[rick100]

Sold my2011 FBO 328xi automatic last month , the car was running mint , zero issues but it was getting into the 100 000 miles range and I just did not want to spend any money on it . I got 8700$ canadian for it plus I got to keep all the original parts and the extra set of tires and rims.

Ended buying a 2018 audi A5 sportback with manufacturing warranty on it for another 2 years. The A5 is faster , bigger , newer , more tech , looks better or newer, it has better tuning possibilities, more luxurious inside but its not my BMW

Not going to lie , I still miss my bmw and I somewhat regret selling it , even though financially it was going to be a big mistake.

Aside from the bmw being a more "raw" experience , one of the things I miss the most is being able to drive it "fast" or push it hard on regular roads, something I m finding hard to do with the A5 since its faster and it puts me way over the speed limit before I can really enjoy.. Its hard to describe , but with my BMW it was just perfect , I could be in the upper rpm longer without worrying too much.

Made me question myself if what I really need is a slower car that I can push hard rather than a fast car that I m force to drive it slow ?. My plans were to tune the A5 but I m already afraid to do it since the car is already pretty fast for me to push it hard.

I was planning on getting a cheaper manual transmission summer car next year and all of the sudden after buying the audi , I m looking at slower cars like the BRZ, e90 328 rwd , civic si , miata, 350z...

[eljay]

I think your situation is a good example why the driving experience isn't necessarily connected to a simple stat sheet next to a window sticker.

I have a 2009 328xiT, manual and a 2016 A4 Allroad with half the mileage of the Audi. You can guess which one I like driving more.

But yes, 100k is that magical threshold beyond which you really have to look in the mirror and answer the hard question of how much do you really like the car.
And I'm not sure spending money on an older car is financially bad if you end up keeping it where you instead of the next owner enjoy the benefit of spending that money.
Let's say you keep both for the next 2 years:
Keeping E90 for $8700, then spending ~$5k on it = $14k
Not sure how much you paid for the Audi, but let's say CAD$40k

In 2 years, you sell the E90 for $4k to anyone or $6-$8k to an enthusiast who will value a well-maintained E90 more. Worst case, you lost $10k.
You also lost $10k on the Audi.
I would also over-simplify further and say that the higher insurance premium on the Audi is offset by higher fuel costs of the BMW.

Both scenarios cost you the same financially. It's about which experience you want to have for those 2 years. And the answer may be obvious being on an E90 forum, but I am not posting this to be a leading conclusion as there's a lot to be said about driving a newer car that you can hand over to your spouse with a lower chance of getting a call from a side of the road.
All I'm saying is that it's a not a big mistake financially to simply spend money on a old car. Most people will trade-in an old car on the spot when told by a shop that they need to spend $5k on the list of things it needs. But they will happily sign up to pay $500/mo for 10 months and think/feel they spent less.

[335i54n]

the new brz looks like a totally winner, audi are junk unless u like plowing through corners

[rick100]

Originally Posted by eljay

I think your situation is a good example why the driving experience isn't necessarily connected to a simple stat sheet next to a window sticker.

I have a 2009 328xiT, manual and a 2016 A4 Allroad with half the mileage of the Audi. You can guess which one I like driving more.

But yes, 100k is that magical threshold beyond which you really have to look in the mirror and answer the hard question of how much do you really like the car.
And I'm not sure spending money on an older car is financially bad if you end up keeping it where you instead of the next owner enjoy the benefit of spending that money.
Let's say you keep both for the next 2 years:
Keeping E90 for $8700, then spending ~$5k on it = $14k
Not sure how much you paid for the Audi, but let's say CAD$40k

In 2 years, you sell the E90 for $4k to anyone or $6-$8k to an enthusiast who will value a well-maintained E90 more. Worst case, you lost $10k.
You also lost $10k on the Audi.
I would also over-simplify further and say that the higher insurance premium on the Audi is offset by higher fuel costs of the BMW.

Both scenarios cost you the same financially. It's about which experience you want to have for those 2 years. And the answer may be obvious being on an E90 forum, but I am not posting this to be a leading conclusion as there's a lot to be said about driving a newer car that you can hand over to your spouse with a lower chance of getting a call from a side of the road.
All I'm saying is that it's a not a big mistake financially to simply spend money on a old car. Most people will trade-in an old car on the spot when told by a shop that they need to spend $5k on the list of things it needs. But they will happily sign up to pay $500/mo for 10 months and think/feel they spent less.

I agree, my issue also was that I needed a bigger car because I do a lot of mileage and I carry tool boxes so I needed a reliable car , plus the BMW was modded to a point where I did not want to drive it through a canadian winter, specially up north north. I was going to need a bigger car regardless so it was either keep the bmw and buy a winter beater ( and probably pay 2 insurances , and take care of maintenance on 2 used cars) or just buy one newer car with warranty that can do everything and forget about it ...

last option was to keep both cars , which I was considering . Honestly I even told me wife , if the car does not sell this week I m keeping it but the right buyer came I guess and I decided that maybe it was just time to part way.

Being 100% honest, I really wanted a manual car, if my BMW was a manual , I would ve kept the car.... 2 automatic cars was not making too much sense

[rick100]

Originally Posted by 335i54n

the new brz looks like a totally winner, audi are junk unless u like plowing through corners

I like the audi actually, it drives better than the equivalent bmw which I test drove too.

Yes new BRZ is very tempting , I have been watching a lot of videos on it and its a totally winner in my eyes, specially at the price point.

[eljay]

Originally Posted by rick100

I agree, my issue also was that I needed a bigger car because I do a lot of mileage and I carry tool boxes so I needed a reliable car , plus the BMW was modded to a point where I did not want to drive it through a canadian winter, specially up north north. I was going to need a bigger car regardless so it was either keep the bmw and buy a winter beater ( and probably pay 2 insurances , and take care of maintenance on 2 used cars) or just buy one newer car with warranty that can do everything and forget about it ...

last option was to keep both cars , which I was considering . Honestly I even told me wife , if the car does not sell this week I m keeping it but the right buyer came I guess and I decided that maybe it was just time to part way.

Being 100% honest, I really wanted a manual car, if my BMW was a manual , I would ve kept the car.... 2 automatic cars was not making too much sense

That makes complete sense and I'd do the same. Although, you should've bought an Allroad.

[mainbearing]

Let the Audi settle in some more then think about what you want to get next. I am not sure if Subie solved their head gasket problems. Our BMW has only about 40% of Audi's mileage, therefore our preference is just the opposite.

Sounds like you want something to drive at the top range of the car's performance rather than Audi where it easily performs at its low range. Before the 2-year warranty is up, look up all the TSBs and see if you need any fixing.

Besides the BRZ, how about Golf GTI?

[rick100]

Originally Posted by mainbearing

Let the Audi settle in some more then think about what you want to get next. I am not sure if Subie solved their head gasket problems. Our BMW has only about 40% of Audi's mileage, therefore our preference is just the opposite.

Sounds like you want something to drive at the top range of the car's performance rather than Audi where it easily performs at its low range. Before the 2-year warranty is up, look up all the TSBs and see if you need any fixing.

Besides the BRZ, how about Golf GTI?

I really like the STI to be honest with you. I may trade in the audi for the sti after 2 years lol

[ADEe92]

The biggest turn off with the BRZ (or Toyota 86) is the interior. Looks ok in photos, pretty unsatisfactory in real life. Jumping out of an Audi into one I'd imagine will be a bit hard to take. Even the e9x (which is a bit derided by some for quality of plastics etc) is night and day vs the horrible scratchy stuff in the Subaru.

They do handle well though and the 2.3L should sort the lack of torque on the old one.

[krhodes1]

I have never even come close to having an older car cost in repairs and maintenance more than what newer cars cost in depreciation, interest, and the MUCH higher annual registration costs for a newer car in Maine. FL evens that out a bit, but insurance becomes more of a factor.

Case in point my Volvo wagon. A 2004 V70 bought for $4500 in January with 119K on it. I spent about the same again getting it completely up to par. Mostly DIY, but I paid for the timing belt, water pump, and seals to be done. Needed brakes, the whole front suspension, bushings, subframe bushings, rear shocks and mounts, an air box, PCV service, power steering reservoir, some interior trim bits, door brake, a key fob (ouch), etc. So ~$9K all in, not counting the stereo revamp because that was a want, not a need. It needed all the typical "midlife crisis" things done, and Volvos are MORE expensive to deal with than BMWs, IMHO. But I expect it to need basically nothing for several year at this point. And of course, I paid cash for all this, so no payments and no interest. Note I trust this car enough that I drove it to Maine for the summer from Florida, and it hasn't needed an unexpected thing but an oil change. With the trip, I have put a lot of miles on it for a car of mine, over 8K since I bought it in Jan..

Alternatively, a 3yo CPO V60 goes for $35k or so (more right now, of course, but that was the going rate before the madness). And in four years it will be worth $20K if you are VERY lucky, and probably a lot less. In four years I still expect my Volvo to be worth $4500, as it will still be a mint condition, fully maintained car with no issues (that's how I roll). And I like the '04 better than the newer ones.

Of course if you don't know which end of a screwdriver is which your mileage will vary.

At <2K miles a year, my e91 isn't depreciating AT ALL, which makes it even more of a keeper. I'll hit 100K in about 25 years at this rate. But even so, it cost a *lot* of money to get to this point in depreciation, even if the only repair I have paid for out of pocket was a $119 battery.

I would be ALL ABOUT buying new cars if there were still any I wanted to buy, but don't ever delude yourself into thinking it's cheaper because it has a warranty. You pay for that in the upfront price.

[rick100]

Originally Posted by krhodes1

I have never even come close to having an older car cost in repairs and maintenance more than what newer cars cost in depreciation, interest, and the MUCH higher annual registration costs for a newer car in Maine. FL evens that out a bit, but insurance becomes more of a factor.

Case in point my Volvo wagon. A 2004 V70 bought for $4500 in January with 119K on it. I spent about the same again getting it completely up to par. Mostly DIY, but I paid for the timing belt, water pump, and seals to be done. Needed brakes, the whole front suspension, bushings, subframe bushings, rear shocks and mounts, an air box, PCV service, power steering reservoir, some interior trim bits, door brake, a key fob (ouch), etc. So ~$9K all in, not counting the stereo revamp because that was a want, not a need. It needed all the typical "midlife crisis" things done, and Volvos are MORE expensive to deal with than BMWs, IMHO. But I expect it to need basically nothing for several year at this point. And of course, I paid cash for all this, so no payments and no interest. Note I trust this car enough that I drove it to Maine for the summer from Florida, and it hasn't needed an unexpected thing but an oil change. With the trip, I have put a lot of miles on it for a car of mine, over 8K since I bought it in Jan..

Alternatively, a 3yo CPO V60 goes for $35k or so (more right now, of course, but that was the going rate before the madness). And in four years it will be worth $20K if you are VERY lucky, and probably a lot less. In four years I still expect my Volvo to be worth $4500, as it will still be a mint condition, fully maintained car with no issues (that's how I roll). And I like the '04 better than the newer ones.

Of course if you don't know which end of a screwdriver is which your mileage will vary.

At <2K miles a year, my e91 isn't depreciating AT ALL, which makes it even more of a keeper. I'll hit 100K in about 25 years at this rate. But even so, it cost a *lot* of money to get to this point in depreciation, even if the only repair I have paid for out of pocket was a $119 battery.

I would be ALL ABOUT buying new cars if there were still any I wanted to buy, but don't ever delude yourself into thinking it's cheaper because it has a warranty. You pay for that in the upfront price.

I agree with you 100% but for me is not so much about the cost. Im at a point in my life where I wanted something newer, bigger , more reliable. I travel for work quite a bit and I travel with my family a lot , my wife hates going in the bmw because it was smaller , lower which made it unconfortable on long rides. I was also not using it for family long trips and also for the longer work trips ( 5 plus hours one way) because I carry tool boxes and up north the roads are a bit rough. I also did not want to ride my lower suspension in the snow with all the salt around. Furthermore , the car was very reliable , but of course being an older car there were always unexpected repairs and I just could not afford to have a broken car.

The bmw was becoming more of a weekend car rather than a daily , which meant I was taking the family SUV which also has 100 000 miles. Now , you need to add the cost of maintaining two older cars with a lifestyle of long trips , for whatever reason when 1 car needed a repair , the other one follow right after for the past 2 years ...

While I agree 100% with you that its always cheaper to maintain your car rather than buying a used one , in my case I m at a point in my life where my life style and the money I m making allows me to spend 40k on a newer car while still saving money for retirement and vacations.

My only regret is maybe not keeping the bmw as a weekend car, but 10 k in my pocket surely help keeping that savings account up there , plus paying another insurance and whatever cost associated with a weekend car is also an expense that did not make much sense. Honestly , like a said before, if the car didnt sell the week I sold it , I was going to keep it for good....

There is something about the rawness of the older e90 with a NA engine that put a smile everytime I rev it to redline. I m not finding that with the audi yet, even though its faster, newer , etc ,etc ,etc. I was always looking for the faster car, now to realized that faster doesnt always mean more fun .

[tlow98]

Well, this leaves room to pick up a RWD/manual 328i. Make it your summer car. They’re plenty reliable.

But, ya know, do it soon bc manual/rwd bimmers are appreciating to the point of silly ness. A couple models out there still represent a value, but not many.

[Biggenz]

I had two E39 Sports. Not the fastest things in the world but God did I love them. With the M Para alloys I thought it was the best looking BMW they've ever made. Then I wrote one off and thought it was time for something a bit newer, so I bought an Audi S4 B8.

I hated that car from the very first day and put it back up for sale after a month. It had no soul, you had no feedback through the steering wheel and the whole driving experience was just massively underwhelming.

After I got rid of it I bought an N54 335i and I knew I was home. Been loving it from the first day and I will drive this car until the wheels fall off. There genuinely isn't anything else I want as it's just perfect. Not even an M3 or M4 appeals to me as mine is as fast or faster, with a load more torque.

I will never buy another Audi for as long as I live.

[idriveuscream]

Originally Posted by 335i54n

the new brz looks like a totally winner, audi are junk unless u like plowing through corners

I don't know.... I own a 2018 Audi SQ5...best car I have ever owned. Previous cars include multiple Porsches, BMWs. My other car is a 2011 BMW 328ix M-sport which I think is great too.

Audis were pretty bad a few years back, but from 2018 on.... pretty good.

[mainbearing]

Be careful with newer BMWs like the F30 with electric steering. Makes you feel like you got an Audi instead.

Originally Posted by Biggenz

I will never buy another Audi for as long as I live.

[Fritzer]

As the late Erick Keller proclaimed in his last video for EAG, "Driving a slow car fast is so, so much better than driving a fast car slow."

I have to agree with him. A really good "slow" car driven to it's limits is much more rewarding and enjoyable than driving a really good "fast" car driven way under it's limits.

[Fritzer]

Originally Posted by ADEe92

The biggest turn off with the BRZ (or Toyota 86) is the interior. Looks ok in photos, pretty unsatisfactory in real life. Jumping out of an Audi into one I'd imagine will be a bit hard to take. Even the e9x (which is a bit derided by some for quality of plastics etc) is night and day vs the horrible scratchy stuff in the Subaru.

They do handle well though and the 2.3L should sort the lack of torque on the old one.

If they did a high revving, NA, inline-4, made the interior more utilitarian and base spec, I would buy one. I have an extreme dislike for Subaru boxer engines, doesn't suit that car one bit. Kind of a disappointment compared to it's 86 namesake. It's really too bad that they didn't apply the BMW partnership to the 86 program, would be a significantly better car than the Subaru dog-water they got going on right now. Keep the Supra with the B58 only and make the 86 have a B38 or B48 would be cool.

[krhodes1]

Originally Posted by Fritzer

As the late Erick Keller proclaimed in his last video for EAG, "Driving a slow car fast is so, so much better than driving a fast car slow."

I have to agree with him. A really good "slow" car driven to it's limits is much more rewarding and enjoyable than driving a really good "fast" car driven way under it's limits.

Spot on - and lots safer for your license and insurance costs than driving a fast car even quickly.

My Triumph Spitfire is FAR more fun than my M235i ever dreamed of being (and note which one I have owned for 25 years, and the one I got rid of in two).

[Dave92N54]

Originally Posted by mainbearing

I am not sure if Subie solved their head gasket problems.

They have, but I would still never recommend an EJ engine to anyone (for anyone interested in an STI, since they still use the over a decade old EJ). They just blow up. I have a coworker who bought himself a WRX 3 years ago. Luckily he bought the extended warranty, he is now on engine number 4. Every single one has developed rod knock, he has not modified a single one of them. It's truly atrocious. I believe even the new FA engines still suffer from just leaning out and going pop.

Not sure if any of you have seen the new WRX or not either. It makes the G80 look amazing.