2001/2 BMW 325 or 2004 Honda Civic Si UPDATE

[Nebor]

Originally posted by: jagec

Originally posted by: Nebor
Anyway, $2-3k a year is getting of easy. My TL costs that much to maintain. One should expect at least $4k a year in maintenance\repair with any European car. Not that that's a bad thing. Once I get rid of my TL, I'll never have another non-european car again. Nothing else compares.

$2-3k a year? $4k a year? Do you blow an engine every other year or something?

Well you've gotta figure about $400 for a brakejob for each axle (parts & labor), $100 for every ECU\TCU\ECM update that comes out, synthetic oil, bulbs that burn out WAY more than any Asian or American car... etc.

 

[SCSIfreek]

i'm driving a bmw 3 series. everything works great in the past 5 years. no major problems. very happy with my purchase. If you think owning a bmw means you can drive it hard....then there is always a cost assocaite with driving hard. If you drive your civic as hard as your bmw... I'm sure you'll have lots of maintainence cost on your civic as well.

simply put there's no comparison between a civic and a bmw. They're totally different cars. with that said. For a daily commuter car, get the civic. money wise you'll save a lot in the long run. if you're looking for great handling in a car then bmw will suit you best.

Its easy to figure this out, if you can't keep up with maintainence....you can't afford the car in the first place. Also keep in mind, 99.9999% of all used cars have been abused by their previous owners or have built-in problems...

 

[Nebor]

Originally posted by: SCSIfreek
i'm driving a bmw 3 series. everything works great in the past 5 years. no major problems. very happy with my purchase. If you think owning a bmw means you can drive it hard....then there is always a cost assocaite with driving hard. If you drive your civic as hard as your bmw... I'm sure you'll have lots of maintainence cost on your civic as well.

simply put there's no comparison between a civic and a bmw. They're totally different cars. with that said. For a daily commuter car, get the civic. money wise you'll save a lot in the long run. if you're looking for great handling in a car then bmw will suit you best.

And if you want to brag about your handling, because the Civic will smoke you in a straight line, get a 325i.

 

[RedArmy]

Originally posted by: SCSIfreek
i'm driving a bmw 3 series. everything works great in the past 5 years. no major problems. very happy with my purchase. If you think owning a bmw means you can drive it hard....then there is always a cost assocaite with driving hard. If you drive your civic as hard as your bmw... I'm sure you'll have lots of maintainence cost on your civic as well.

simply put there's no comparison between a civic and a bmw. They're totally different cars. with that said. For a daily commuter car, get the civic. money wise you'll save a lot in the long run. if you're looking for great handling in a car then bmw will suit you best.

Any Honda I've ever had was able to take anything I thew at it. Before I changed out my D15 I was able to abuse it like none other. Hondas engines are able to take more stress then anything I've ever seen...anyone ever see that video of the Honda engine that ran on nothing but water for a few hours before dying?

 

[SCSIfreek]

Originally posted by: Nebor

Originally posted by: SCSIfreek
i'm driving a bmw 3 series. everything works great in the past 5 years. no major problems. very happy with my purchase. If you think owning a bmw means you can drive it hard....then there is always a cost assocaite with driving hard. If you drive your civic as hard as your bmw... I'm sure you'll have lots of maintainence cost on your civic as well.

simply put there's no comparison between a civic and a bmw. They're totally different cars. with that said. For a daily commuter car, get the civic. money wise you'll save a lot in the long run. if you're looking for great handling in a car then bmw will suit you best.

And if you want to brag about your handling, because the Civic will smoke you in a straight line, get a 318i.

if you're into straight line smokes...why don't you get a used mustang (great car huh).

 

[Nebor]

Originally posted by: SCSIfreek

Originally posted by: Nebor

Originally posted by: SCSIfreek
i'm driving a bmw 3 series. everything works great in the past 5 years. no major problems. very happy with my purchase. If you think owning a bmw means you can drive it hard....then there is always a cost assocaite with driving hard. If you drive your civic as hard as your bmw... I'm sure you'll have lots of maintainence cost on your civic as well.

simply put there's no comparison between a civic and a bmw. They're totally different cars. with that said. For a daily commuter car, get the civic. money wise you'll save a lot in the long run. if you're looking for great handling in a car then bmw will suit you best.

And if you want to brag about your handling, because the Civic will smoke you in a straight line, get a 318i.

if you're into straight line smokes...why don't you get a used mustang (great car huh).

Uh, just say no to Mustangs.

A 330i provides Mustang GT like acceleration without being a hunk of crap. An M3 is even faster in a straight line. Either with a centrifugal supercharger is vicious.

 

[ballmode]

civic si will be stolen

I would go with a WRX

 

[cHeeZeFacTory]

Originally posted by: Nebor

Originally posted by: jagec

Originally posted by: Nebor
Anyway, $2-3k a year is getting of easy. My TL costs that much to maintain. One should expect at least $4k a year in maintenance\repair with any European car. Not that that's a bad thing. Once I get rid of my TL, I'll never have another non-european car again. Nothing else compares.

$2-3k a year? $4k a year? Do you blow an engine every other year or something?

Well you've gotta figure about $400 for a brakejob for each axle (parts & labor), $100 for every ECU\TCU\ECM update that comes out, synthetic oil, bulbs that burn out WAY more than any Asian or American car... etc.

$2-3k a year to maintain a acura TL??? you must have a lemon or something. I drove a acura integra for 5 years, 50k miles before I sold it. All i did was change the oil myself, replaced brakepads 2 times, 1 tuneup, etc. I think in 5 years total, i didn't spend more than 2k maintaining the car. I had very little problems with the car.

 

[yhelothar]

90mi a day with a BMW is just an arm and a leg gas money.
I'd get a diesel.

 

[jagec]

Originally posted by: SCSIfreek
If you think owning a bmw means you can drive it hard....then there is always a cost assocaite with driving hard. If you drive your civic as hard as your bmw... I'm sure you'll have lots of maintainence cost on your civic as well.

Not entirely true...my MR2 eats redline like a whore and doesn't give me any grief about it.

 

[iversonyin]

Originally posted by: cHeeZeFacTory

Originally posted by: Nebor

Originally posted by: jagec

Originally posted by: Nebor
Anyway, $2-3k a year is getting of easy. My TL costs that much to maintain. One should expect at least $4k a year in maintenance\repair with any European car. Not that that's a bad thing. Once I get rid of my TL, I'll never have another non-european car again. Nothing else compares.

$2-3k a year? $4k a year? Do you blow an engine every other year or something?

Well you've gotta figure about $400 for a brakejob for each axle (parts & labor), $100 for every ECU\TCU\ECM update that comes out, synthetic oil, bulbs that burn out WAY more than any Asian or American car... etc.

$2-3k a year to maintain a acura TL??? you must have a lemon or something. I drove a acura integra for 5 years, 50k miles before I sold it. All i did was change the oil myself, replaced brakepads 2 times, 1 tuneup, etc. I think in 5 years total, i didn't spend more than 2k maintaining the car. I had very little problems with the car.

Well according to Edmund True Cost Calculator. The cars that I've been looking at:
Acura RSX-S cost/mile= $0.55
BMW 325i cost/mile= $0.65

The cost factor in interest expense and depreciation as well. So there is roughly $1000 difference b/w the ownership of a Japanese v German. I think that premium is well justified.

But I just don't see how anyone can spend $3k every year on maintenance itself. My parents both have Japanese cars that they use to commute in city driving environment. They cost about $1000 a year for maintenance and repair. (regular oil change. Sometimes brake pads, water pump- but you don't change your water pump every year).

 

[JulesMaximus]

Originally posted by: Nebor

Originally posted by: JulesMaximus
Are you nuts? I've spent maybe $2,000 on my 2003 Nissan Maxima in the last 3+ years and 55k miles and a grand of that was on tires.

Used German cars are a money pit. Take my advice if you like...or don't...I couldn't care less. Just trying to pass on some of the wisdom of my years.

Nine thousand dollars in repairs and upkeep vs two thousand dollars...Hmm, I'll take Japanese cars FTW Alex!!!

Soul is expensive to maintain.

Do you have you Maxima serviced at the dealer?

I have had it serviced at the dealer many times.

Just had our '06 Lexus IS250 in for its first service. Cost us exactly zero dollars.

Good luck with your "soul."

Edited to remove nested quotes.

 

[DougK62]

The choice is very obvious to me - get the Honda. And this coming from someone who doesn't care for Honda vehicles...

 

[hoorah]

I drive an E46 330Ci, so I thought I'd give a current owner's perspective to help you out.

Financially, I would advise you get the cheapest possible thing. I graduated from college and started my first job a year ago, and I wanted to get a new car. I did a couple of 5 year scenarios of my first real cash flow, and I was really suprised at the results. The money you will make is worth MUCH MUCH more to you now invested than later on. Basically, I'm saying the same thing everyone who gives investment advice says - the earlier you start, the exponentially better it is.

So, boring stuff aside, a BMW 325 will get better gas mileage than most people think. I get 27mpg in my 330ci, and that is mostly highway. Expect to see around 28-30 with a 325 (manual trans).

As for the maintenance costs, they can be staggering depending on where you go. I enjoy working on my car myself, so it makes it much more affordable than if I were to take it anywhere. If I didn't do the work myself, I would not buy this car.

A set of front pads and rotors for my car is about $850 from a dealer - not something I would want to pay for. On top of that, I can't just take it anywhere for things like tires and alignments. You think Jiffy lube knows how to do an alignment on that car?

The used German auto can be a scary beast. They can be money pits, but they can also be phenominally performing cars for a fraction of the original cost. I would not recommend you get one as a commuter car with little experience in automotive repair and maintenancing.

 

[fbrdphreak]

Get something cheap, economical, and that has good resale value. This way after some time passes, you can get what you really want and not take too much of a bath on it.

This screams Honda.

 

[razor2025]

Honda hands down. BMW are for those who can outright buy them without a blink.

As for 401k vs Car. As always, moderation is the key. If you're putting down so much in 401k that prevents you from enjoying life, than you'll need to adjust your investment. Investment return history is great, but who knows what will happen in 30-40 years? Will you be dead? Will US economy tank? Remember, ANY investment is a risk. Even the safest investment always run the risk of not being able to reap the fruit.

 

[TheSlamma]

Get the Honda.. you can't count on a job to be there forever, pay your stuff off as soon as you can.

 

[JulesMaximus]

Originally posted by: hoorah
I drive an E46 330Ci, so I thought I'd give a current owner's perspective to help you out.

Financially, I would advise you get the cheapest possible thing. I graduated from college and started my first job a year ago, and I wanted to get a new car. I did a couple of 5 year scenarios of my first real cash flow, and I was really suprised at the results. The money you will make is worth MUCH MUCH more to you now invested than later on. Basically, I'm saying the same thing everyone who gives investment advice says - the earlier you start, the exponentially better it is.

So, boring stuff aside, a BMW 325 will get better gas mileage than most people think. I get 27mpg in my 330ci, and that is mostly highway. Expect to see around 28-30 with a 325 (manual trans).

As for the maintenance costs, they can be staggering depending on where you go. I enjoy working on my car myself, so it makes it much more affordable than if I were to take it anywhere. If I didn't do the work myself, I would not buy this car.

A set of front pads and rotors for my car is about $850 from a dealer - not something I would want to pay for. On top of that, I can't just take it anywhere for things like tires and alignments. You think Jiffy lube knows how to do an alignment on that car?

The used German auto can be a scary beast. They can be money pits, but they can also be phenominally performing cars for a fraction of the original cost. I would not recommend you get one as a commuter car with little experience in automotive repair and maintenancing.

Excellent post. I did some of the repairs on our E36 like replace the rear shocks and shock mounts, replaced the muffler myself but brake jobs I didn't want to bother with and it seemed like everytime we did brakes jobs we had to replace rotors.

I remember one time backing out of the driveway with our few month old son in the car and smelling a strong smell of gasoline. I got out and checked only to see gas pouring out from under the car. I immediately turned the car off and got my son out of there. Turns out the clamp on the fuel line popped loose (the fuel pump is mounted on top of the gas tank which is underneath the rear seat) it was an easy fix but very unnerving.

I wouldn't take any car to Jiffy Lube.

 

[BullsOnParade]

OP updated with cars that I test drove and opinions

 

[thoro86]

civic, gaswise...