When did new BMW’s get so expensive?

[JFENG]

In for an oil change at my local dealer and saw these “one payment” sale flyers on a number of new BMWs. this was kinda middle of the road. Another car was $70k one-payment lease. Even with a business expense tax break this seems pretty pricey. I saw an X5 with a sticker over $100k (it had an M badge on the back).

I DD a current model X5 (wonderfully good as a tow vehicle), and while they are very good I’ve never thought of them as $100k vehicles.

FWIW, current labor rate here is $240/hour. I hope the techs get at least 1/3 of that.

 

[rsporsche]

John, this approach will give the rise to the use of independent service centers. i sold my 911 for 2 reasons, 1st was getting my old body into it / out of it ... the other was that since i am now retired, paying 250 / hr (2 years ago) for service is not where i wanted to spend my money. think $975 for a yearly service (oil change + inspection).

 

[JFENG]

John, this approach will give the rise to the use of independent service centers.

At those prices I might be motivated to work on my X5 at home. I can’t help but wonder if dealers are pricing their service departments out of business.

 

[rsporsche]

i know for Porsche, they weren't selling enough cars during the covid period and raised the labor rates to cover the shortfall ... and when things got better, they didn't change their model. i bought an Audi TTS in 2023 and the first question i asked is - what are the costs of the 10k + 20k service ... $225 + $345. much better answer

 

[JFENG]

BMW charged me $225 for 3 oil changes. These include a car wash (ext+int), and an inspection where they highlight needed service (pinion seal has sprung a leak at just over 40k miles!). SA said all diffs start leaking around 40k… yeah, right. My jag diffs leaked from new, and my last 4 BMW’s never had a diff seal fail.

John

 

[rsporsche]

5 years ago, the cost of a front brake service was $1700, on a car with 55k miles, not including brake fluid flush. that's when labor was 150 ... hate to think what it is now. i have the feeling i will be finding out on the wife's macan s before too long. my guess is 2400. i will probably be thinking of doing it myself.

 

[adawil2002]

You guys need to leave the dealer who has significant overhead to cover. Maine only has ONE dealership in Westbrook. There are more Independent BMW, Porsche (Always higher labor rate), Audi (German Buick) shops with much less overhead even when ordering their parts through the dealership warehouses.

With any new BMW if you change the oil every 5,000 to 6,000 miles you'll avoid the pitfall of needing a horrifically expensive service...similar to Porsche Boxsters being sold just before the predetermined big service.

When we lived in Connecticut the were 5 dealerships, I used to walk to BMW of Darien, Greenwich, Ridgefield, Helmuts & Hoffman. We even had a major service at BMW of North Haven.

 

[rsporsche]

we have 3 Porsche dealers in Atlanta ... and Porsche NA is in Atlanta ... so there is no excuse regarding warehouses ... just sticking it to owners. that being said, Porsche still cares for their vintage owners. in fact, if you have the money, Porsche NA will restore your vintage car here in ATL. my BMWs always went to independent shops and always will ... luckily we have some good ones. when i bought my 911 it was certified so i had 4 years of warranty - so it went to the dealer ... the macan is on its 2nd year out of warranty and i am looking for a good independent shop for it.

 

[eriknetherlands]

First world problems!

 

[boonies]

BMW is not alone. I rarely take our Audi Q7 to the dealer now that it is past warranty, but I my regular shop is some distance away so I left it at the dealer for the annual inspection required by Pennsylvania. At the time I asked them to also look at the drive train to understand why it was exhibiting a resonance below 30 MPH.

They replaced the wiper blades (3) at a cost of $150...I was kicking myself for not remembering that they pulled this once before, but I needed the inspection sticker.

Their inspection found that the rumble that I was hearing was rust on the rotors. They charged me for the inspection and diagnosis (about $250 as I recall), and I declined the full replacement of front and rear rotors and pads at a cost of over $3k.

I left it at our shop while we went to Paris over the New Year and the shop replaced the transmission filter and changed the oil, and changed out the front brakes, all using parts that I supplied (they are not a retail shop).

When I had the 2013 BMW it seemed that the expenses for turbo pipes, rear suspension and high pressure fuel pumps were always over $1k per visit.

 

[BarneyT]

When I was 20 in 1976 I purchased a 74 2002 that had been traded in…i go visit my dad shortly after with my “new” car, his first question was how much you pay for your little German car? When I told him, he looked at me like I was crazy and said I had no f-ing respect for money and walked away…gave that original 2002 to my oldest son 10 years ago…