[RedBread]

The international site has the Z4c up on the Individual side. They're offering carbon black which is really tempting, especially with a Caramel or Amarone interior. Of course I'd still love to see an M Coupe in Estoril with the two tone Estoril interior too.

I've had a few dealers confirm that they could order Individual in the US so long as it wasn't for a lease. Seems they're worried about calculating a fair residual on an Individual car, which is probably fair.

ben

 

[caylan]

The international site has the Z4c up on the Individual side. They're offering carbon black which is really tempting, especially with a Caramel or Amarone interior. Of course I'd still love to see an M Coupe in Estoril with the two tone Estoril interior too.

I've had a few dealers confirm that they could order Individual in the US so long as it wasn't for a lease. Seems they're worried about calculating a fair residual on an Individual car, which is probably fair.

ben

What can you usually order with the individual program besides leather?

 

[Cliff]

I've had a few dealers confirm that they could order Individual in the US

ben

I find that statement, when applied to this car, astonishing.

 

[johnf]

I've had a few dealers confirm that they could order Individual in the US so long as it wasn't for a lease....

When they tell you that, are they really thinking about Munich's idea of Individual -- or New Jersey's?

 

[RedBread]

Well that's the rub, isn't it? The last time I spoke to one, they intoned that I could order a true Individual car, with color combos and trim unique to Indy cars. Now, I didn't actually order/sign/etc. anything and who knows if it would have been kicked back or what the total cost would of been. My take away is that between a local dealer and an out of state dealer, I've seen more interest in placing Individual orders, especially for models built in SC.

I think my bigger problem is that I'd really like to get a Z4 in a color that's out of production, Estoril. While it was listed as a Z4 Individual color last year, it appears to be gone with the update for the new models. I also want to see an Imola Z4M in person to confirm that it is not the same as Imola2. In pictures at least, it look much more orangey than mine, or the ZHP E46's I've seeen. Add to that the fact that even if I went with red, I'd still like extended dark Sepang and I still can't get what I truly want direct from normal channels.

I realize I'm being much more particular than I have a right to be, but I already have a great car in the Z3 MC, so it's going to take a lot to get me out of it!

 

[dwm]

My experiences outside of BMW are that you can order off-the-menu, it's just not free. Maybe not a special paint color, but mix-and-match of what's available. Years ago I ordered a TT 3.2 with a color combination not offered. Audi charged $1800 extra to do it, and that charge showed up on the window sticker. Nowhere did they advertise an individual program or the possibility of ordering something different. But if the dealer has some pull and you're willing to wait a little longer than usual, it would not surprise me at all to hear you can get something the configurator won't let you do.

Probably the only Audi TT 3.2 ever made with this color combination, my then-wife's choice, not mine:

 

[AussieZ3]

Well that's the rub, isn't it? The last time I spoke to one, they intoned that I could order a true Individual car, with color combos and trim unique to Indy cars. Now, I didn't actually order/sign/etc. anything and who knows if it would have been kicked back or what the total cost would of been. My take away is that between a local dealer and an out of state dealer, I've seen more interest in placing Individual orders, especially for models built in SC.

I think my bigger problem is that I'd really like to get a Z4 in a color that's out of production, Estoril. While it was listed as a Z4 Individual color last year, it appears to be gone with the update for the new models. I also want to see an Imola Z4M in person to confirm that it is not the same as Imola2. In pictures at least, it look much more orangey than mine, or the ZHP E46's I've seeen. Add to that the fact that even if I went with red, I'd still like extended dark Sepang and I still can't get what I truly want direct from normal channels.

I realize I'm being much more particular than I have a right to be, but I already have a great car in the Z3 MC, so it's going to take a lot to get me out of it!

Estoril is still in use. A guy picked up a brand new X5 4.8is in estoril from the local dealer here last week.

 

[AussieZ3]

Why don't you US guys put individual orders through a Canadian dealership and then drive it back across the border?

 

[Alex.M]

Why don't you US guys put individual orders through a Canadian dealership and then drive it back across the border?

"Foreign" cars are too hard to legalize here as far as I am aware. Miles vs. kilometers, safety features, emissions, etc.

 

[conorb]

My experiences outside of BMW are that you can order off-the-menu, it's just not free. Maybe not a special paint color, but mix-and-match of what's available. Years ago I ordered a TT 3.2 with a color combination not offered. Audi charged $1800 extra to do it, and that charge showed up on the window sticker. Nowhere did they advertise an individual program or the possibility of ordering something different. But if the dealer has some pull and you're willing to wait a little longer than usual, it would not surprise me at all to hear you can get something the configurator won't let you do.

Probably the only Audi TT 3.2 ever made with this color combination, my then-wife's choice, not mine:

Wow that's a pretty cool color.

I asked about ordering "off the menu" when I ordered my M Coupe and was told no deal. I went through the largest dealer in Oregon so I'm thinking that maybe they were too lazy to really check, didn't have a large enough "pull factor" or didn't really take my request seriously when I brought it up.

conorb

 

[RedBread]

I think largely it's about not even wanting to put the effort forward to look into it. They're four BMW dealers in DFW and only one seems willing to acknowledge that Individual exists.

It's confusing because it would seem that there's nothing but margin in there for both the dealer and BMW GmbH, it's not like they're really adding much, just new colors and some unique interior trim, and I get the impression that a full Indy car would be around $6k extra, while non-individual yet non-standard colors are about $2k each for inside and/or outside.

Of course it comes back to US laws that allow people to walk from signed deals if they don't like what shows up. However in cases like mine, where I have a relationship with my dealer and there's a level of trust, I feel there's a little more willingness to test the system. Now if I asked for a Laguna Seca Blue M Coupe with Kiwi interior, then I can see some resistence! Same thing for yellow and baseball , but hey, to each their own. Unless you're BMW and then it's bland with a side serving of bland!

Ben

 

[fastnfurious]

Very cool. I'm planning on picking up a Z4 coupe in the near future and would love to do a Silver Grey metallic with either an Amarone or Caramel interior. Any idea what the upcharge on the leather would be? Why the f**k don't they offer this on the US?

 

[JonM]

Very cool. I'm planning on picking up a Z4 coupe in the near future and would love to do a Silver Grey metallic with either an Amarone or Caramel interior. Any idea what the upcharge on the leather would be? Why the f**k don't they offer this on the US?

On the few E46 M3s in the US that have semi-individual interiors, the charge was $35XX for interior. Search E46M3 board and you should be able to find it. Exteriors are $2XXX plus the metallic paint charge, if applicable. Generally BMW NA does not do anything non-standard on first year production cars like the E86. Next year you may have a shot.

 

[AussieZ3]

"Foreign" cars are too hard to legalize here as far as I am aware. Miles vs. kilometers, safety features, emissions, etc.

Can't you keep it on a Canadian plate?

 

[Cliff]

Can't you keep it on a Canadian plate?

No. Out of state registrations are time limited also.