrs 100k from original date tho, so if i get an 08 with 40ish on the clock i'll be good till 2013, by then i'll have been working for a couple years anyway so i'll be ready for something new.

IS is a good car for sure, they're just everywhere and mostly driven by rich asian kids whos parents get em as their first car...i guess the image issue is always gonna haunt me :P. I'm willing to sacrifice the 45hp loss to get a bigger more luxurious car with decent handling and fancy factor. Plus i've had a 2 jap cars and an american car, might as well get a european one to round it out...regardless of what i get i'm gonna regret it a year later cuz something cooler will be out, might as well be sad and baller in a 5 series hah