130i... can I justify it?
Discussion
My opinion:
Buy a *fun* car that doesn't cost too much.
Spend a few quid servicing it and fitting good tyres etc. Drive it, with mucho gusto, and take it to places where it might get dirty. Don't worry if you scrape it or dent it.
Image is irrelevant. Most people are not impressed by cars, unless they are new and full of gizmos.
Buy a *fun* car that doesn't cost too much.
Spend a few quid servicing it and fitting good tyres etc. Drive it, with mucho gusto, and take it to places where it might get dirty. Don't worry if you scrape it or dent it.
Image is irrelevant. Most people are not impressed by cars, unless they are new and full of gizmos.
glazbagun said:
I'd also budget for something going wrong. I bought my Golf GTI as my first car in seven years after going to uni and moving to London. Did the maths and on paper it was all perfect. Paid insurance (£1500 because of no ncb and area!), put aside a bit for next years insurance each month, etc...
Then the car failed it's MOT on lower suspension bushes just as my tennancy came to an end- I had to find a deposit and I'd just dropped a couple of hundred on tyres. Didn't quite kill me but was definitely squeaky bum time for a bit. I guess I'm saying don't leave yourself financially exposed.
Re:finance. I got a 0% purchases c/card, racked up all my normal shopping on that and kept my cash in the bank. I've just transferred the remainder to a new 0% balance transfer card (which I cut up when it arrived) for a couple of years for a £90 fee. If you must go into debt, credit cards are looking much cheaper than loans right now!
When I look at changing cars (which is almost the fun bit) now I work out the cost of 10'000 miles petrol, depreciation, servicing, brake pads/discs, tax, finance, 3 tyres, insurance and everything else I can think of over 12 months which gives me a depressingly large number I can then deal with.
If you have a shed and change the brakes/oil/whatever yourself people will view it as a bonus. If you do the same to your 130i with its now empty logbook because you couldn't stretch to dealer servicing it'll look quite different.
This is a very good point which is my biggest fear, really wouldn't want to end up in the situation where everything starts costing a lot more than expected. It seems very difficult to budget for things going wrong...Then the car failed it's MOT on lower suspension bushes just as my tennancy came to an end- I had to find a deposit and I'd just dropped a couple of hundred on tyres. Didn't quite kill me but was definitely squeaky bum time for a bit. I guess I'm saying don't leave yourself financially exposed.
Re:finance. I got a 0% purchases c/card, racked up all my normal shopping on that and kept my cash in the bank. I've just transferred the remainder to a new 0% balance transfer card (which I cut up when it arrived) for a couple of years for a £90 fee. If you must go into debt, credit cards are looking much cheaper than loans right now!
When I look at changing cars (which is almost the fun bit) now I work out the cost of 10'000 miles petrol, depreciation, servicing, brake pads/discs, tax, finance, 3 tyres, insurance and everything else I can think of over 12 months which gives me a depressingly large number I can then deal with.
If you have a shed and change the brakes/oil/whatever yourself people will view it as a bonus. If you do the same to your 130i with its now empty logbook because you couldn't stretch to dealer servicing it'll look quite different.
Edited by glazbagun on Sunday 1st March 12:14
Vaud said:
Welshbeef said:
Saving up a deposit to buy a house --- isn't the average deposit now £78k. Given the remainder it could be 12 years assume zero other spend .... Hmm
Given the average house price is £190k, I doubt that...It might be £78k in central London.
http://m.bbc.co.uk/news/business-26239609
MC Bodge said:
My opinion:
Buy a *fun* car that doesn't cost too much.
Spend a few quid servicing it and fitting good tyres etc. Drive it, with mucho gusto, and take it to places where it might get dirty. Don't worry if you scrape it or dent it.
Image is irrelevant. Most people are not impressed by cars, unless they are new and full of gizmos.
Just out of curiosity, what "fun" cars would you suggest?Buy a *fun* car that doesn't cost too much.
Spend a few quid servicing it and fitting good tyres etc. Drive it, with mucho gusto, and take it to places where it might get dirty. Don't worry if you scrape it or dent it.
Image is irrelevant. Most people are not impressed by cars, unless they are new and full of gizmos.
Swanny71 said:
My opinion:
Go for the 130i if you possibly can, brilliant little cars and in my opinion you can't do much better for a budget of approx £7k. The only thing that would/could replace mine is an M135i but that's £15k on top....
Funnily enough this is my plan exactly, unless I'd want to just go for something else completely different to switch it up.Go for the 130i if you possibly can, brilliant little cars and in my opinion you can't do much better for a budget of approx £7k. The only thing that would/could replace mine is an M135i but that's £15k on top....
SuperHangOn said:
My opinion:
Find nice old 328i for circa £1500
I did actually look at something similar, an e46 330i for around £2kish, and even though they are a lot cheaper to purchase they are actually more expensive to run year on year due to them being worse on fuel that the 130i, I think the insurance was more too IIRC. Find nice old 328i for circa £1500
Welshbeef said:
Happy to be corrected. Doesn't make a 30% first time buying deposit 78k though. 5-10% deposit + stamp duty, so 35k max if buying the average house price.
And we are both wrong...
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/young-first-tim...
Average first time buyer is £218k
OP you are in the exact position i was when i was 23 and finished uni. I also did a finance degree and am always calculating and using spreadsheets to try quantify the costs. The 130i ticked most boxes as they are pretty dam reliable, fun, rare, one of the last big engined n/a hot hatches and imo looks pretty nice when cleaned up.
I calculated and calculated and checked out loads of other cars, but in the end i just wanted a fun, great sounding and fast car so went for the 130i. Financed it over 3 years so that i could manage the cost every month without it attecting other parts of my life.
In other words, just get it bought, it will be everything you think it will be! Oh, and they hold their value incredibly well which massively appealed to me, i bought for £7k in dec 2013 and reckon its worth about 6.5 now even after 10k miles on top.
BUT saying all that, i wish i'd just gone for the z4 roadster i always wanted while i had the chance, no kids etc. if your wanting ti be sensible just get a £4k z4 3.0... Best of both worlds.
I calculated and calculated and checked out loads of other cars, but in the end i just wanted a fun, great sounding and fast car so went for the 130i. Financed it over 3 years so that i could manage the cost every month without it attecting other parts of my life.
In other words, just get it bought, it will be everything you think it will be! Oh, and they hold their value incredibly well which massively appealed to me, i bought for £7k in dec 2013 and reckon its worth about 6.5 now even after 10k miles on top.
BUT saying all that, i wish i'd just gone for the z4 roadster i always wanted while i had the chance, no kids etc. if your wanting ti be sensible just get a £4k z4 3.0... Best of both worlds.
anon12 said:
...what fun car...?
It depends what you are after. A 2 seater, a hot hatch, coupe, whatever.
An older 325 or 328 is a good idea.
Personally, a "detailed" show car isn't what I'm into.
Remember: You don't need the best car in the world. What you do with it is more important than the actual car.
Buy a manual 325ti for £2-3k, marmite looks and a n/a straight 6 in a small hatchback so very similar to a 130i in that respect. Not as good, but better than the diesel seat option!
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Bmw-325-Ti-Sport-/151597...
Something like that one looks reasonable.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Bmw-325-Ti-Sport-/151597...
Something like that one looks reasonable.
anon12 said:
I did actually look at something similar, an e46 330i for around £2kish, and even though they are a lot cheaper to purchase they are actually more expensive to run year on year due to them being worse on fuel that the 130i, I think the insurance was more too IIRC.
Fuel and insurance probably won't push the total costs higher though. Buy a car that you won't mind jumpimg a humpback bridge in or sliding about on a dirty track.
anon12 said:
SuperHangOn said:
My opinion:
Find nice old 328i for circa £1500
I did actually look at something similar, an e46 330i for around £2kish, and even though they are a lot cheaper to purchase they are actually more expensive to run year on year due to them being worse on fuel that the 130i, I think the insurance was more too IIRC. Find nice old 328i for circa £1500
My ownership average in my E46 328i is 30.2mpg, which is a mix of town, B-road hooning and long runs. At a motorway cruise it does 36mpg. To be honest, I've heard no better from the 130i, and if you're really going to cite £100 more insurance as a reason not to buy a £2k car instead of a £7k one, you need your head read
I didn't expect to keep my E46 anywhere near as long as I have, nearly three years now, because I really can't think of a replacement without spending serious money. It has an all-round ability that few cars this side of £10k seem able to match.
glazbagun said:
279 said:
I doubt you're going to tell your grand kids that 40 years ago you owned a BMW hatchback.
In 40 years time admitting that you drove a 3.0 petrol for fun will be like casually mentioning you're an ex-Nazi and used to go out on the town with Gary Glitter in the 70's Just to chime in... take the plunge! BMW big sixes are always special and no turbos make for something that feels "proper". I went for an E92 330i and the engine is a cracker. It's the N53 but I've been out in an N52 330i and the 130i would be worth it for the sound alone! Life is too short and you'll kick yourself if you wait and struggle to find the right one / get bitten by depreciation. Although your 130i might have problems *anything* you buy might. Better to put your money into something you love.
279 said:
Get something cheap and cheerful for a year or two whilst you're setting yourself up and look to by something properly nice once you have a footing in the World. If you're literally just finishing Uni and starting a career you will have no idea how things may pan out with the job, house, relationships, etc.
Anyway, I don't really think a 130i is really special enough to seriously be justifying man maths and stretching finances. I doubt you're going to tell your grand kids that 40 years ago you owned a BMW hatchback.
Well I looked at your car history and sorry, but a 130i is a bit more special than any Toyota in the last decade (GT86 excepted, but it is short of power).Anyway, I don't really think a 130i is really special enough to seriously be justifying man maths and stretching finances. I doubt you're going to tell your grand kids that 40 years ago you owned a BMW hatchback.
I would rather tell my grand kids I owned a RWD hatch with a N/A 3 litre straight6 than have to admit to having bought Japanese white goods.
We only get one go, there is no action replay!
So OP if it is what you want JUST GO FOR IT!
I have the N52 engine in my Z4Coupe and it is terrific. Service intervals seem to be 2 years or 16,000 miles and no cam-belt so the servicing is not too major other than consumables like brakes and tyres.
As someone said earlier if you want to spend less then a 325ti Compact is the natural predecessor of the 130i - still RWD with a N/A straight 6, but "only" 192 bhp.
I bought my Z4 last June and had a cheap 1996 Mazda 323 as a daily driver - after 6 months I got a 325ti to replace it because I always seemed to reach for the Z4 key when I had the Mazda (bit too Japanese white goods) whereas the 325ti is still a nice place to be and has the right soundtrack and some performance!
Now I am the wrong side of 50 it is good to look back on buying a Rover V8 when I was 20 even if the upper suspension mount at the rear did pull out of the inner wing, the inner sills were rotten, etc.
You tend to regret things you didn't do not what you did.
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