Septimus Prime
Member
It looks...rugged. Like something you would drive in Jurassic Park.
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Automotive Discussion Thread | OT2 | Zero to pointless fighting faster than a GT86
- Thread starter AlphaSnake
- Start date
kutthoat5150
Member
So I'm close to pulling the trigger on either a used 2015 328i nearly fully loaded with only 7k miles or a used 2014 435i coupe fully loaded but with 25k miles. My commute to work is 30 min 4 times a week but I'm not too familiar with how reliable bmws are over time. It's only a $2k difference between the two but I'm not sure how much I'd miss the additional hp over the 328i.
The 718 Cayman using a flat four...bothers me. Yeah turbo charged but... Idk
I'm not sure about the new engines, but the 328i has always seemed to be the safer buy in terms of potential issues,and were (relatively) solid.
I'm not sure about the new engines, but the 328i has always seemed to be the safer buy in terms of potential issues,and were (relatively) solid.
AlphaSnake
...and that, kids, was the first time I sucked a dick for crack
This has been a trending topic over every other page here. BMW's are not very reliable after 50K miles. Will they leave you with a blown engine on the side of the road? Not likely. But components will fail and the car will require numerous dealer visits for stupid things like bad sensors, thermostats, and possibly various electric issues.
I'd personally buy the more agile and faaar better looking 435i. Just make sure the car is clean, accident free, and hopefully it comes with a certified pre-owned warranty (which adds an extra 2 years to the existing coverage).
kutthoat5150
Member
Yea both are CPO from a bmw dealership. I've heard of issues with turbos and hpfp failures but not to sure how the newer engines fair. That 50k mile figure is worrying as the 435i I'm looking at is half way there but I'm still learning towards that over the 328i.
Whats the length of loan term are you planning to go with? You should be good until 2020 with the CPO added 2 years right? If so I wouldn't do anything more than a 4 year loan so you're not still paying for the car out of warranty. I went the same route with CPO BMW. It provides some peace of mine. Just look over its history like alpha said, and go for it if that's what you want.
kutthoat5150
Member
I'm going to do the 36 month loan on it as I can get the monthly payment down quite a bit with my trade in and down payment. Car fax looks good on it from what I've seen so I just may go that route, Appreciate the help fellas.
Liquidsnake
Banned
Liquidsnake
Banned
Yeah, I've been looking at getting an older RX-8 to mess around with, and it's shocking how few of them are for sale in my area. Fewer still are manuals. At this rate I won't find one before summer. Maybe I should just look at a used FR-S, but prices on those are still a bit higher than I'd prefer.
Apparently it's really hard for them to pass crash test ratings when they put a turbo in.
It has enough power for most people though, and with the combination of tires it comes with, it's super easy to have fun in without going at crazy high speeds.
I agree though, I'd love to see an STi BRZ w/ 300hp.
djSyndrome
Member
You'll make up the difference in apex seals. Promise.
LOL. Probably. Honestly though for a car that won't be getting many miles, and just as a toy, I'd rather have the 8 even at the same price. I think it's more fun to drive than the GT86, has a better interior, a little roomier, and so on. The reliability scared me off getting one as a daily driver a few years back, but I want one now. edit: the BRZ definitely looks better though! The 8 was ugly even when it was brand new.
RapidCancel
Member
I've seen quite a few manual ones around when I search my local craigslist. I imagine they're getting tougher to find, so being willing to travel a bit might help a lot. I drove 14ish hours round trip for my RX7.
I'd like to think mine fits the bill
. Interior is complete, not cracking or faded. Exterior could use a few touch ups here and there, but overall body is straight with no rust. It's running like a champ and hasn't failed me in 10 years? I've had the car so long now that I can't even remember how long I've owned it.
The 328i is a very nice car. My parents have a similar one and they say it's their favorite car that they have ever owned and they have had a bunch of them. The 435i coupe would be a heck of alot more fun. If you are in to performance driving then that would be the one to get.
I believe the HPFP and turbo issues have been pretty much solved in the new BMW's. That being said I still wouldn't expect them to age as well as any Japanese car. As they get higher mileage on them weird things will go wrong and they will get expensive to maintain. I said it a couple of pages ago but I will never again daily drive and out of warranty BMW. Too much hassle and too much of a drain on the wallet. A new or CPO one, however, would make me reconsider.
wat?
djSyndrome
Member
Very nice! Which tails are those?
AlphaSnake
...and that, kids, was the first time I sucked a dick for crack
The reason is because Toyota doesn't want to invest into the car any more beyond what it is now. And they forced Subaru to agree to a non-compete sort of agreement where Subaru is not allowed to update the power of the BRZ.
jongkookie
Member
IIRC, didn't Toyota and Subaru have an agreement where 2/3's of Toyobaru's are Toyota's and only 1/3 get to be Scooby's?
Anyway, if only Toyota would get their heads out of their collective asses, even a small power increase would bring life back into the Toyobaru. But the way it is right now, especially right after killing off Scion, I feel like they're just keeping it alive because the cost to keep producing them is basically next to nothing and they'd lose more money if they really ended production.
I actually just double-checked on AutoTrader... 7 manual RX-8's within a radius of 120 miles from my place, and 16 more if you include autos. That's kinda crazy if you ask me.
Part of me believes the rotary fanboys bought all of them up, removed and kept the engine so when their current one breaks, they can easily swap it themselves lolol.
Welp, color me jelly.
240's were my second choice of car after the AE86.
Anyway, if only Toyota would get their heads out of their collective asses, even a small power increase would bring life back into the Toyobaru. But the way it is right now, especially right after killing off Scion, I feel like they're just keeping it alive because the cost to keep producing them is basically next to nothing and they'd lose more money if they really ended production.
I actually just double-checked on AutoTrader... 7 manual RX-8's within a radius of 120 miles from my place, and 16 more if you include autos. That's kinda crazy if you ask me.
Part of me believes the rotary fanboys bought all of them up, removed and kept the engine so when their current one breaks, they can easily swap it themselves lolol.
Welp, color me jelly.
240's were my second choice of car after the AE86.
RapidCancel
Member
OEM 180sx tails, I believe it was from 1996 - 1998.
We rotary people aren't THAT crazy...maybe...
DivineRage002
Member
Pretty sure I win this, I drive a 350hp Genesis in the Quebec winter.
SliChillax
Member
26,000 people have bought an automatic FR-S? Why? It's not even a good auto. Buy another car with a good auto if you don't want a manual.
Yeah, if I expand my search now I see a lot of manual 8's within a few hundred miles. Many of them have high mileage on original engines, makes me nervous, but a few are the 2nd gen and under 50k.
That's awesome!
I'd like to think mine fits the bill
That's awesome!
Check the manual, usually the first 500 - 1000 miles you should keep the engine rpm under a certain rate then take it back to the dealership for a fluid change.
Test drove a 16 STI yesterday. Fun car. Feels planted like the 370Z, but the missus was definitely not a fan of the ride. Made a fool of myself driving a stick too. It's been a couple of years and I stalled on a steep hill. That's the part I hate about driving stick in a car I've never been in before; I'd have liked to spent a few minutes in an empty parking lot to get a feel for the clutch.
Ah well - wasn't there someone here with a new Golf R? I'm going to go take a look at one of those tonight.
Ah well - wasn't there someone here with a new Golf R? I'm going to go take a look at one of those tonight.
tryptobphan
Member
My commute isn't too bad. Takes about 30-40 minutes from my home to work. But having the option to go carpool lane with the Tesla would be nice.
You're right though. If I were to spend money on Tesla, it'll be about $90K with just the 70D AWD model with some options. If I got a Jaguar XE or BMW 3 middle of the road models and top them off with most options, they'd still only be about $60K. So if I'm going to consider the Tesla I may as well consider other cars and different classes then the entry level executive saloons.
But Tesla looks so nice...I'll test drive it in less then two weeks but I'm planning on test driving some other cars as well from various manufacturers.
A part of me just thinks I should get a BMW 228i xDrive and spend the rest of my money taking my family on international vacations, and call it a day.
Does anyone here own or have a BMW 228i with thoughts on it?
Skel1ingt0n
I can't *believe* these lazy developers keep making file sizes so damn large. Btw, how does technology work?
Eh, I killed the Challenger I test drove twice before I even got to the first light, and screeched the tires into first. I felt like an idiot, too - haven't driven a stick in ~4 years.
But as soon as I was on the actual road and had taken off from a couple greens, everything else for the next 25 minutes was smooth sailing. Too bad the salesman didn't see that - he probably thought I was gonna end up stranded a mile down the road.
AlphaSnake
...and that, kids, was the first time I sucked a dick for crack
Well of course they won't come out and say "hey, Toyota won't let us". They are engineers with an insane amount of resource, if they wanted to drop a turbo in there, they would have done it without any compromise.
I remember a news story posted on one of the auto outlets talking about how they can't because they have a mutual agreement to not have the cars compete against each other, prohibiting any changes to power.
Agreed totally, but being so explicit for the reason they haven't drawn up plans for a turbo in specific is worthwhile to take note. I'd assume the crash rating is also part of the reason why they continually stick with top mounted intercoolers on WRXs, despite being objectively worse than front mounted intercoolers.
I wouldn't just wave my hand and say, "they'll figure it out". It could be a major roadblock given the BRZ's dimensions, and perhaps they have some other agreement with Toyota that prevents any major modifications to the body (or hood?) that would keep them from being able to adequately tackle the objective.
We can't disagree with the lead engineer just because what he says doesn't fit with our theory of what's holding back a high powered BRZ.
I made the mistake *ahem* of going to my local Porsche dealership's website today and saw that they have some pretty fantastic lease deals going, as long as you don't mind the restrictions.
$579 Boxster/ Cayman (manual with a few options) 5k miles per year
$659 Macan S or Cayenne 10k miles per year
Now I don't really want to commit to a lease at this point for anything. I'm looking for a cheap'ish vehicle that I can put some miles on comfortably and reliably (Lexus GX 470 is currently in the lead - it's like a Land Cruiser in a tux and far more common!) for around 10 grand. I want to have that paid off, reliable vehicle and it doesn't necessarily have to be all that exciting.
But past that, say in 6 months to a year, lets just say my eyes have been opened to possibilities. I would totally consider a 2 - 3 year lease on a fun or luxury sport car that I drove a limited number of miles per year just for giggles. Not owning it means I'm not worried about depreciation and if I don't like it I can just turn it in at the end of the lease and walk away.
It could happen.
$579 Boxster/ Cayman (manual with a few options) 5k miles per year
$659 Macan S or Cayenne 10k miles per year
Now I don't really want to commit to a lease at this point for anything. I'm looking for a cheap'ish vehicle that I can put some miles on comfortably and reliably (Lexus GX 470 is currently in the lead - it's like a Land Cruiser in a tux and far more common!) for around 10 grand. I want to have that paid off, reliable vehicle and it doesn't necessarily have to be all that exciting.
But past that, say in 6 months to a year, lets just say my eyes have been opened to possibilities. I would totally consider a 2 - 3 year lease on a fun or luxury sport car that I drove a limited number of miles per year just for giggles. Not owning it means I'm not worried about depreciation and if I don't like it I can just turn it in at the end of the lease and walk away.
It could happen.
mmazurkiewicz
Member
what sort of tires you use?
I'm running Michelin PA4s on my car but my intent was to get something to get me by in case it snows, and not to daily it in snow. This way I have a more performance oriented winter tire.
I drove my Boxster S through a Chicago winter a few years back and didn't have any issues. Put some Blizzaks on it and had a blast. Tire compound makes a far bigger difference than drive train.
RWD with winter tires > AWD with all season or summers.
Do it. My dad drove a GX 470 for 12 years and put 150K miles on it. That thing was built like a tank.
Only a few months ago did he swap it for a new 2016 BMW X5 because my brother and I agreed to pay for the lease.
RWD with winter tires > AWD with all season or summers.
Do it. My dad drove a GX 470 for 12 years and put 150K miles on it. That thing was built like a tank.
Only a few months ago did he swap it for a new 2016 BMW X5 because my brother and I agreed to pay for the lease.
Is this the excuse you use when your mom is disappointed in you for not having a Ferrari?
AlphaSnake
...and that, kids, was the first time I sucked a dick for crack
The other thing though is that the BRZ has a lot of room in the engine bay. And Subaru has a single turbo version of the motor running in the current WRX, among other cars. :'(
All I can think of is that Toyota is the most bland boring profit squeezing manufacturer and under the partnership wont allow a turbo BRZ since no one would buy a slow FRS/86 given the choice. They wont spend a dime developing anything other than the ALL NEW CAMRY
SliChillax
Member
Well, cars like the FR-S exist because of the Camry so be more grateful.
SuperSonic1305
Member
I'm planning on putting snow tires on the camaro i'm getting. We'll see how that goes.
just thinking out loud, anyone please chime in if you have experience with electric vehicles and tax credits...
2017 Chevy Volt is $33,220.
Federal tax credit is $7,500 for the Volt + $2,000 PA state tax credit. So the Volt would be $23,720. 5-year car loan and splitting this with my partner would be roughly $213/month.
My Dodge Dart lease right now is only $150/month, but it's a lease is more expensive to operate (gas).
how exactly do tax credits work? You pay the full price of the car, and then when you are doing your taxes the following year you get a rebate check??
I was thinking about a 2017 Prius, but it's only ~$1,000 cheaper than the Volt as the Prius doesn't get any federal tax credit.
2017 Chevy Volt is $33,220.
Federal tax credit is $7,500 for the Volt + $2,000 PA state tax credit. So the Volt would be $23,720. 5-year car loan and splitting this with my partner would be roughly $213/month.
My Dodge Dart lease right now is only $150/month, but it's a lease is more expensive to operate (gas).
how exactly do tax credits work? You pay the full price of the car, and then when you are doing your taxes the following year you get a rebate check??
I was thinking about a 2017 Prius, but it's only ~$1,000 cheaper than the Volt as the Prius doesn't get any federal tax credit.
I'm also not seeing a firm release date for the '17 Volt. Looks like the '16 model only went to select states and the '17 will be available sometime in the Spring of this year.
also, does this car loan calculator sound about right?
payment split in two, ~$213/month sounds pretty decent to me for a brand new electric vehicle that only needs gas on ~10% of trips.
also, does this car loan calculator sound about right?
payment split in two, ~$213/month sounds pretty decent to me for a brand new electric vehicle that only needs gas on ~10% of trips.
whatsinaname
Member
The $7500 is a federal tax credit. So if you owe more than $7500 federal tax to the IRS in 2016, you get that discount while filing taxes in early 2017. But if you only owe $5000 in federal tax for 2016, you only get that back.
The PA $2000 looks like a tax rebate, so you get all of that back.
For both of those, the purchase price of the car will still be $33,200 and your monthly payment will be based off that. Once you get your money back early next year, you can apply that to the loan. (I would think the loan term would reduce but the payments remain the same - that is how my loan worked).
OH.... ok. Well sometimes I do freelance work besides my salaried job. Last year I owed about $1,500 in taxes because of the freelance stuff. But generally, if I don't do any freelance work, I get about $1,000 back from the government when I do my taxes. Does that mean I wouldn't get ANY of the $7,500 credit since the government typically owes me a little bit?
whatsinaname
Member
Sorry. The $7500 includes withholding. Total federal tax paid I should have said.
David Incorporated Esq.
Member
I'm also not seeing a firm release date for the '17 Volt. Looks like the '16 model only went to select states and the '17 will be available sometime in the Spring of this year.
also, does this car loan calculator sound about right?
payment split in two, ~$213/month sounds pretty decent to me for a brand new electric vehicle that only needs gas on ~10% of trips.
Looks about right.
Correct. So if you've paid over $7500 in federal taxes over the course of the year but ended up owing $0 extra at tax time, you'll just get a big tasty $7500 check. I had something similar when I got the first time home buyer credit after the 2008 recession. Just a "Oh hey what's up here's $10,000 go have fun. Your pal, The Federal Government" check.
notoriousKTR
Member
Don't forget that you pay sales tax on the $33,220.