Cost of ownership of a BMW over other makes of car

Whats_my_age_again

Hi,

I am looking at options of buying a newer car than the one I own. I know it probably is not too moneysaving a decision but I would like to consider a BMW 3 series compact which gets very good reviews. I spend a lot of time in my car and would like something nice and comfortable.

But I would like to ask you knowledgeable people here whether I am likely to incur significant extra costs what with having a BMW over say a Vauxhall. Are parts more expensive? How about servicing - I think this is likely to be more. Or will these be mitigated by the extra reliablity? Will the depreciation on a 3 year old BMW diesel be less than a brand new Vauxhall diesel Astra/Corsa. I will be looking to drive about 20,000 miles a year.

Thanks for taking time to read this.

Lob_Rockster

residuals are typically strong on Beemers but I'd consider Seat/Skoda vehicles too as I believe they have strong residuals.

Also look at the deals with 3 years/60k miles free servicing

Whats_my_age_again

Thanks for your response. I was actually looking at the possibilities of a Skoda Fabis VRS, but really the price difference between that and a BMW 3 Series is not too significant and I would much prefer the BMW. I am really looking for a sporty diesel that will do 50mpg and the BMW fits that.

I don't suppose I would get any deals such as the servicing with a three year old BMW but would with a new car.

But am I right in thinking a new Astra/Corsa/Focus will depreciate greater than a used BMW?

highguyuk

Couttsy wrote:

But am I right in thinking a new Astra/Corsa/Focus will depreciate greater than a used BMW?

I would say so ...

odowdchr

Couttsy wrote:

Thanks for your response. I was actually looking at the possibilities of a Skoda Fabis VRS, but really the price difference between that and a BMW 3 Series is not too significant

??
VRS is about £12,500, the BMW about £21,000 upwards ?

Lob_Rockster

I'd say the Focus might be the best of the other three with regards to depreciation; consider getting one of the car mags with the residuals in the lists at the back; for a desirable Beemer, you might top 45% whereas Astras ~30%

They also have a cost-per-mile summary in some mags too

Whats_my_age_again

thanks for the replies but just to make it clear it would be a used BMW 3 series I would be looking at which would be roughly 10-11k. As opposed to a new car for around or above this figure.

david29dpo

a friend of mine has a 3 year old z3 and a 3 year old corsa. guess which parts and servicing are cheaper? the z3!

chris73

Oil Service from a BMW Dealer is £120 although the service intervals for BMW Approved Synthetic LL01 oil can be as much as 15k on a 320D for example.

I reduced the price of the oil service to £70 by having a local independant do the oil change, and buying the BMW Approved oil and filter from opie oils, the independant even stamped the book for me, and I kept receipts for the oil!.

Other services on the BMW are called inspection 1 and inspection 2, the service intervals run as follows:-

Inspection 1
Oil Service
Inspection 2
Oil Service

Inspection 1 costs about £260 from a dealer / £120 from an independant
Inspection 2 costs about £400 from a dealer / £220 from an independant

All service intervals are variable and are indicated by the car computer, my experience is that they are usually 11k - 16k apart depending on how the car is driven.

Typically it is cheaper to get your servicing done from independants, many of whom are ex BMW mechanics and who use original parts. On a car out of warranty you will save £££'s on servicing compared to the dealers - just remember to get your book stamped!.

From a MPG point of view, I get 50 - 58mpg on a long motorway run, and around 42mpg around town from an 03 reg 320D, this is slightly less than the Vectra I owned before, but for a large relatively quick, 150bhp car it is still amazingly good.

A good place to ask for advice on all things BMW, and to find a recommended independant then check out BMWLAND

Previously I owned a 1997 Vectra, and the dealers charged me as much as £430 for a full service and pollen filter etc, so for me the cost of ownership is actually less, and more so if you choose to get servicing from an independant.

balsingh

I'd go for the Beemer any day. Firstly, ANY 3 year old car will depriciate slower than ANY new car. Its in the first 3 years that cars lose the most value. Running a BMW is not as pricey as people think. Even if they do cost a biut more to run than the average Ford/Vauxhall, in the long terms the lower depreciation more than cancels out the extra servicing costs. These days, BMWs are very economical too.

Whats_my_age_again

Thanks for all the replies.

My budget would be 11k and I would be looking to keep the car for 2 to 3 years and hence put about 50 - 70k on the clock.

Could I really secure a new Vauxhall probably have to be Corsa (as Astra would be over budget) or a Focus for around this 11k mark? I live in the Scottish islands so there is no real competition between dealers up here.

Could someone give any indication how much a BMW 320TD Compact SE (2003) would be worth in 3 years time with approaching 150k on the clock?

I know I could probably make do with a cheaper car but want to have a decent car as I spend about 2.5/3 hours in it every day, and something I feel comfortable in.

Again thanks for all the input it is much appreciated. And the more the better as my mind is far from made up!