2008's owners bailing out

[dreamspeed]

Overall i believe the E9x M3s are solid cars with above average reliability.

Keep in mind that a small percentage of M3 owners actually post on the internet, then keep in mind you only hear about the "bad" cases, and a small percentage of another small percentage is probably a really small percentage of total overall M3s with catastrophic problems.

Of course i'm just doing "internet" math here so

[Slapshot9]

I like the trend in comments here gang. Ive got two factory mechanics on my hockey team that swear by the reliability and durability of the E9X M3. Had a lot to do with my puchase 2 yrs ago. Maintenance is gone but ive got CPO til 10/14, im keeping mine and maintaining myself. Keep it and drive it!

[kwike92]

My previous e92 m3 went to 81k miles with ZERO problems.

And I also, feel like a baller in mine even after owning an e92 m3 for 4 years now. Best car on the planet

[VCMpower]

Originally Posted by christopherchenm

i never care about warranty on an M3

[reginoc]

I have an 08 with a little over 19k. Paid off. Plan to keep. Ive been told this engine is fairly reliable. It's been rock solid for me

[W///]

Got an 08 E92 with 65k miles at the moment. It's not going anywhere as long as I can control it.

Rare color combo and it has all the options I wanted. Not to mention I won't have to deal with DCT since I have a 6MT. Yep, this car is here for the long haul.

[thekurgan]

Originally Posted by reginoc

I have an 08 with a little over 19k. Paid off. Plan to keep. Ive been told this engine is fairly reliable. It's been rock solid for me

+1, and I noticed on later models, some of the interior has been changed/cheapened, like the sun visor material?

[go4gr8]

I just got my 2008 E92 a couple months ago. Got the extended warranty for peace of mind. So far it's been bliss to drive it. Now garaged because of the snow. I'll be keeping her for as long as I can.

[bigjae1976]

Rod bearing. I think if your car hasn't had an issue yet...probably won't be an issue but your low miles are so low! I think the E9X is general, except for the 335, has been pretty reliable.

Yes, the E46 M3 SMG box is not bullet proof but I think if an owner took care of it from the beginning...it would last. Driving around town in the most aggressive settings WILL eat up your gears. Then the fluid should be changed regularly to keep the pump in good order. I think the same thing applies with the DCT. If you're driving around in S6 all of the time...you are going to wear out the gears and synchro's faster.

RLDZHAO did an oil analysis on his 30k mile old DCT fluid and checked out good. I think 30k mile DCT oil changes are a good idea (I will do one). Might go to 45k???

For Chriszeh, I'd buy a drivetrain warranty if I were you. First, you track your car. Then S65s will have a relatively limited and short production run. In the case of an engine failure, you can keep the cost down with used parts but used parts are going to be expensive. Unlike the S54 which was iron and had a 6-8 year run on M3s and Z4Ms. So if you blow a hole in your block you'll be spending a ton of money to get used parts or you can pay a lot more for a used reman from BMW.

[rawedge2]

My goal is to keep my 2008 M3 for +30yrs so that when I'm +50yrs old I could hop in and feel like a kid again!

(and have many fun cars along the way, some staying for the long run, some will come and go)

[1MOREMOD]

Yeah drive train warranty may add a little peace of mind but haven't done it yet. I've always been of the opinion that extended warranties are a suckers bet, like insurance in blackjack. The reason its offered is so they can make money not so I get a good deal. As my track days pile up though I'm considering it. Going tomorrow I think.

[WarrantyTracker]

I don't have an '08. If it were me, I would be thinking it would cost me $30k to get out of the '08 and into a comparable car. $40k from selling the '08 and $30K cash to get a new $70k car (I buy my cars outright; if you finance, it increases your costs in the following discussion accordingly).

Either way, I know I'm going to spend that $30k on a new car sooner or later (plus more, of course).

If I do the purchase now, in four years I will be in the same position, with another out-of-warranty car worth $40k. The value I get for my $30k is (a) no maintenance expense (in other words, a very good comprehensive warranty/maintenance package) and (b) enjoyment of a newer car.

Odds are strongly in my favor that the cost of maintenance on the '08 for 4 years will not be a large fraction of the $30k. Better than house odds in Vegas, except it's all bet on one game, so the tail risk is huge. But tail risk is out on the tails, and I can afford to take it, same as my high insurance deductibles.

So for me, the value proposition is whether I want to spend my $30k now to get a different/better car experience now, or hang on to it. The maintenance expense is "cheap rent" if I want to delay and see what kind of better cars I can get in the future.

If I decide there's nothing so attractive in the market as to part me from my $30k right now, and I CAN'T cover the tail risk on the maintenance expense because I can't write a check for a big repair, then I definitely get a robust extended warranty, which provides me a value proposition as protection from that tail risk.

Did I mention I have a 79 Euro 3-series coupe?

[pokerface]

In 2008, the year of the M3 launch, was also the same year the credit crises came to a head. BMW (at least the Canadian branch) overstocked and have been forced to try and unload them at large discounts... so you're also going to see a lot more MY08s coming off lease at the same time hence the used car market is flooded with them. I am assuming this made the M3 more accessible to some and swayed some people over who otherwise would have been shopping below the price bracket.

[bvanderbilt]

if you love the car sell it and buy a 2013 while you can