Maintenance costs over 10 years by brand

[Engineer]

I thought it was common knowledge that you don't own a BMW post-warranty unless you do the work yourself or have a good indy shop. NEVER go to the dealer. I have owned my 2003 330i from its year 10 through 14 (mile 102000 through 160000) and have spent maybe $2000 on maintenance, including a bunch of preventative stuff and the one time I had to go to a shop because it was too cold to do the work myself. The fact that it has survived and been completely reliable during four New England winters while parked outside has been pretty nice.

I like it enough that I bought an M3 of the same generation to drive during the summer, which admittedly requires more care D:

OH, and re: the battery nonsense ... first, you don't HAVE to register it. It just tells the car the battery is new. Second, you can get the BMW software suites yourself if you look. Third, the battery in my 2003 is still the original battery from the factory. I have drained it accidentally many times by leaving lights on, etc., and it still chooses to come back to life and serve me reliably 14 years later. It dies faster than it used to but who knows, maybe you will indeed sell the car 14 years from now before replacing the battery.

I saw the battery reference before reading this and that it could be reset with downloadable software. Point still stands....99% of the people out there won't be able to do this and will go and pay ransom like amounts of money at BMW to get a battery. This isn't a damn hybrid with battery system, it's damn car that the company seems hell bent on making overly complicated which leads to the dollar amounts shown in the OP.

I'm thinking about going out and coding my car for the automatic sport transmission mode and Sports+ mode just to see if it gives my spirit a lift on it, lol. Already turned off the window down/moonroof open with fob as I have accidentally opened the moonroof and rolled down the windows three times with the fob buttons being pressed in my pocket! Just a matter of time before I did it in the pouring rain or snow and screwed up the interior of the car.

@BurnItDwn, not much consolation on the 'nice car' part. I guess I either need to get over it and try to enjoy it or get rid of it before it loses any more value than it has (I really hate doing that stuff as it's a big money loser right out of the gate).

Six of my last seven cars have been from the Chrysler family (3 Dodge, 1 Chrysler and 2 Jeep Patriots). I've had to buy tires, brakes, rotors, oil, one coolant reservoir, and one fuel pump (had to do that twice because first replacement pump failed under warranty). This has been over a 20 year period (my latest Intrepid I've had for 13 years). I doubt that I have $2,000 in maintenance in ALL of them combined at this point, including tires. I drive conservatively, less than 8,000 miles per year at this point and even with family, we average less than 10k per year per vehicle. I've had good luck out of my Chrysler family of products.

 

[madoka]

OH, and re: the battery nonsense ... first, you don't HAVE to register it. It just tells the car the battery is new.

Yeah, you don't HAVE to register the battery, just like you don't HAVE to do oil changes.

Looking up the consequences of not registering the battery, I found this:

http://oppositelock.**********/replacing-bmw-batteries-yes-it-is-ridiculous-1681775778

However, be warned that skipping the battery registration process can dramatically shorten the life of a battery in these vehicles and- worse yet- damage components within the entire electrical system.

 

[repoman0]

Yeah, you don't HAVE to register the battery, just like you don't HAVE to do oil changes.

Looking up the consequences of not registering the battery, I found this:

http://oppositelock.**********/replacing-bmw-batteries-yes-it-is-ridiculous-1681775778

Yeah they're not even close to analogous. The battery registration is BS and the quote from the site whose link doesn't work is pure FUD. Replace the battery with a battery of the same type (AGM vs lead acid) and it's going to be fine. It sure as hell isn't going to damage the electrical system.

It's just a dealership profit generator.

 

[JimKiler]

Yeah they're not even close to analogous. The battery registration is BS and the quote from the site whose link doesn't work is pure FUD. Replace the battery with a battery of the same type (AGM vs lead acid) and it's going to be fine. It sure as hell isn't going to damage the electrical system.

It's just a dealership profit generator.

Agreed they are using the same line as replacement cell phone batteries. granted there are a lot of cheap and dubious quality cell batteries but there are also lots of high quality 3rd party batteries that will work and not destroy a cell phone.

 

[master_shake_]

Yeah, you don't HAVE to register the battery, just like you don't HAVE to do oil changes.

Looking up the consequences of not registering the battery, I found this:

http://oppositelock.**********/replacing-bmw-batteries-yes-it-is-ridiculous-1681775778

lol

i have a customer with an 07 bmw 3xx whatever.

500 dollars for bmw to put a battery in it.

what in the fuck.

 

[clok1966]

You misunderstand averages and then accuse them of falsifying information. Of course averages are not going to get everything about a data set. That's a limitation of the measure itself.

The article first appeared on YourMechanic.com under the section of Articles. Priceonomics adapted said article to their website.

They only published average data and repairs with frequency above some normallized amount. The arithmetic mean is going to not cover every data point because that is what it does. It is just an way to find the middle of a distribution. You look at other things to see if there is spread in the data, such as standard deviation or the formula for outliers. They did a little bit of that when the non start charts. Ideally, they'd start analyzing subsets, but the audience is a bunch of internet readers who are not math people and would shut their brains off once too much actual math analysis is bleeding into the article.


Also, it is quite clear how they price their services. It is based on views, but a threshold, not a per view basis.

Sorry I didn't mean to say the where wrong, I am just saying when "researching" its best to show your sources or how you arrived at that conclusion. I can say most cats like brand XXX food because in my research if different foods where placed in front of them they ate XXX. What if i put a salad down, catfood XXX and watermelon? of course the cat likes the cat food and not the others, and I wouldn't be lying to you. I just want to know the way they decided this. i can have 10,000 receipts and if i skip this data on receipt because i feel its not relevant, and and use other data i feel is. Again it may be 100% correct andbe exactly just what its trying to say, but I prefer to see the data they are using to come to the end result.

 

[BurnItDwn]

@BurnItDwn, not much consolation on the 'nice car' part. I guess I either need to get over it and try to enjoy it or get rid of it before it loses any more value than it has (I really hate doing that stuff as it's a big money loser right out of the gate).

Six of my last seven cars have been from the Chrysler family (3 Dodge, 1 Chrysler and 2 Jeep Patriots). I've had to buy tires, brakes, rotors, oil, one coolant reservoir, and one fuel pump (had to do that twice because first replacement pump failed under warranty). This has been over a 20 year period (my latest Intrepid I've had for 13 years). I doubt that I have $2,000 in maintenance in ALL of them combined at this point, including tires. I drive conservatively, less than 8,000 miles per year at this point and even with family, we average less than 10k per year per vehicle. I've had good luck out of my Chrysler family of products.

Well to be fair, there were things about the Chrysler I really liked, Nice engine and decent handling for a large sedan. It was very comfortable. I really quite liked the car for quite a long time. My love faded when the AC stopped working with like 80K miles on the clock, and then when every 2 months or so there was a new electrical issue until I sold it with 105K on the clock. Also, Chrysler's do depreciate badly, they just are MUCH more reasonable to fix vs a Benz or BMW.

Maybe your BMW will be reliable.
My understanding is that the v12s and turbos are the ones which are REALLLY expensive to maintain, so much so that they can skew the averages. So, i hope luck is on your side.

 

[Engineer]

Maybe your BMW will be reliable.
My understanding is that the v12s and turbos are the ones which are REALLLY expensive to maintain, so much so that they can skew the averages. So, i hope luck is on your side.

2015 328i Xdrive with 4 cylinder turbo here. Still 3 years, 11 months on the warranty or 49,050 miles, whichever is first. I'll see how it goes I suppose. If my wife wouldn't kill me, I would go test drive the Lexus and make make a decision before the biggest depreciation set it.

 

[gorcorps]

2015 328i Xdrive with 4 cylinder turbo here. Still 3 years, 11 months on the warranty or 49,050 miles, whichever is first. I'll see how it goes I suppose. If my wife wouldn't kill me, I would go test drive the Lexus and make make a decision before the biggest depreciation set it.

If you aren't ready, early test drives could be a bummer. I test drove the new RX350 last month and now I'm spending every day until my lease is up in two years dreaming about getting it

*sigh*

:'(

 

[Torn Mind]

Sorry I didn't mean to say the where wrong, I am just saying when "researching" its best to show your sources or how you arrived at that conclusion. I can say most cats like brand XXX food because in my research if different foods where placed in front of them they ate XXX. What if i put a salad down, catfood XXX and watermelon? of course the cat likes the cat food and not the others, and I wouldn't be lying to you. I just want to know the way they decided this. i can have 10,000 receipts and if i skip this data on receipt because i feel its not relevant, and and use other data i feel is. Again it may be 100% correct andbe exactly just what its trying to say, but I prefer to see the data they are using to come to the end result.

I myself would have preferred more comprehensive and in-depth analysis, such as how the averages were calculated. Sample sizes, how lobg people kept the cars, maybe an sample calculation. But at the same time, that is basically asking for a 10+ page research paper and not a highlights article.

I already made known my issues with the article, but I have little reason to doubt that the data they used came from Yourmechanic transactions. The real problem is not enough details on the hows of the calculation. It might have made the article longer, but more clear.

 

[XavierMace]

lol

i have a customer with an 07 bmw 3xx whatever.

500 dollars for bmw to put a battery in it.

what in the fuck.

If you (not you personally) buy a BMW and don't have BavTech or Carly, you deserve to pay the dealer $500. I can't do much more than change my oil, but I've still got the cable and software. Used it a handful of times to reset the service intervals when I do service myself. My 135i was out of warranty when I bought it. I made sure I knew what I was getting myself into before hand. So far, no regrets.

I will also say that I don't know how much of the battery registration is "BS", but the battery in my 135i is the only battery I've had last me more than 2 years here AZ. I don't know if that's just luck or the "overengineered" components but if that keeps holding up, I am more than happy to pay a bit more to replace my battery. Previous cars were a BRZ, IS300, and an Eclipse.

 

[madoka]

Yeah they're not even close to analogous. The battery registration is BS and the quote from the site whose link doesn't work is pure FUD. Replace the battery with a battery of the same type (AGM vs lead acid) and it's going to be fine. It sure as hell isn't going to damage the electrical system.

It's just a dealership profit generator.

It doesn't take much effort to just google the website. I can't help it if AT decided to block everything from k i n j a.com.

But since you're obviously too lazy to look it up yourself, here's another site that says the same thing:

http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/showpost.php?p=6315894&postcount=6

Do both the registration and the battery tender. The registration tells your car the battery is new so it does not over charge the battery which will shorten the life of the new battery. This doesn't occur in a day/week/month, but it will slowly and systematically kill the battery due to overcharging it because the car thinks the battery is older than it is.

 

[madoka]

If repair costs are factored in and the fact that BMW is through the roof on repair, it's almost scary to own a BMW out of warranty unless you have a local shop that can do the work.

I've been reading about how the M6 engine can blow up on owners and cost $12,000-$22,000K to replace.

http://www.m5board.com/vbulletin/e6...om/314058-m6-blown-motor-horror-story-19.html

 

[repoman0]

It doesn't take much effort to just google the website. I can't help it if AT decided to block everything from k i n j a.com.

But since you're obviously too lazy to look it up yourself, here's another site that says the same thing:

http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/showpost.php?p=6315894&postcount=6

Not going to waste my time googling some nonsense which is obviously false from a guy who thinks that not changing oil is a valid analogy. And that's not "another site" ... it's a random guy on a forum.

You can choose to believe in pseudoscience and FUD but I'll take physics, and we can agree to disagree.

 

[iCyborg]

I've been reading about how the M6 engine can blow up on owners and cost $12,000-$22,000K to replace.

http://www.m5board.com/vbulletin/e6...om/314058-m6-blown-motor-horror-story-19.html

Your post is misleading: if you look at the original post in that thread, the engine was blown up by a driver from some designated driver service, and who was driving it on highway for 15 miles at full throttle in the 1st gear because she didn't know how to work the paddle shifters (what kind of a professional driving service has employees who can't drive cars with paddle shifters?!?). I'd expect major damage to the engine on a $100K car wouldn't be cheap to fix...
Your post makes it sound as if a blown engine on M6 can happen out of the blue...

 

[Subyman]

I don't understand these. I've owned a 330CI for over 10 years and haven't done anything other than oil changes, front struts, a battery, and replaced some rubber trim. 18k for maintenance seems like a motor replacement on average lol

 

[Subyman]

If you (not you personally) buy a BMW and don't have BavTech or Carly, you deserve to pay the dealer $500. I can't do much more than change my oil, but I've still got the cable and software. Used it a handful of times to reset the service intervals when I do service myself. My 135i was out of warranty when I bought it. I made sure I knew what I was getting myself into before hand. So far, no regrets.

I will also say that I don't know how much of the battery registration is "BS", but the battery in my 135i is the only battery I've had last me more than 2 years here AZ. I don't know if that's just luck or the "overengineered" components but if that keeps holding up, I am more than happy to pay a bit more to replace my battery. Previous cars were a BRZ, IS300, and an Eclipse.

Batteries only lasting 2 years? I think you need to invest in a battery tender.

 

[LTC8K6]

Your post is misleading: if you look at the original post in that thread, the engine was blown up by a driver from some designated driver service, and who was driving it on highway for 15 miles at full throttle in the 1st gear because she didn't know how to work the paddle shifters (what kind of a professional driving service has employees who can't drive cars with paddle shifters?!?). I'd expect major damage to the engine on a $100K car wouldn't be cheap to fix...
Your post makes it sound as if a blown engine on M6 can happen out of the blue...

While that is idiotic, why would that even damage anything in any relatively modern car?

 

[JulesMaximus]

While that is idiotic, why would that even damage anything in any relatively modern car?

A car would never be operated in that manner in real life driving situations so it probably wouldn't be able to cope with the cooling needs of the engine when operated in that manner.

I'd be surprised if it didn't damage the gearbox at least.

 

[repoman0]

A car would never be operated in that manner in real life driving situations so it probably wouldn't be able to cope with the cooling needs of the engine when operated in that manner.

I'd be surprised if it didn't damage the gearbox at least.

I wouldn't be concerned about the gearbox ... I'd think engine oil temps would be the main issue. The engine is designed to handle sustained high RPM operation but not in first gear, it needs cooling power from high ground speeds forcing air through the radiator and oil cooler.

If the concierge driver had managed to make it to second gear and redlined it there for 15 minutes or longer, the owner probably wouldn't have noticed when he awoke from his nap

edit: maybe the gearbox would get busted too, its oil needs cooling as well

edit2: regardless, pretty funny that the guy who posted the link took this as evidence that the S85 "can blow up on owners and cost $12-22k to replace."

 

[JulesMaximus]

I wouldn't be concerned about the gearbox ... I'd think engine oil temps would be the main issue. The engine is designed to handle sustained high RPM operation but not in first gear, it needs cooling power from high ground speeds forcing air through the radiator and oil cooler.

If the concierge driver had managed to make it to second gear and redlined it there for 15 minutes or longer, the owner probably wouldn't have noticed when he awoke from his nap

edit: maybe the gearbox would get busted too, its oil needs cooling as well

edit2: regardless, pretty funny that the guy who posted the link took this as evidence that the S85 "can blow up on owners and cost $12-22k to replace."

So, basically you're pretty much agreeing with me? I did say basically what you said just not in so many words.

By the way, I've done this to a rental car once (drove it around in 1st gear at high speeds) and the transmission smelled like burnt transmission fluid and the car was smoking a bit when I stopped. Yes, I was younger and it was juvenile. :$

Keep buying rental cars kiddies! This is what some people do to them. :sneaky:

 

[repoman0]

So, basically you're pretty much agreeing with me? I did say basically what you said just not in so many words.

Haha, basically. Just expanding a bit on the reasoning, and at first I didn't think the gearbox would have issues but changed my mind. Transmissions are relatively efficient so their oil doesn't need a ton of cooling, but I guess redline in first gear for an extended period is below the air volume threshold

 

[Engineer]

Keep buying rental cars kiddies! This is what some people do to them. :sneaky:

This is exactly why I don't buy demo or rental cars. Might be missing out on some deals but might be missing out on what the last guy did to the thing.

 

[JulesMaximus]

This is exactly why I don't buy demo or rental cars. Might be missing out on some deals but might be missing out on what the last guy did to the thing.

I just bought an off-lease Mercedes but when you buy CPO there is some peace of mind there at least.

 

[Ns1]

Stuff like this is why Lexus is so popular. Their cars might be a bit bland, but they dont fuck you with repairs.

my buddy is a master tech at Lexus - he would laugh uncontrollably at this statement.

Lexus fucks you just like BMW, they're just nice enough to give you the reacharound. They also won't fuck you as often.