Buying current gen this close to next gen

[CrossyN]

Bit of a pointless post, but one of those things that's at the forefront of my mind.

Does anyone else seriously hesitate to pull the trigger on a new build when we're quite clearly close to a new generation coming out?

Don't get me wrong, it didn't stop me as I signed up to a brand new F83 ZCP 2 weeks ago but I had to seriously talk myself into it. Knowing I'm signing up for a 4 year lease, and in 1 year this could possibly or probably be "the old one" is something that really bothers me knowing there's no chance I'll be able to buy out of it then.

I can't explain why, possibly just snobbery, possibly the prospect of paying monthly payments equal to what a new generation owner will be paying, it makes my brain itch to be paying that much for "the old one" for possibly quite some time.

I know I know, the new one will always soon be the old one, there's always something coming out soon, it ultimately didn't stop me going for it... but christ it was something I had some serious internal conflict with this late into the lifecycle.

Does anyone else have these hesitations at this point? Or is it a case of actually you get some good deals at this point in time, lifes too short, go for it, stop being a snob and be thankful that you can actually afford this. So what you'll have the old one, it'll still be a phenomenal car. Just curious to know what people are thinking at this point and their feelings on ownership as we transition over to the next generation.

[Thescout13]

First, why a four year lease? Would be infinitely more expensive than a 3 year (maybe 4 year made more sense for you but with these worries I don't see why). Plus the M4 still has two more years before EOP. Second by the time the next one is announced/comes out you will be just a little over two, if not 3, years into you lease. I don't see an issue that would make me hesitate especially considering by the time your lease is up incentives will be out for the new model.

[CrossyN]

Possibly just a terminology thing, mine was a PCP deal which is technically not a lease, I'm not sure what you guys call it in the US. You put a deposit upfront, BMW give you a balloon payment based on the residual, you finance the difference. At any point you can sell the car and settle the finance depending on if the car is worth more or less than the outstanding balance. It's much cheaper in terms of monthly payments to go for a 4 year PCP over 3 years.
Anyway, based on usual lifecycle terms I figured the next M4 would be available in roughly 12 months given this generation was introduced in 2014?

[///M4ster Yoda]

Originally Posted by nCrossy1980

Possibly just a terminology thing, mine was a PCP deal which is technically not a lease, I'm not sure what you guys call it in the US. You put a deposit upfront, BMW give you a balloon payment based on the residual, you finance the difference. At any point you can sell the car and settle the finance depending on if the car is worth more or less than the outstanding balance. It's much cheaper in terms of monthly payments to go for a 4 year PCP over 3 years.
Anyway, based on usual lifecycle terms I figured the next M4 would be available in roughly 12 months given this generation was introduced in 2014?

Sounds like BMW select. That's what they call How your "financing" your car in the US. As scout stated. The EOP end of production for the F82/3 ///M4 isn't until summer 2020. That's 2 more years.

The F80 M3 is gone in a few months. The M4 will continue. There won't be a new M4 until 2021-2022

[CrossyN]

Originally Posted by ///M4ster Yoda

Sounds like BMW select. That's what they call How your "financing" your car in the US. As scout stated. The EOP end of production for the F82/3 ///M4 isn't until summer 2020. That's 2 more years.

The F80 M3 is gone in a few months. The M4 will continue. There won't be a new M4 until 2021-2022

Yea I guess, it might be called that over here too but it's more commonly referred to as Personal Contract Purchase (PCP) but each OEM has a name for it, Merc call it 'Agility' I think.

Really, 2021/2022? That would be at least a 7 year lifecycle, I always thought they refreshed the generations on a 5 year cycle. I kinda really hope it is 7 years, that satisfies the snob in me

[///M4ster Yoda]

Originally Posted by nCrossy1980

Yea I guess, it might be called that over here too but it's more commonly referred to as Personal Contract Purchase (PCP) but each OEM has a name for it, Merc call it 'Agility' I think.

Really, 2021/2022? That would be at least a 7 year lifecycle, I always thought they refreshed the generations on a 5 year cycle. I kinda really hope it is 7 years, that satisfies the snob in me

Technically it is a 5 year life cycle for the F82 M4. The first model year was 2015 and it will go till 2020. There will then be some "down" time until the new G80/82 (whatever BMW is gonna call it) M cars come out.

[CrossyN]

Originally Posted by ///M4ster Yoda

Technically it is a 5 year life cycle for the F82 M4. The first model year was 2015 and it will go till 2020. There will then be some "down" time until the new G80/82 (whatever BMW is gonna call it) M cars come out.

Perhaps you guys get it later than us, the F82 M4 went on sale in the UK around March-June 2014, going off the vehicles for sale on UK BMW Approved there's a few there registered June 2014. That's where the hesitation stemmed from, potentially next year we could see the new M4 in the UK depending on the downtime. But, 100% happy with what I've got, haven't even had my run in service yet! This was purely all about the pre-purchase jitters

[IM2C]

This will be my 2nd f80. I'm getting out of a 3 year lease after 2 years and 4 months.

Perfect timing for 2020 lease of g80.

[MicaCeli]

Yes and no.

1. My wife refuses to get a minivan or SUV
2. My wife will only drive stick...no auto's no matter how much faster they are
3. Prefers rwd and a somewhat lighter weight car
4. Has to be 4 door for the kids
5. Power and somewhat luxury

So not knowing what the next gen will bring (awd, no manual?) and how great the F80 has been as an all rounder we are actually happy that we are able to custom order one at the end of production.

We also don't have too much FOMO and don't need the latest and greatest all the time. We will keep this car for a while.

This is also one of the last cars that Albert Biermann had a hand in. Will the next M's stack up? Dunno, but don't want to wait and find out.

[CrossyN]

Originally Posted by MicaCeli

Yes and no.

This is also one of the last cars that Albert Biermann had a hand in. Will the next M's stack up? Dunno, but don't want to wait and find out.

I'm being naive and uneducated here, but that's something that I really wouldn't want to add to the list of things to be concerned about when considering the purchase of a new car! There's already enough to think about without having to worry about the staffing situation at the company who make the car!

I've just Googled him, clearly he's been a key player in the M division for a long time, but you'd hope BMW wouldn't be operating an internal environment whereby one person has such an influence over the product quality...? The old "what if he was hit by a bus" thing...

I'm 100% not qualified to hold a conversation on this so this is all from a point of view of pure ignorance.

[HPIA4v2]

the thinking:
- no first year MY, cause it's buggy
- no second year, cause LCI is next year
- no LCI, cause the ZCP will have more HP on the last MY
- no last MY cause the next gen is around the corner

So when are you going to buy a car?

Buy the car, drive it, the net gen will always more powerfulr cause if not BMW will fire Frank Van Meel; his job is to keep people wanting M-cars MY-after-MY

[dongerkim]

I had the opposite reaction. I panicked to get the last F80’s. When the new one comes around, just make a decision then. I don’t think many people here have regretted not waiting for the newest and greatest.

[SD ///M4]

My wife's buying a 2018 M3 because her 2011 335is Coupe will be out of the extended warranty (7yr/100k) in May and she's had a lot of stuff replaced under warranty, including the engine. Don't want to own it out of warranty. She's ready to move up to an M3 and if we don't pull the trigger on it now, she won't be able to buy an M3 for at least 2-3 years. The next-gen M3 isn't "that close", it's years away. M4's a different story, that'll be around for another couple of years, but we already have an M4.

[///M4ster Yoda]

Originally Posted by SD ///M4

My wife's buying a 2018 M3 because her 2011 335is Coupe will be out of the extended warranty (7yr/100k) in May and she's had a lot of stuff replaced under warranty, including the engine. Don't want to own it out of warranty. She's ready to move up to an M3 and if we don't pull the trigger on it now, she won't be able to buy an M3 for at least 2-3 years. The next-gen M3 isn't "that close", it's years away. M4's a different story, that'll be around for another couple of years, but we already have an M4.

What happened to the engine on the 335is? Just curious as my last car was a 2011 335is DCT

[hinckley]

To get back to the OP - YES, I hate having an "old" car!

When I bought my M4 last year, I really wanted a 4-door. Admittedly, I've never liked the look of the current-gen 3er, but knowing there was going to be a new one in just over a year really sealed the M4 deal for me. Any btw, I'm still worried that later this year, I'll be tempted by the bright and shiny and new G20, even though it's not an M and it doesn't have an MT!

[MKParris]

Originally Posted by hinckley

To get back to the OP - YES, I hate having an "old" car!

When I bought my M4 last year, I really wanted a 4-door. Admittedly, I've never liked the look of the current-gen 3er, but knowing there was going to be a new one in just over a year really sealed the M4 deal for me. Any btw, I'm still worried that later this year, I'll be tempted by the bright and shiny and new G20, even though it's not an M and it doesn't have an MT!

Dude, it's going to be like 3 years until a new m3....

[hinckley]

Originally Posted by MKParris

Dude, it's going to be like 3 years until a new m3....

Dude, it's going to be like 6 months until a new 3....

That'll make any 3 old in my convoluted mind.

[SD ///M4]

Originally Posted by ///M4ster Yoda

What happened to the engine on the 335is? Just curious as my last car was a 2011 335is DCT

Long story short, it spun a main bearing in November. It was at 72,000 miles. A couple of weeks ago we had to take it back because it was leaking oil. Turned out that was a rear main seal, so that got replaced.

Long story: In November I had just taken it to the dealer to have the TPMSs replaced under warranty. I was driving home, pulled into the parking lot of a local grocery store, when the car hesitated, then the iDrive display got a message "Engine Malfunction! Reduced Power". "Engine operating at reduced output. Possible to continue. Drive with Caution. Have the system checked by the nearest BMW center." Then the engine sounded like a marble in a washing machine. I pulled into the nearest parking spot, called the dealer, and they wanted me to flat bed it to them. It was a Friday afternoon, so that wasn't an option. I Lyfted home. Later that night, after my wife got home from work, she drove me to the shopping center and I drove it home, short shifting at about 1200 RPM. AAA picked it up on Saturday morning and we got it to the dealer. On Monday they looked at it and said the engine was going to be replaced. Had it back the following week.

Things that got fixed/replaced on that car under the original warranty: exhaust flapper valve, car reprogrammed because cruise control stopped working over 60 MPH, one turbo, charge pipe.

Things that got fixed/replaced under the extended warranty: water pump, TPMS, engine, and rear main seal. So glad we bought the extended warranty. That's up in May. We love the car. We did our first Euro Delivery in it. It's Le Mans Blue with a 6MT. But we don't want to own it anymore.

We're doing Euro Delivery on an Individual San Marino Blue M3 Comp on July 18, so the 335is just has to make it until the M3 gets here probably in late September.

[///M4ster Yoda]

Originally Posted by SD ///M4

Long story short, it spun a main bearing in November. It was at 72,000 miles. A couple of weeks ago we had to take it back because it was leaking oil. Turned out that was a rear main seal, so that got replaced.

Long story: In November I had just taken it to the dealer to have the TPMSs replaced under warranty. I was driving home, pulled into the parking lot of a local grocery store, when the car hesitated, then the iDrive display got a message "Engine Malfunction! Reduced Power". "Engine operating at reduced output. Possible to continue. Drive with Caution. Have the system checked by the nearest BMW center." Then the engine sounded like a marble in a washing machine. I pulled into the nearest parking spot, called the dealer, and they wanted me to flat bed it to them. It was a Friday afternoon, so that wasn't an option. I Lyfted home. Later that night, after my wife got home from work, she drove me to the shopping center and I drove it home, short shifting at about 1200 RPM. AAA picked it up on Saturday morning and we got it to the dealer. On Monday they looked at it and said the engine was going to be replaced. Had it back the following week.

Things that got fixed/replaced on that car under the original warranty: exhaust flapper valve, car reprogrammed because cruise control stopped working over 60 MPH, one turbo, charge pipe.

Things that got fixed/replaced under the extended warranty: water pump, TPMS, engine, and rear main seal. So glad we bought the extended warranty. That's up in May. We love the car. We did our first Euro Delivery in it. It's Le Mans Blue with a 6MT. But we don't want to own it anymore.

We're doing Euro Delivery on an Individual San Marino Blue M3 Comp on July 18, so the 335is just has to make it until the M3 gets here probably in late September.

Wow. That sucks. I loved my 335is and would still have it but I got too aggressive on a turn one night and totaled it. The N54 was a great engine but it had its problems.

Enjoy your upcoming ED. Wife and I are doing an ED for my father this summer on a 4 series Vert. What can I say the BMW and ED addiction rubs off on everyone