ED - fly in fly out save money!!!!

[jimmyz]

Has anybody used ED just to save money. ED sounds like the perfect way to pay for a great European vacation. But has anybody used ED for the sole purpose of saving money on their purchase.

To do that a person would need to fly in and then fly out rather quickly. Spend the weekend or maybe just a night to save the most money. Has anybody done anything along those lines? Was it worth it (travel and time lost) for the money savings?

Of course I am asking because I am considering doing it. Some people tell me I am crazy and other say it is a great idea. Any responses would be appreciated.

Looking to get my first BMW and have to say this forum is entertaining and a wealth of information. :thumbup:

[riffic]

I know some colleagues who used a quick-trip ED solely for the savings, so here are some things to consider.

Delivery is Monday-Friday and most cheap tickets require a Sat. night stay. So, for a cheap, ultra-quick trip, you have two main options: (i) fly out Thurs. eve, arrive Fri. morning, take delivery, hang out in Munich until SUnday morning and return home SUnday evening; or (ii) fly out Fri eve, arrive Sat morning, spend weekend in Munich, take delivery on Monday and fly home Tuesday.

Also, you have to front the down payment one month before delivery. And if you're thinking trade-in, you better have a second car to drive between down-payment and taking delivery 6-8 weeks after dropping off car in Munich.

[mbushnell]

I work for a major airline, so I was able to fly over for nothing. The problem is that we don't fly to Munich. The closest we fly are either Zurich or Frankfurt, then use either rail or a european airline to get to Munich.

What we did was fly Newark to Zurich, stay overnight near the airport, then took a train from Zurich airport train station to Munich. We got to Munich just before noon, went to the hotel to drop off our bags, then went to pick up the car. We got there around 2:00 PM.

A week later, we dropped off the car in Frankfurt, then flew back the next day from there.

Of course, flying on a pass is on a standby basis, so you only get to go if there is space on the plane. In other words, basicly forget about flying to Europe during the summer, especally weekends. We went mid week in October

Mark

[beauport]

My sales rep, a German born in Munich, has ED buyers who fly over arriving in Munich in the morning pick up the car at the ED center and drive directly to the drop off location about 15 minutes from the ED center and fly home that afternoon. Planning ahead with the cheap fares, especially in winter, the flights from the East coast can be bought for under $400. Doesn't sound like much fun to me but if you want the maximum bang for the buck this might do it.

[ZBB 325Ci]

I spent did a week of vacation when I did ED, but the whole trip still cost only $600... I'd recommend doing at least some exploring over there.

I used frequent flier miles for the ticket...
I stayed at a friend's place in Munich for the first 2 nights...
I expensed the 3rd night and meals that day because I had to go to a meeting for work in Stutgart...
My girlfriend expensed the last night -- she coincidentally had to be in Amsterdam for work for a few weeks...
I actually paid for a couple nights hotels, but they weren't that bad (~$60-80 a night).