What older, cheaper car do you replace a 335 with?

MarkN

Bit of a dilemma here...

I'm in a situation where I can benefit from freeing up some cash but there's only two ways I can do that and making a mortgage vanish isn't really an option.

So the other is the car.

I have tried for the last two weeks to look at cars that could keep me happy after my beloved 335 is gone... mainly the obvious ones, Boxster S, E46 M3, old old 911 (not really an option as I'd just have to go too old) my budget would be €35,000-40,000.

I can buy a brand new GTI... but I'm over them and they're just too common. A 1.8T A5 with a decent spec and wheels comes in at late 40s, it's a slight bit too much.

Put yourself in my shoes, what would you go for?

Before anything Jap is suggested, I hate most of them.

I've looked at E46 330CDs from the UK, maybe 05, 06 and they can be an ok buy with the new VRT rates but I just don't want to find myself in a situation where I will be feeling miserable everytime I get behind the wheel of my next car.

My current car has everything, leather, auto, idrive, sat nav, bi xenons, climate, nice wheels, CD etc etc....

If I sell my car privately and clear what I owe and a few other debts I should have around €20,000 of my own money as a deposit on another car.

Seperate

Bit hard to replace the 335 imo..

R32 - http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/Volkswagen/Golf/3.2-V6/962611/

S4 - http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/Audi/S4/4.2-QUATTRO/1119489/

peasant

http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/Other/Other/MERCEDES-BENZ/1070640/

that should interest you (if it's still there)

superjosh9

A lot of us are in the same boat. I know quite a few people who are now buying brand new Prius/Civic-Hybrids for 27k or so. That way they can have a brand new car, save a huge amount of money (tax is €100 and mpg 40-50 in real-world). Also, both cars are very safe - and if it's good enough for Brad and Leonardo, it's good enough for any that make judgements based on car/image-bs etc. Keeping up appearances and all that..

Anyway - just thought I'd throw it out there since I know people doing it who are in the same boat as us

Btw, I resent anything that isn't rwd - and yet here I am now in an old fwd volvo... twas cheap

Also, remember, the day you buy it is the day you sell it. Avoid big engines if you ever want to sell again and see any money back!

ronnie3585

993, S4, E46 M3, Alfa Brera are all great. If you are willing to stretch a few grand more you could pick up a nice 645i in the UK.

Screw the treehuggers! You're here for a good time not a long time:pac:

R.O.R

Should give you all the comforts, if not quite the pace of the 335

http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/BMW/840/CI-AUTO/1105313/

E92

MarkN, you've left out the obvious choice: the 330Ci.

Cheaper than the 330Cd, and all the benefits of straight 6 petrol power, not to mention 231 bhp rather than 204 bhp.

They are in 32% VRT btw with a manual gearbox(218 g/km).

The 330Cd manual is only one band better(177 g/km).

I did a VRT calc there for you. VRT for the petrol is the grand total of €119 more for a 05 with 40k on the clock.

VEHICLE REGISTRATION TAX (VRT) ENQUIRY Vehicle Registration Tax (VRT) Calculation. CO2 emissions input by Revenue. DATE: 05 July 2008 TIME: 19:33 STATISTICAL CODE: 40585301 MAKE: BMW MODEL: 330 VERSION: CI E46 02DR / SPORTS COUPE (NON-CONVERTIBLE) / MANUAL / PETROL ONLY / CO2 EMISSIONS: 218
MILEAGE: 40000 MILES DATE OF FIRST REGISTRATION: JANUARY 2005 OPEN MARKET SELLING PRICE: €31368 RATE OF TAX: 32% VEHICLE REGISTRATION TAX:
(payable on enquiry date) €10037 If you have documentary evidence that the CO2 emissions differ from the above, you may enter the CO2 emissions in the box provided and recalculate the VRT by selecting the Recalculate button. This calculation is valid only for 15 days from the date of enquiry and only on presentation of this printout. NOTES 1. The amount above is that payable on the date of enquiry. A different amount may be payable if
the Open Market Selling Price is altered.and/or if a different rate of CO2 Emissions is applicable.







VEHICLE REGISTRATION TAX (VRT) ENQUIRY Vehicle Registration Tax (VRT) Calculation. CO2 emissions input by Revenue. DATE: 05 July 2008 TIME: 19:35 STATISTICAL CODE: 45085301 MAKE: BMW MODEL: 330 VERSION: CD E46 SPORT 02DR / SPORTS COUPE (NON-CONVERTIBLE) / MANUAL / DIESEL / CO2 EMISSIONS: 177
MILEAGE: 40000 MILES DATE OF FIRST REGISTRATION: JANUARY 2005 OPEN MARKET SELLING PRICE: €35422 RATE OF TAX: 28% VEHICLE REGISTRATION TAX:
(payable on enquiry date) €9918

Lord Nikon

BMW 540i 4.4L '01 - €14,995

http://www.cbg.ie/Car_Detail.aspx?ID=1963651#

qz

BMW M5 - obvious choice?
Delete the ghastly side fins though.

http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/BMW/M5/M5/1106701/

vectra

peasant wrote: »

http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/Other/Other/MERCEDES-BENZ/1070640/

that should interest you (if it's still there)

All I can say about that one is
I personally knew the previous owner of that car and can only say that it appears to have cleaned up well :rolleyes:

How about this beauty? >> DREAM CAR...!! And it is Petrol

MarkN

I wouldn't worry about it, no offence to Peasant but I'm 26 so an E Class AMG or not just wouldn't interest me.

I'd want 3 doors in most cases.

E92 I'd thought about the 330ci alright, I'm sllightly sick of putting 300 quid plus a month of fuel into the car though - I know the 335 would be heavier than the 330 but once it was bloody powerful, I would be open to diesel.

I think Boxster or M3 is going to be the easiest transformation though, the 335 is such a wonderful car to drive.

R32 does appeal to me in some fashion though.. then again a 08 E92 320D wouldn't be too bad, I would have to borrow around 30k for one but I'd be in familiar surroundings at least.

Anan1

MarkN - Is there really any point in selling the 335 and then spending €35-40k on another car? Given the state of the used car market, I could see you losing a car you love and not having much cash to show for it. If I were in your shoes, i'd either sell the 335 and buy something along the lines of unkel's 740i or just keep what you have.

P D

fair dues Mark , yea M3 or Boxter would be good , can i just ask tho - between the S3 and now the 335 are you not loosing a Heap of cash selling so early ? How much will you look for the 335 ? Vs what it was new. im not having a dig btw- more power to you

superjosh9

MarkN wrote: »

...then again a 08 E92 320D wouldn't be too bad, I would have to borrow around 30k for one but I'd be in familiar surroundings at least.

Borrowing 30k in this market? I could list reasons involving banks and interest rates - is there any way I can talk you out of this?

I agree with Anan1. Buy something cheap and nice that will tide you over!

Lord Nikon

Who the hell is trying to pimp that goddamn Lotus Charlton, for chrissake. Go find a classics forum will you.

E92

MarkN wrote: »

I'm sllightly sick of putting 300 quid plus a month of fuel into the car though - I know the 335 would be heavier than the 330 but once it was bloody powerful, I would be open to diesel.

Eh.. have you seen the price of diesel recently:D?

Any increases in the price of oil will affect the diesel owner more so than the petrol owner because there's less diesel being refined than petrol.

A 330Cd has 102 bhp less than your 335i; think of it another way, your 335i has 50% more power than a 330Cd. You're only getting 2/3rds of the bhp available in a 330d, yet you are paying 3.0 litre tax and insurance, and even though diesel is 20-25% more economical, it is also 10 dearer on average, so it will only be a small bit cheaper to run but diesel clatter, noise, as well as a BIG power drop, and yes it has more torque, by a massive:rolleyes: 7 lb ft, it also only delivers its 302 lb ft between 1500 and 3200 rpm; compared to your 335i's 295 lb ft at only 1300 rpm yet keeps going all the way to 4900 rpm.

It's amazing what a difference one can see in mpg if one watches the mpg meter though and eases up on the throttle though.

I hate to say it but in today's economic circumstances, who is going to buy a 335i? You have to think about that too. It won't be worth anything like what it was last year, because the used car market is quite simply dead at the moment.You said it yourself that you've "never been so insulted in all.... (your) life" when you wanted to trade in the 335i for was it an M3 or something similar?

Just look at unkel's 735i. Pristine and all as it is and how long has he been trying to sell it? He's dropped the price of it a couple of times as well, and it's still for sale. It's getting much harder to shift cars these days, the cheapest option of all is to use the 335i less and keep it.

maidhc

neuromancer wrote: »

Who the hell is trying to pimp that goddamn Lotus Charlton, for chrissake. Go find a classics forum will you.

Nothing wrong with the Lotus Carlton, apart from the fact it could be a money pit.

OP, did you enquire as to the value of your 335 yet? I suspect it might make sense to keep it.

If you do need the money then realistically you will be looking at Toyota Corolla territory to make substantial savings.

vectra

neuromancer wrote: »

Who the hell is trying to pimp that goddamn Lotus Charlton, for chrissake. Go find a classics forum will you.

Who said anything about a pimped one?

Funny thing is.
It would knock the smirk off your face pretty quick and probably change your attitude a bit as well :rolleyes:

E92

The Opel Lotus Omega may not have the "badge" a BMW has, though surely a Lotus badge counts for something, right?, but it is said to be an amazing car to drive.

Lord Nikon

I was a bit harsh, for that i am sorry, I'm sure it would put a smile on my face more than my own motor ever could. But it's old and dated, and the OP is surely looking for something a little more modern, no offence

JHMEG

The two most important things to the OP it would seem to me are badge and a recent reg. A Lotus Carlton fails miserably on both accounts. Hard to believe it but I think a new 320D with all the addons would be more desirable to the OP than say a 4 year-old NSX?

Lord Nikon

Some people request/admire BMW badge for quality over status.

Anan1

E92 wrote: »

The Opel Lotus Omega may not have the "badge" a BMW has, though surely a Lotus badge counts for something, right?, but it is said to be an amazing car to drive.

No offence to the Omega (and i'd love a go in one) but I think we all know it's not exactly MarkN's thing. Let's just leave it at that, OK?;)

cianclarke

I'd have to agree that selling in the current used car market might just not make sense...

Anyway if you're left with no other option, I'd say go for the E46 M3. Is your 335 an E92, if so I personally prefer the look of the E46 coup anyway.. E46 M3 wouldn't be a bad "downgrade" methinks!
Best of luck whatever you decide

vectra

neuromancer wrote: »

I was a bit harsh, for that i am sorry, I'm sure it would put a smile on my face more than my own motor ever could. But it's old and dated, and the OP is surely looking for something a little more modern, no offence

Original request of OP was

What older, cheaper car do you replace a 335 with?

Lotus Carlton is
A) Older
would blow a 335 away at a whim

Lotus Carlton would win anyday with me over a badge.:rolleyes:

JHMEG

vectra wrote: »

A) Older

Going on past experience "older" means a 2007, or at a push a 2006.

986s

Hi MarkN,

Have done what your enquiring about, the other way around though i.e BoxsterS to 335i.

I sold my fully specced 01 Boxster S privately for around 26k (considering it was about 100 k new!), it probably needed a few k spent to get it absolutely pristine but you would be getting a lot of car for not a lot of money.

Advantages BoxsterS has over the 335i

Better handling around the twisties
Much louder engine/exhaust note inside the cabin (even though I think the 335i sounds louder from outside the car)
Better brakes
Much more stable overtaking at speed ie. no pitch and roll
Roof down driving for two days a year
Gets more attention than a 335i (which could be a 320 for 90% of the population)

Disadvantages of Boxster S over 335i

Power- not as quick in a straight line
Suspension- people complained about the sports suspension and run flats in the 335i but its like an S class Merc compared to the Boxster
Suspension Parts-buying a second hand example with 50 k miles on it will necessitate some money being spent on suspension parts i.e drop links, control arms etc as they are made from chocolate and go very easily in a boxster
Fuel economy- on a full tank would only manage between 250-280 miles on a tank as opposed to 330-380 in the 335i
Dealer servicing- just one word terrible and will cost a fortune approx 1 k a pop
Road tax 1461- ouch!
Clutch is so heavy compared to 335i
Because its a soft top there will be rattles and squeeks a plenty
I still have a feeling that Porsche have not made the Boxster the car it could be i.e 10 years on from the original 3.4L 996 911 with 300 bhp, the new 3.4L BoxsterS/CaymanS can only mange 295 bhp- hardly progression. Bmw have produced a diesel 335D which remapped will give a E46 M3 a right fright (if not outrun it), ie not worrying about upsetting M3 owners not like Porsche who still dont want the BoxsterS/Cayman S to thread on the 911 toes.

So for your budget you should be able to get a facelift Boxster S (2003 onwards) which will still put plenty of smiles on your face but only if you buy a right one with your eyes wide open.

Best of luck

Anan1

JHMEG wrote: »

Going on past experience "older" means a 2007, or at a push a 2006.

+1

unkel

MarkN wrote: »

I'm in a situation where I can benefit from freeing up some cash

Ok

MarkN wrote: »

If I sell my car privately and clear what I owe and a few other debts I should have around €20,000 of my own money as a deposit on another car.

MarkN wrote: »

budget would be €35,000-40,000

So you are paying off a huge car loan you currently have on your 335i to replace it with a still substantial car loan of €15k-€20k. It will ease the monthly loan repayments alright but how is this freeing up some cash?

Anyway the right car for you if you are to spend €35k-€40k would be the Porsche Boxster imho. In many ways it would be a step up from your 335 (although the Boxster would be several years older)

You're young, you've no children, so you should take the opportunity to buy something impractical while you can. There will be plenty of time to buy powerful saloons or grand tourers when you are older

Anan1

Every time I think of the boxster, I see a 993 for similar money.

JHMEG

unkel wrote: »

Anyway the right car for you if you are to spend €35k-€40k would be the Porsche Boxster imho.

Jeez it's hard to recommend something like a Boxter (or say TT) when for 40k the OP could have a proper supercar.