Thoughts On Buying Used/CPO M3?

[hl0m4n]

my first car was a brand new 335i and it was a blast. ordered it new waited the gruesome 4 weeks and took delivery. nothing beats ordering a new car and knowing you're the first owner. my lease ended last month (december) and i am on the market for a new car.

looking at the recent facelift but from from the initial looks of the e92 facelift it seems the m3 will just be getting the rear led lights. ill keep checking for official pictures as they have not been posted yet.

anyway what are your thoughts on a used or CPO m3 with dct (i only want dct)? honestly i have this uneasy feeling about buying it used/CPOed from the abuse, launch control, etc not knowing the previous owner how it was taken car of etc.

new m3 with options i want will cost me about $63k (about invoice+options). used 09 low mile is like $55k so to keep math simple there is a $10k difference.

i will be financing and keeping the car. of course i want to order new but buying used and just swapping out the led rear lights sounds much better deal.

only problem is the paranoia im having of buying a used/cpo m3 w/ dct and the abuse, launch, control, etc...

thoughts?

[dimabimmer]

Same here, but I only want 6MT... However, DCT in M3 is amazing! I drove it at M-power drive and it was a blast! It's got a Blip. I wouldn't worry about the car being abused by previous owner... these cars can take it! Nothing beats being the first owner, new car, etc,. but it's all sentimental value at a price.

[gatorfast]

I wouldnt worry too much about a preowned car being abused. The majority of m3 owners probably never push their car to the limits. Also, unless you are buying a very high mileage car then it will still be under warranty for quite some time.

[getalot681]

I'm in the same boat of buying used and I do worry about getting a car that wasn't broken in nicely. Doesn't seem like a whole lot to be worried about.

[niqui]

i am anal and couldnt do it, but the savings is there.
i wanted 6mt, but since you want dct i think there is less to worry about, you cant overrev or grind or manual driver mistakes, etc.

they can go to 8k and sit on the limiter and use launch control, but i think you can check the number of launches, and also it beats an amateur like me launching a 6mt by himself, id rather the comp do it.

driving it hard cold, and stuff like that, but its a mainstream car and i think it can take a bit of abuse.
do your homework, and since its 6mt i think ull be safer.

[mexicanmike]

How do you check the number of launches that have done?

[CATCH_M3]

For the old M3 I believe the dealer could check; haven't heard about the e92 in regards to checking how many times its been launched though.

[DiamondGCoupe]

If you're planning on keeping the car for 4+ years then it's worth buying new.

[gatorfast]

^what does that have to do with anything? A new M3 could be in the high $60k range and there are 2008 models going in the high $40K range...thats $20k savings right off the bat irregardless of how long you plan to keep the car. If you are plannning on keeping the car a while anyway then what does it matter if its already a few years old.

[warzilla]

To answer your question OP, I brought my 08 e92 M3 used with 5k miles. I too was concerned about buying used, especially a car with the capabilities and driving behavior that the M3 exhibits.

It came down to this:
- I had a good relationship with my local dealer service rep. He did a check for me and told me the car was clean.
- He then told me, that M cars are usually better built cars from their normal brethren, and they can basically take alot of shit thrown at them. As someone mentioned, this M can take revs up to 8000 and just be over-revved to death...its was built to handle this.
- lastly the car came with over 3 yrs of the original warranty left, so I had the comfort to know that any problems (outside of a complete engine blow-out), BMW would take care of the car.

And today, I have over 10k miles on the car and it hasn't caused me 1 issue (knock on wood).

Hope this helps.

[ideliver]

depends how much money you have and how willing you are to loose money to depreciation...08 M5's are in the 40's now...these cars were $90+ 2 yrs ago

[dimabimmer]

Strange... but there aren't many used '08+ M3's out there... looking at Carmax and BMWCPO...could it be too early... and leases didn't start to come back yet?

[OldRanger]

Look in Lease Trader and Auto Trader - there are some decent ones out there. And frankly, it is a buyers market right now. I'm offering a $5,000 incentive on my lease assumption.

[dimabimmer]

Originally Posted by OldRanger

Look in Lease Trader and Auto Trader - there are some decent ones out there. And frankly, it is a buyers market right now. I'm offering a $5,000 incentive on my lease assumption.

... what are details on this deal? What is lease term, how long left on lease and whats monthly payment, what milage on car right now and how many miles per year?

[OldRanger]

I have an uncommon lease term of 36months at 15,000 miles per year. So my car has a low residual. Good if you want to but it at the end of the lease. I have a post in the For Sale section on this board too.

Here's the URL to my LeaseTrader add: http://www.leasetrader.com/2008_BMW_M3_148540.xhtml

Months Remaining: 16 months
Advertised Payment: $925.00 p/month

VEHICLE DETAILS
Actual Miles: 21,520 miles
Total Miles Allowed: 45,006
Miles Remaining: 23,486
Available Miles: 1,468 miles p/month
Leasing Company: BMW Financial Services
Vehicle Location: Greenville, SC 29615
VIN#: WBSVA93548E215676

The other benefit to look for in Lease Assumption is if the current Lessee has the Safe Lease Insurance for Excess Wear. It is transferable for $25.