Johnhav430

It sure is. At least in my time, folks usually started out with lesser expensive cars, and had to make a leap to more expensive cars. I know with the 1998 Maxima, I was considering a 2007 G35S sedan / 6 manual. The BMW 335i coupe comparably equipped was $8,100 more. Infiniti is a Nissan, which is equivalent to a Honda.

It's very smug imho for a BMW owner, or potential owner, to not consider Honda or Acura. If they build a better car that can do the same thing, get it. They don't. A X1 owner should absolutely drive a CR-V as it's a better car. You can always wear a mask so nobody recognizes you at the club.

geko29

It's not always smug. When I bought both 3-series, I test drove every available Honda/Acura product with 4 doors, RWD, and a manual transmission. None of them were suitable. Oh wait, that's because there weren't any. The Infiniti G and even the M (despite the auto) did get a serious look though.

Agree with you on the X1 being a positively dismal vehicle for the mid-$40ks that it's usually configured at. But I wouldn't buy a CR-V either. Their oil dilution saga is an absolute trainwreck, and Honda's handling of it has been reprehensible.

Johnhav430

Maybe it came out wrong. What you did, is "exactly" what I think many do, and what I would do myself. Normal. We all work hard for our money and some of us are keeping the vehicles a very long time. So we are open to getting what we think is best--nobody else is going to agree in the same particular order, but it's our money. As mentioned, I compared the G35S sedan to the 335i coupe, both manuals, directly, and the BMW was $8,100 more with the same equipment. I decided to go for it. I never looked back and am glad. It was reliability that I was concerned with. I fully expected the Infiniti to be bulletproof like my 1998 Maxima. The 335i I did not expect to be reliable, based on the same talk as you see here. It's a 12/06 delivery and nothing has broken except the ABS/DSC. The comparable component has broken on 4th gen LS and 4th gen Maximas, it's documented on forums. Good luck DIY'ing nobody services so count on $4k+, unlike the $249 for the BMW.

It would be smug to say I am only going to get a BMW no matter what, I am not open to Honda, Acura, Nissan, Toyota, Lexus, Skoda, Lada...etc.

edit p.s. can you imagine....loaded Telluride, X1, same price. I think most would go Telluride, some may go X1. But it's pretty obvious which is more capable utility-wise...

AJLex19

This is very real where I live. I see folks from all different backgrounds, ages, etc. who live in apartment buildings, low income housing or just simply rent a basement apartment driving BMW, MB, Audi, Lexus, Acura, Infiniti, etc. I think its because of accessibility - an 84 month finance or those crazy lease deals where you put zero down and pay a couple hundred a month give folks the ability to get into them. They normally wouldn't be able to touch a car of that nameplate without these options.

I also see this mentality that "no matter how much "harder" or "smarter" I work, its not going to allow me to catch up to the inflated prices of things around me, therefore there isn't a real reason for me to stress it...let me enjoy what little money/material thing I have today." Folks live for today nowadays.

However, its a risky lifestyle more and more people are willing to take because right now it works...but when it doesn't work anymore, I can't imagine what happens then. When I didn't have a car, I took public transportation. When I did enough to have a car, I still took public transportation because it was the faster/cheaper/smarter way (and still is in my city!).

One interesting thing though, is that folks will make concessions to have that 84 month finance or crazy lease deal, cutting corners in all sorts of ways...there is proof it doesn't work out well with the stats. Greater #'s of people trying to get out of their leases early with the proliferation of lease swap websites in the last decade AND guess how many people are behind on their car payments: https://www.washingtonpost.com/busin...=.6fcd47bb1914

jrmckinley

Here's an alternative point of view. I think owning things is becoming a thing of the past. I don't buy DVD's anymore because I have Netflix and Hulu. I don't buy as much music because I can stream from Spotify, Apple Music, etc. So, in the world of a sharing economy, maybe BMW is trying to cater to the folks who live in areas where they take a taxi or Uber everywhere. If the loan payment is long enough, and therefore the payment is "low enough", someone who spends $400-$500/month in Uber/Lyft/Taxi may just consider pulling the trigger on having a car..

I just saw some interesting data that shows the % of income the typical 25-35 year old who lives in/around a decent sized city spends each month on Uber/Lyft/Taxi. It can be pretty staggering.

SW17LS

Oh look, another opportunity for people who drive old used cars and pay cash to show people who enjoy spending money on nice new cars how much smarter they are than them.

In other words...a day that ends in y

docboy

[QUOTE=LexsCTJill;10505627]I know someone (male professional) who took out a ~$80k loan on a Porsche 911 Turbo. Soon after he filed for divorce, yet he still wanted the Porsche as part of his settlement. Trying to impress his friends or then GF?

SW17LS

Whats wrong with taking an $80k loan out on a 911? They cost much more than $80k. And what does filing for divorce have to do with anything? Why wouldn't he want his car to remain his car after his divorce?

Who cares? If people would prefer to spend their money on a car than a house or whatever...let them do what they want. You do you.

Why are they offering 84 month financing on a BMW? Simple...because they can make a profit doing so.

Toys4RJill

I don’t think ^^* is what this thread is about. Just fascinating that someone needs an 84 mo loan but is doing well enough to need a BMW. Did some more digging, the 84 mo only qualifies for 5 series level cars and lower.

tex2670

This assumes that people are making an informed decision to do so, understanding how it affects their current and future finances. Which I don't think is generally the case. I mean, it's not my money, so, it's true--I don't care. But that doesn't mean that all these people should be making these financial decisions.

LexBob2

Very good point. I'm one of those people who don't mind spending money on a nice new car. I've even had a couple dreaded BMW's lately, my first for the brand.

tex2670

This is just one little fact in the overall financial picture. Maybe he has an investment portfolio giving him a return which is better than the interest rate he is paying on the loan?

And--hell, yeah, I'd want to keep the Porsche too. Now, if you said he had to live in a trailer in order to be able to do that, then that's probably not the right decision. But I don't know anything about that couple's finances to understand whether keeping the Porsche was wise or dumb.

Toys4RJill

If you lived in your parents basement, would you still be driving whatever BMW (I don’t know which one you have). On 84 mo loans?

swajames

No idea why this ended up focusing on BMW....

And not to let details get in the way, but you can't actually finance a BMW over 84 months. At least not from BMWFS.

The max BMWFS term is 6 years, and it is possible to extend the factory warranty to cover the entire period if you want.

Toys4RJill

Because it was on Canadian radio. I guess in the US you can’t. I will look to see what BMW Canada states.