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2011 335d, Keep or trade in for a honda?

5K views 42 replies 20 participants last post by  Kafkaesque328 
#1 · (Edited)
I have had my 2011 335d for about 1.5 years, currently at 35k. I purchased it second hand from a non-bmw dealer with 20 k on it for about 33k. It has the sports pkg, navi and all options except for paddle sifters and back up camera (not sure if this was out at this time).

I like (but do not love) the car and the manufacturer's warranty is going to expire this fall. I love the handling, quality of the interior, MPG. I dislike the costs of ownership (I only owned Hondas in the past), the threat of carbon build up with the expense, extremely poor customer service at my closest BMW dealer (Global imports... they suck!). Driving in Atlanta, has forced me to dislike driving overall, so owning a "driving machine" is not that important, but unfortunately I do need a car for work.

I would like to keep this current car for 8 .5 years, but the maintenance costs seem high. When I purchased, it seemed like the 335d was relatively reliable, so I did not plan on buying an extended warranty. Now with this carbon build up talk, it seems like if I keep the car I should buy a 4k warranty for only 4 years (even if I put less than 12k in miles a year on the it). What would another 4 years cost in order to keep it? It seems like an expensive car to keep for 8.5 years.

I had minor issues with the 335d, but to get them fixed were a major issue at the dealer... So much so, I vowed to never buy a bmw car again. I can imagine how much of a headache this will be in the next few years.
Maybe I can sell it and get another Honda or VW TDI? I loved owing the honda, it was a tank!
 
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#4 ·
I'd second that. Hyundai. Awesome cars if you see driving as a "commodity".

I test drove the top spec Accord and it left me feeling like I had just eaten a bowl of styrofoam shipping peanuts.

Can the expense of a car like a BMW be rationalized? Only in terms of passion.
 
#3 ·
Sounds like you are not thrilled with the BMW experience and not liking it enough to put up with bad dealer and potential out of warranty problems. Life is too short, get what you feel is right for you.
No one here will hunt you down and stay DEF on your Honda ;)


Sent from BimmerApp mobile app
 
#5 · (Edited)
I am in the same boat warranty-wise and worry about the same issues. I'm used to owning a high end car, though, with the maintenance costs included. With the BMW/Mercedes/Porsche tech, keeping up with the car can be as good as eventually having a high mileage car that is still desirable. A Mercedes E-class, for example, might be thought of as a million mile car if you take good care of it and maintain/fix at certain intervals. The cost itself isn't bad if you take into account how much depreciation a new car gets. Many 335d's went out the door for $45- $50K and are now $25K after 4 years - you do the Math!

So its passion/desire that should keep you in such a car. For me, a Honda might be less expensive but I know I would want to get out of it within 2-3 years and thus have the depreciation hit as a result and then get into the $50K range again with big payments again.

I once bought a used Porsche Carrera 3.2 for $20K, drove it about 120,000 miles, and sold it for $16.5K. Now that car was worth the extra maintenance and repair and was still a bargain - and it was fun to have standing still!

It is absolutely essential to avoid dealer costs when out of warranty. I've managed to find great private mechanics along the way in my travels.

PL
 
#6 · (Edited)
You can get a better price on the warranty through a forum sponsor here or at E90post. You have almost no miles on the car. I would keep it for sure, but I understand where you're coming from wanting an A-to-B car. VW Tdi probably won't be any more/less reliable.

Maintenance costs aren't that bad at all if you do oil and air filter changes yourself. DEF and fuel filter will run you about $250 at Global. There are some decent Indy shops around as well. As for CBU it should be a one and done and shouldn't be cost prohibitive.

Interesting that you had a bad experience at Global. Some people do. I've been lucky as I've used them for my service needs since 2003 and never had a major issue. Buying from them wasn't too bad until Sonic paid big $$ to build that big parking garage to house more inventory.


FWIW I'm thinking about a Mazda 3 or 6 for my Atlanta commute.
 
#7 ·
Think Electric (Tesla) ????:dunno:

That is what I'm considering if/when I decide to get out of the D. My commute is very predictable so charging up each evening is quite doable.

I'll keep the D until such time it is unreliable/too expensive, but at least until it reaches 6 years/100k.
 
#11 ·
.. Thank you all for your good thoughts. I decided that I will get the warranty (thanks BMWTurboDz for the tip) keep it for 8.5 years, then get an electric car at that time.
Flyingman... the Tesla is an amazing car but a bit out of my price range for now. I'm sure when I'm ready to the Tesla will be much more affordable.
 
#8 ·
If I were you I would look at the total cost of owning your vehicle before making a decision. Calculate your total cost per mile and per month and what your expected cost per mile and per month for a new Honda would likely be. Without seeing the numbers I would say that even with a carbon build up repair, you might still be ahead with the BMW as you have already spent a huge sum of money for depreciation, which is likely your biggest cost that you need to spread out for 3-4 years of ownership to reduce the overall cost per mile. Same with sales tax if it's collected in your state. Build up a fund for future repairs, say $25 to $50 per month and enjoy the ride. One of the most expensive cars I have ever owned was a Honda Accord and one of the least expensive was a Mercedes Benz. Go figure. Make a decision based on real numbers. By the way, the average car will cost you, $0.50 to $0.60 if you keep it for 4 years. Figure all ownership costs such as capital cost (purchase price less future trade in price), fuel, maintenance, repairs, tires, brakes, insurance, tags, loan interest cost, and interest lost on your money down . If you drive 20,000 miles per year, that's $10,000 to $12,000. Yikes.
 
#10 · (Edited)
I understand where you're coming from and have been down a similar road before. I traded in my pristine E46 2003 330i with sports 6spd for stupid Accord and that car was traded in about 3 years for another loss. I really should've kept my E46 which would've been more reliable than my 335d. Anyways, I have 43K on my car right now and I'm still rolling the dice with no warranty at all. I just love the torque and not having to fill up too much. If I could've done it all over again, I would've picked the 335i in a heartbeat. The BMW indy shops here in southern CA are MUCH more proficient at servicing the gassers for a much more reasonable cost vs. the stealership while I get blank stares when I mention the d...
 
#16 ·
True, however the SCR system is a weak link at 60k miles. I've had new NOX sensors, new pumps, and new Urea Tank (2 of them, but I would've been charged for only 1) all covered under OEM extended warranty. Not to mention over 2 weeks of labor in total .

I'm ahead of the game actually.
 
#15 ·
I haven't had a single issue with my 2011 335d. In fact, its been the best bmw I have owned over a 20+ year period.

I am very disappointed BMW doesn't offer a new 335d! The 328d nor the i3 can replace my 335d. 535d is too big.

I am considering purchasing it at lease-end, but I'm also I'm considering Tesla after all these years with BMW.

I love diesels and the torque. Have you considered VW TDI's? If your concerned about cost of ownership and the range works for you, have you looked at EV Electrics such as a Nissan Leaf?

Good luck, bummer you didn't have a good experience with your 335d.
 
#17 ·
I may be mistaken, but it seems there are fewer if not any new people posting problems with CBU and SCR over the last couple of months. I don't think its necessarily a trend, but perhaps there have been improvements with the software and maintenance of the 335d that have taken effect. That last recall of the engine programming (I've even forgotten the acronym!) may have helped!

Just saying.

PL
 
#18 ·
I have had warranties on almost all of my cars and motorcycles for about 25 years and I have kept track. After all of this time, and countless cars and motorcycles I am currently about $500 in the hole. But, I have a car that is just about to hit the end of its warranty. I always take the cars in at that time for a thorough exam, at which time they tend to find things that need to be fixed. So, I will likely be on the positive side within the next six months. These pay off if you plan on keeping the car until the warranty is up and asking them to fix anything and everything that is possible. I do not have a warranty on the 228, because I might not keep it beyond 4 years, and these sure are a horrible hit if you do not keep the car long enough.
 
#19 ·
Funny, my last calculation of how much I've saved by not having an extended warranty ran over $20K. I have, fortunately, been way ahead with no serious problems. Those that I had were addressed at higher mileage than any warranty would cover.

The odds are likely in favor of the seller of said warranty. I use private mechanics exclusively to avoid huge dealer markups too. Although not quite exactly the same, I don't gamble at the casino either.

Choosing diesel over the equivalent gasser (I mean, like, the 335i for example) also saves around 7-10K on fuel over 200,000 miles.

PL
 
#20 ·
Funny, my last calculation of how much I've saved by not having an extended warranty ran over $20K. I have, fortunately, been way ahead with no serious problems. Those that I had were addressed at higher mileage than any warranty would cover.

The odds are likely in favor of the seller of said warranty. I use private mechanics exclusively to avoid huge dealer markups too. Although not quite exactly the same, I don't gamble at the casino either.

Choosing diesel over the equivalent gasser (I mean, like, the 335i for example) also saves around 7-10K on fuel over 200,000 miles.

PL
The only issue with your above statement is that none of the indy shops in southern CA so far hardly know anything to do with our 335d's other than changing the oil and refilling the DEF. (I would guess the number of BMW's in GA are even less than CA) AFAIK no one other than a BMW dealer has done the SIB for CBU or done repairs on the SCR system. So you keep your 335d, plan on paying stealership service prices for the foreseeable future... OTOH, many of the indy shops here can easily deal with the frequent maladies plaguing the E90 328i/335i's.
 
#22 ·
To be fair, we have a 07 Honda & 07 Merc and have to say that Hondas are the least cost to maintain compared to the Merc.

But the stability, comfort and safety has to go the the Merc.

All my BMWs of course has the fun factor and excitement that neither the Honda nor Merc has***8230;.

Guess you can't have your cake and eat it too !
 
#23 ·
If you want to stick with TDI I would for sure get a Golf TDI over some Honda. Still good driving dynamics and solidity although you would perhaps be plagued by the usual VW related issues.
 
#24 ·
Reading the forums too much is not a good thing. The threat of carbon buildup, sure it's there but it doesn't hit everybody, and a lot of people drive BMWs, especially E90s without major problems. And if I understand you correctly, so do you so far.

Honda owners have less maintenance, but they might also underreport it. Recent ones are also stuffed with electronics and we really don't know how that works out long term. You might end up trading a problem free car for an unknown.

I don't see a reason to fiddle with it, with the specific exception that if you are really short on time and definitely don't want to deal with car issues at all I would get a new car with warranty, and from a company that gives out loaners when thingie is broken. If you want to drive your 335d the thing you need to do is build a good relationship with somebody who can work on it. That is an investment, but it also means you pay deprecation from now on for a 3 year old car, a new, nice Honda has more more 2 years at least.
 
#26 ·
Used to be part of a "only Honda/Acura Family" till I test drove my first BMW :bigpimp:
Many of us Acura/Honda enthusiasts were very let down when cheap ass Ito killed the RWD platform and V8's that were basically almost production ready. Dreams of a BMW with Japanese reliability were killed overnight (Infiniti tried, but Ghosn has them cutting too many corners and it shows) Now Acura is just stuck being a Audi/Volvo wannabe...
 
#28 ·
Several interesting thoughts in this thread. Just wanted to jump in on the conversation. We currently have 49K miles on the 11 335D and so far (fingers crossed) the only warranty issue was the AC belt. Have never seen the SES. At this point, best car we've ever owned. Plus being a unique limited vehicle of a 3 series with 425 ft/lb torque, we all enjoy that push you in the seat feeling when we step on the throttle. It is unlikely BMW will import an vehicle like this again so I am going to take my chances with current plans on keeping it a long time. Now that they have a reasonable solution for cleaning carbon, no reason to let that issue cause you to run away from the car.

BMWs can last a long time. My son is driving the E46 328i that I purchased new (our first BMW). At 180K miles still doesn't burn a drop of oil and is running with the original clutch!

On another topic of this thread, at some point we will be replacing the '00 540iT, our larger car. When you price out a new BMW of this size (5 series or 3GT), for about $15K more you can get a Tesla. And I have seen their super charging stations along the routes I typically drive (50% charge in 20 minutes). Of course the savings Tesla is trying to suggest for the cost in fuel savings is a joke in comparison to the extra cost of the vehicle. Electricity is not free.
 
#31 ·
Here in the valley the big complaint is that all the electrics have swamped the charging stations available -- and there are a lot of both. One recurring comment is that cars are left in the charger after it has been completely "topped off" -- and inconsiderate electric drivers just use them as preferred parking spaces!:tsk: So, even in paradise there is trouble amongst the favored.:rofl:
 
#32 ·
Yeah, I would keep a diesel car along with the Tesla S if I got to that point. It all needs to be hashed out before many will take the plunge.

I'm not against being a "cutting edge" consumer, though.

My saying is: "All that is worthwhile is difficult to attain, because if it was worthwhile and easy, you would have done it already!"

PL
 
#34 ·
If it was easy the girl scouts would be doing it!:p
 
#35 ·
Looks like our Fuelly Tags went on the blink. They made some sort of an upgrade and may have wiped out a bunch of data.:tsk:
 
#40 ·
I have a mazda 3 (First generation). It's a fun little car to drive but it's not a BMW. It has been reliable but the fuel economy is not stellar for the size car it is. The new ones with the skyacgtive tech are better. The new Mazda 3 is really attractive IMHO. As far as non-luxury brands Mazda is the sportiest and most fun to drive.

I would love it if Mazda brought the 6 wagon to the US. I would buy one for my wife in a heart beat.
 
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