Deciding on new car, need advice

[feo]

Are there any other folks who have changed from entry level Corollas, Hondas, Opels etc, to a BMW, Lexus or Audi ? Just would like to get some more opinions from owners and to find out their experiences going from a tier 1 car (as I like to call them) to a tier 2 (or 3 -- not sure if a Lexus or BMW is two classes of car above). Thanks again for all the responses, you guys have been most helpful. My next test drive will be on Wednesday with the Lexus. Don't want to test too many models otherwise I'll forget about the driving experiences and then I'll never be able to make up my mind.

I recently upgraded from a 2000 Honda Ballade to a 2010 BMW 120i and the difference is massive. The BMW has 115kW of power and more than enough torque for me. So I was in your exact situation about a month ago and just walked into a dealership, test drove 3 different 1s and settled on the 120i. But yeah, pretty much ANYTHING you buy right now would be a hectic upgrade to your Corolla. I'm partial to BMW now but the Lexus is also very very good.

 

[Hucklebury]

Thanks for your thoughts feo. I actually was reading a thread a few minutes ago comparing BMW to Lexus and man, you will not believe the flame throwing in that thread. Insults galore. But you are right, any new car would be a major upgrade over what I have. I mean, I test drove the 320i 2005 and I've got the 2003 model Corolla and I thought the difference was huge. I can only imagine what the difference would be like with a 2010 model.

As a matter of interest, how much did you pay for your 120i ?

 

[feo]

Thanks for your thoughts feo. I actually was reading a thread a few minutes ago comparing BMW to Lexus and man, you will not believe the flame throwing in that thread. Insults galore. But you are right, any new car would be a major upgrade over what I have. I mean, I test drove the 320i 2005 and I've got the 2003 model Corolla and I thought the difference was huge. I can only imagine what the difference would be like with a 2010 model.

As a matter of interest, how much did you pay for your 120i ?

What I ended up paying in the end was R265k which isn't that bad if you think about it. It's a 2010 model with sunroof, leather, the exact colour I wanted (Space Grey), chrome trim on the inside, 17" rims and it was sold to me as a demo even though it only had 15kms on the clock. So I get the full service plan too because it was registered a week before I looked at it. I got a massive discount on it too and traded my Ballade in for R40k so all in all, I'm a very happy guy.

The commute to work is so much better, plus it's pure luxury and the slogan for BMW ain't "sheer driving pleasure" for nothing.

It'll take something really special for me to move out of the BMW family now.

 

[JK8]

Congrats Feo. Is it the hatch or the coupe?

 

[Hucklebury]

Feo, what are your monthly installments on the car ? I'm trying to keep them down to below R3000 inc insurance over 48 months. According to a few dealers I would get around R50000 for my car (without AC...but with cd radio, new tires...). Is insurance expensive on the BMW ? Sorry, I have no idea how much that is going to cost.

 

[feo]

Congrats Feo. Is it the hatch or the coupe?

Coupe was outta my price range although I would've loved to get one so I had to go for the hatch. I'm a hatch man in any case..

Feo, what are your monthly installments on the car ? I'm trying to keep them down to below R3000 inc insurance over 48 months. According to a few dealers I would get around R50000 for my car (without AC...but with cd radio, new tires...). Is insurance expensive on the BMW ? Sorry, I have no idea how much that is going to cost.

Well, I put down a heavy deposit on the car and with the trade-in and the discount, I'm only gonna be paying R2k per month (I also get preferential rates since I work at a bank). Insurance is a bit heavy but nothing that a bit of shopping around won't fix. Insurance will be minimum R1k depending on age, gender and where the car is parked at night along with other factors.

When getting rid of your current car, I'd suggest trying to sell it privately and getting closer to retail value, if that fails then go trade it in.

 

[Hucklebury]

Insurance is a bit heavy but nothing that a bit of shopping around won't fix. Insurance will be minimum R1k depending on age, gender and where the car is parked at night along with other factors.

Wow ! R1000 for insurance, I definitely can't afford that. I'm only paying R300 for insurance on my Corolla. My brother said that insurance on a BMW 320i can go as low as R500. But R1k is a bit too much for me, especially with car repayments among other things.

 

[feo]

Wow ! R1000 for insurance, I definitely can't afford that. I'm only paying R300 for insurance on my Corolla. My brother said that insurance on a BMW 320i can go as low as R500. But R1k is a bit too much for me, especially with car repayments among other things.

Firstly, how old are you?

If you're under 25, sites like Hippo will simply flat out refuse to quote you on insurance. A few other insurance companies also said that because I'm under 25 and my car is considered a "high performance" vehicle they can't provide insurance to me.

R500 on a 320i?! What year car is it?

 

[Hucklebury]

I'm 27 years old. The dealer I met told me that insurance on the 320i 2005 model would cost around R500. I would imagine that insurance would be similar on a 2006 Lexus. I don't want to save another 6-8 months because my repayments are too high because of damn insurance.

 

[feo]

Sorry I haven't looked through this thread properly, just skimmed, but what's your budget?

 

[Fazda]

I'm 27 years old. The dealer I met told me that insurance on the 320i 2005 model would cost around R500. I would imagine that insurance would be similar on a 2006 Lexus. I don't want to save another 6-8 months because my repayments are too high because of damn insurance.

Please don't make the mistake of taking a salesman's word for what you will pay for insurance. Hippo will give you some ballpark figures if you want to get an idea, then phone Outsurance and haggle. I am paying 725 for my Subaru Outback with a retail value of 200 k. That price is subject to a whole lot of things as well, like locked and alarmed garage, locked parking during the day when I'm not working, and so on...I also live in a dorp down the coast which lowers things a bit...500 for a BMW, unless it's a bloody old one is just not going to happen.

 

[Pyro]

I'm 27 years old. The dealer I met told me that insurance on the 320i 2005 model would cost around R500. I would imagine that insurance would be similar on a 2006 Lexus. I don't want to save another 6-8 months because my repayments are too high because of damn insurance.

Insurance differs quite a bit, but at 27 I'm paying more than R600 insurance, and my car is worth less than R100k.

The BMW might have quite a bit of power, but it's also quite heavy, so it's definitely not a high-performance car.

My main concern would be maintaining the car. The basic service costs probably won't be much higher than your Toyota, but if anything breaks you could end up crying. You also have some items that would definitely be more expensive - You're not going to be riding on the same economic 14" your Corolla has, and all that extra torque can chew up tyres faster if you use it often.

I don't know what your driving habits are like, but you could be getting significantly more traffic fines as well. A few extra km/h is quite easy with a torquey motor if you're sitting in a well insulated car.

Also - more power does not get you out of tight situations. More power gets you into tight situations faster.

 

[Hucklebury]

I assume I'm getting lower rates because my current car is under my dads name. I've paid the car off 2 years ago but I'm only paying R300 for insurance. If I organize insurance through my dad I think it would be cheaper otherwise. He is 62.

Concerning budget, well I suppose R165000 would be maximum. If I try to sell my Corolla on Gumtree I might be able to get R60k for it. It's in excellent condition, with 132000 km, no AC but radio and cd with new tires.

 

[Almaster78]

Dont buy the 320. I used to drive the 323 2008 model. Piece of crap. The best thing I did was write it off. Tyres came in at around 4k each. I replaced a set at 15K, Bridgestone Potenza

 

[Palimino]

You are making a mistake. The deterioration of the roads will require something with greater ground clearance and speed is bad on pot-holed roads and you may hit a goat or a cow or something and be subjected to the mercies of the SA health service. May I suggest a bakkie? But image is important. A cool and sophisticated image to project is similar to a member of the NRA. The vehicle of preference is usually a 1930-ish type bakkie, as often shown in American depression type movies. It is terminally rusty and usually belongs to a hillbilly family. The drivers of these vehicles usually have bare feet, bib overalls (with one bib strap broken and the legs turned-up) and rifle racks in the back window. They wear battered straw hats and are often depicted sucking on a blade of grass. Frequently, there is a hound dawg named “Blue” in the load bin of the vehicle.

This would require a kit (to go on a bakkie chassis) and some glass work. It would look like shlt so not be a target for thieves. But it would have excellent tyres, brakes and other mod-cons. And a really MEAN engine.

 

[Sly21C]

You are making a mistake. The deterioration of the roads will require something with greater ground clearance and speed is bad on pot-holed roads and you may hit a goat or a cow or something and be subjected to the mercies of the SA health service. May I suggest a bakkie? But image is important.

That's one of the reasons why I'm planning to buy a Ford Figo, it has a reported ground clearance of 168mm.

 

[Fazda]

With me doing a pretty high mileage each month, I am finding that it is not ground clearance that is the issue with potholes, but the ability to come into contact with a pothole without destroying the suspension.

Any small car, whether it's a Figo with a ground clearance of 168mm or not, is going to get hammered by pot holes, end of story. A 4x4 will come short on a pot hole if the hole is the right size - the only way around pot holes is to avoid them if you can...if you do hit one, hopefully you are in a car with high profile tyres otherwise you can kiss your rims goodbye for a start.

 

[the graduate]

here's the deal.......ballpark figure......R1k for every R40k you finance through some finance house.....depending on interest rate and months....but the R1k per R40 000 is with 10% deposit, 54 months, maybe prime+2 or +3 and no residual....

The guy with the R265k 120i paying less than R2k/month most likely gave like R200k deposit....but I don't believe a "heafty deposit and low interest rate" will get you at less that R2k/month on a R265k car....normal installments would have been around R6500/R6800....at that price...

insurance.....hmm.....BMW 320i.....27 year old....R1k+ bro....R1k+.....

If you heart is with the 320i BMW, then buy it......who really cares, honestly,.....buy what your heart wants.....the money will follow in some way.....as long as you feel warm and happy walking to your car, getting in, driving off, etc., then that is all that matters.....buy the car for yourself, enjoy it and don't care about a possible rouge gearbox or faulty ECU unit or resale value.....sure, these things are expensive and values drop, but since the 1990s, the reliability in cars (except Land Rover) is much, much better....yes, there are some issues with cars, but these are either from abuse, or a fault that had its origins at the factory....built by some hungover dude....resale value is also a farce....seriously....a car will drain your pocket....but that is why you earn a salary....you'll grow out of that phase, but while you are there, enjoy it bru.....not all of us want to buy 1989 Hondas and drive those rust beds and have 5 properties (as investments)....

 

[Hucklebury]

Hi guys,

Drove the IS250 and man, what a drive. Smooth, smooth and smooth. That's all I can say. The steering feels a little lighter compared to the BMW but the ride quality is MUCH better. Also, it feels like a faster car. Overtaking is easier in the IS250 compared to the 320i but the engine sounds are subdued in the IS250 so it often feels like nothing is happening but something sure is happening.

So I'm very happy with the looks, comfort and drive. I just have to work out some sums now. : )

The Graduate,

If my dad handled insurance, then I'm sure I'll be paying considerably less than R1000 for insurance. He is 60+ years old and at the moment he is covering insurance on my Corolla, which is like R300. If I had to insure the car myself I'm sure it would cost a lot more than R300.

 

[MFour]

If my dad handled insurance, then I'm sure I'll be paying considerably less than R1000 for insurance. He is 60+ years old and at the moment he is covering insurance on my Corolla, which is like R300. If I had to insure the car myself I'm sure it would cost a lot more than R300.

Don't be too sure of that, you cannot compare a Carolla to a Lexus. Even on your dad's insurance you might well be looking at R750 / month, if not more.