I found an 07 BMW 328i at a dealership. It was a BMW Financial Car that was bought by this dealer. The price is great - 41K car for 29K!!
Everything about the car I love - right colors inside and out, etc. It has the sport package for which I’ve heard mixed reviews.
This package gives the car the seats and more reponsive ride which I do enjoy. However, I understand the tires will wear faster, are more expensive to replace, and have poor traction in rain and snow.
Getting a second set of wheels and snow tires for winter is NOT an option for me.
What do you experts have to say on this matter?
The sport may have summer tires which are actually dangerous and not to be used on snow/ice or below 40F. Verify this and if the case then get a set of winter wheels/tires or winter biased all-seasons like the Noikan WR (or G2’s) which I own.
What is a financial car? Iam a BMW tech from Milwauke. All BMW owners have 2 sets of wheel/tire assemblies or they have a really crappy set of summer tires. Dont buy alloy wheels for winter use (some people will do it) Buy the steel wheels not so expensive for the ride you have. Seen alot of people ruin snow tires when they are using them at summer temps,produces a really bumpy tread pattern. I liked to use Blizacks on my E46 (3 series) even with traction control and extra weight in the back(everyone does this to) The cars need dedicated snow tires you have no choice (well I guess you can slow down alot and dont drive when it is snowing)
The car was used by an exec or someone at a BMW financial office in Columbus, OH. The car’s sticker is over $41K. Most likely the dealer bought this for about $25K and will sell it for a $4k profit. At any rate this car is a good deal for $29.
I never had snow tires or other wheels for my previous 3 series. I just kept good all season tires on the car. It wasn’t the best in snow, but I’m sure it would be better than this car with the sport package.
There are a few really good super high performance all season tires out there that aren’t all that expensize. I just did research on this myself at tirerack.com and got myself a nice set of Bridgestone Potenza Pole-Positions for $150 a tire. They were the number one rated on tirerack and I really like them. A few others are Goodyear Eagle F1 all-seasons and Pirelli…don’t remember exactly what they’re called. Check out Tirerack, it’s a great site for researching and buying tires.
The beamer sounds like a pretty good deal to me, but I wouldn’t call myself and expert. If you like it, go for it.
I understand the tires will wear faster, are more expensive to replace, and have poor traction in rain and snow."
“Sport” package cars are equipped with performance-oriented tires that are also known as “3 season tires”. These tires don’t just have poor traction in snow, but essentially are useless and dangerous in snow, especially since the vehicle has a lot of torque and is Front-engine/Rear-wheel drive.
If you want this car, you absolutely must purchase winter tires on their own wheels (preferably steel, rather than alloy) unless you plan to park the car and not drive it during winter season.
Add the cost of winter tires and steel wheels (somewhere in the $600.00 to $1,000.00 range, depending on tire brand and size) to the dealer’s price in order to determine your actual purchase price for this car. I strongly recommend Michelin X-Ice tires for their incredible winter traction and for tread wear that is better than any of the competition.
Most likely, the car you are considering came from the factory with run-flat tires. Check the trunk. If there is no spare tire, BMW intended you to use run-flats. They are more expensive than conventional tires and don’t last as long. You should be able to find all-season run-flats for use all year round. Some drivers despise the run-flats so much that they switch to conventional tires. I don’t know what they do in the event of a flat tire.
This car comes with a spare. did many PDI always had to adjust spare pressure
Is it a sedan or a coupe? The price is about right for a used 2007 sedan; a bargain for a coupe. Edmunds does not list the sport option, but KBB does. Check the price at KBB for the other options, too. Does it come with a new car warranty or a certified used BMW warranty? What about an extended warranty? The mileage is high for a one year old car. Anyway, if they ask $29,000 maybe you can get it for less - like 10% or so. So start at 20% off. Edmunds subtracts $1700 for that kinda mileage! Let them pay for the wheels and snows with the savings!
And you’re only a young guy with a Bimmer once. tick-tock tick-tock
The car was probably a lease return or a repo if it was owned by BMW financial. All season tires should work fine in the snow if that is what you used before. The snow doesn’t care about the rest of the sport package, the suspension and smaller sidewalls have little to do with traction.
I think he means it’s a $41,000 car, selling for $29,000…not that it has 41,000 miles on it.
I agree with the rest; factor in the cost of a 2nd set of wheels/winter tires into the overall cost of the car…if the extra $600-1000 breaks the bank, you probably can’t afford this car anyway? I could be totally off base, but I don’t see why the winter set is not an option here.
Maybe he doesn’t have anyplace to store them?
At the Milwaukee BMW dealer we provided tire storge for the customers who absolutely had no other option. You want to keep this kind of money happy. This service really retained them as service customers.
“I think he means it’s a $41,000 car…”
Probably so, but without dollar signs it’s hard to tell. Dano, how many miles are on it and what warranty is offered? Is there anything else but the sport package on it? The $41,000 price is new, and this is a used car. It seems to be priced about where it should be, depending on options and condition.
Hey guys, thanks for the good advice. OldSchool - I appreciate your perspective.
This is 328i sedan that was used by and executive at the BMW financial service center. The car only has 7500 miles on it. It has never been titled.
It stickers for over $41,000. The dealer will sell it to me for $29,000. There is no additional warranty other than the remainder of the original warranty and scheduled maintenance.
The all-seasons tires on this car are run-flats - there is no spare. The dealer will store an extra set of tires/wheels for me. However, it is the priciple of this that gores me. . . While I am not a trust-fund child nor a person that makes over $100K, I can afford to put tires on the car, yet I see this as an inconvenience. I want to enjoy my cars - that means not running to the dealer anymore than I have to do and not constantly putting tires on the D@#M thing.
I live in an area of Ohio that gets minimal snowfall and I don’t drive that often or that far. However, this is my primary vehicle, and I’ll need it to get me places on demand. As mentioned, I had a former 3series, so I know there are limitations to a RWD BMW - yet are the limitations more severe on a BMW with the sport tires/package??
Must appoligize about my info that the car had a spare had my specs confused.This was the first year for run-flats and current techs say tire life is low(just checked today)
A change in tires can have a profound influence on how a car works in specific weather conditions. I have no use for winter tires where I live now. I look for tires with good wet traction for obvious reasons in New Orleans. It rains a lot. The tires that the BMW come with are probably not winter tires. They are dry and wet road tires. What kind of tires did you have on the other 3(s)? If they were all season and you did alright in the winter, you will likely do the same with all season tires on the perspective ride. I, like other posters, have serious doubts about how well the car will do with high performance tires. See what other tires fit and assume that you will have to get different tires next fall, either all season or a different set for winter.
You are thinking about buying a car with high performance tires and it is probably more maintenance- or at least attention-hungry in other respects compared to other vehicles as well. In the spectrum of automobiles there are some that are more appliance-like at one end. Like a refrigerator you can almost plug them in and forget them. Minivans and cars like the Crown Victoria, 4-cyl Accords and Camrys, Taurus,… are on that end. That is why I own a Grand Marquis. No trouble and inexpensive. If I lived in an area where I could have fun driving a car, I would probably not own a Grand Marquis, but what fun can I have commuting in a big city? On the other end of the spectrum there are two-seat or one-seat sports cars that are very capable and relatively needy.
I would say if you can’t be bothered to change the wheels twice a year, you need to move toward the minivan end of the spectrum.
If you don’t buy it, I will! Move fast! And enjoy your new car.