Car guys- BMW Z3

[Frzninvt]

That is a Porsche 928 a V8 powered beast! []

[Jay481985]

Jay, have you heard anything similar about mini's?

From what I gather minis are pretty reliable but honestly the same mechanics have been there since the launch back in 2002 or so. It might have gone a tweek or two and gotten a bit bigger but the mechanics were made during the good times.

As for BMW's go to various BMW forums and just look at the repair section. My friend had a 745 which was the business car that he used for his dad's kitchen cabinet business (he was wealthy). The fact that the flagship model was lemoned because the transmission failed three times (They gave him a 750 instead of his money which he wanted) It had transmission problems again and was lemoned. He calculated in his 36 month lease that it spent atleast 4 months getting fixed. That is a shame for a $80,000+ car. And if you look at used car sections the bmws 7 series is cheap onces its out of lease (we are talking the car's values depreciated to 1/2 to 1/3 the original car value) if it has warranty though it depreciates around normal. The same thing happens for the 3 series. The 3.5 liter turbo charged engine had so many heat related issue for the first model. There was a car meet about 100 miles away from where I live in the scenic area and the fact that it was october and was maybe 45-50 degrees (first frost happened a week before and I got to use the most expensve handwarmer in the world, a lamborghini muricelago residual heat from the engine bay) and there roles up a brand new 335i coupe (500 miles or so) and about an hour in the car was on the side of the road with every dashboard warning mentioned to no move since it's oil was overheated.

Honestly if anything BMW has its problems just like Toyota, it got to ambitious and released cars before proper testing. They are the number one luxury car maker (since 2005) beating mercedes benz in total units sold. Also Mercedes Benz has their fleet of repair problems as well. Look at different car reliability tests, bmw and mercedes will not be on the top of their list or infact may not be on the list at all.

[Tom Adams]

C'mon Michael....throw caution to the wind and buy the dang car. I think what you are failing to consider is the car's ability to attract women. YES - THAT'S RIGHT.....I SAID WOMEN!!!!!!!

Just imagine yourself with the top down and you rolling with your cardigan sweater expertly tied around your neck and wearing a $300 pair of custom Oakley Switchblades. The chicks will go crazy dude. Awwww nevermind the small matter that your wallet ain't as big as they imagine or hope for, it's the "look" that matters, am I right?? You know I am. And that pesky flawed myth that women can smell a desperate middle-aged man going through some mid-life whatever that buys sports cars is total bunk. Dude - I'm serious.....you have so got to buy that car. It is totally YOU!!! Oh, and let's not forget that owning a BMW will allow you to talk more suavely. Beemer.....c'mon, say it, BEEMER. Yeah......you got it goin' on donchaknow.

Tom

[colterphoto1]

Thanks for the cheering section fellas, but the answer had to be no. The last thing I need around here is another machine to maintain. I just can't let myself do it.

It was fun to think about for an afternoon, but even with all that power I still drive mostly like a grandpa. A Water Company van beat me off the line at a stop light today because I was driving like I normally do. [] FML !

M

[oldtimer]

For that car at that price you made the right decision. However, off the line is not where bmw's shine. The handling in the twisties and the upper range revs and passing torque is where the fun is.

[colterphoto1]

I passed up a good deal on an M3 roadster earlier this year. It was the sensible thing to do but now I'm thinking I should've gone for it. I didn't need it and I didn't want to be the cliche' middle-aged-guy-in-a-little-sports-car but screw that - it's a fun car. Buy it, you're going to buy something like it someday anyway and you'll just be another year older when you do.

Man I was grinning like a fool today tooling around town. Hair totally windblown, driving while the sun was pouring down on me. Did some I465 beltway driving, some old twisty roads that I knew as a teen, in traffic, took a friend to his college class. Then took the car back and said no thanks. I'm sorry already I think. I don't know. I just don't know anymore. Buying toys seems like a good idea at the time but I'm usually remorseful later.

I feel like a mess right now. Wish this hadn't even come along or entered my mind. I'm still such a kid.

M

[dtel]

I'm still such a kid.

Glad to hear that, and I'm not being a smart@ ss.

Keep looking, find what you like even if it's not a Z3, find yourself a FUN car, why not ?

[fini]

Dang. Well, you gotta buy something. How 'bout you me and dtel go in on 3 of these:

[dtel]

If I can get one that says old and slow.

[Coytee]

there were soo many bmws at the shop at the time

I'd bet you that the Mercedes dealers repair shop is 99% full with Mercedes getting fixed....

Just a thought [H]

[]

[colterphoto1]

I hate when I visit Honda West and their bays are full of Accords, man those cars must be junk.

Let's see, my Accord is a manual transmission, faithfully gets 30 mpg, feels safe, holds a LOT of stuff and has a KILLER stereo. I should be happy with that.

[Olorin]

I had one. It was a hoot, but I lost custody of it in the divorce, so I might get another one to keep the Land Cruiser company. The Germans build some really, really good cars, and IMO/E the Z3 is one of them.

If I were you, I would get it, drive it, and have a metric buttload of fun with it. How many more trips around the sun do you figure you have, anyway? Use it, love it, and when you're tired of it, sell it. No regrets. If you never get tired of it, no regrets either.