[Bimmer84]

I didn't know exactly how to title this, but I'll try to explain....

I am deployed right now, 7 months in to my 12 month deployment.. so I have a lot of "sitting around and thinking about stuff" time. Two months before I left, I bought my 2010 335i, and have less than 7k on it right now. My wife maintains it once or twice a week, taking it to work and cleaning it and stuff. In the year, she will MAYBE put on 1-2k miles.

Should I be happy that when I get back after this year that my car will still have incredibly low miles, or should I be worried about the fact that I have one year less of warranty now, and haven't even driven it enough to worry about possible issues that may arise in its 50k mileage warranty span.

On one side, it will help resale value if I try to get rid of it before the warranty is up and get something else, but if I want to keep it, should I try and put up a lot of miles when I get back and start weeding out the possibly issues that may arise?

It has already had the HPFP replaced and software reprogrammed. I wasn't having issues, but my dealership called my wife and decided to do a just in case replacement. I found out about it AFTER it had already been completed. Thanks for the help ahead of time.

[mofbb]

Low mileage is always a good thing to have.
Lower = Newer = Cleaner = Less problem
I think you worry too much man .

[M340i Pride]

should you want to sell it, keep it low mileged. does your wife have other car? try to put as least miles as possible. drive it once or twice a week just to have fluids flowing.

[John 070]

No need to worry, seriously. The first year I had my car, it sat 3-4 wks at a time. It never failed to start on the first try (that happened year 3 LOL). Yes, I have heard the saying that BMWs need to be driven, but I honestly don't think low mileage hurts. Because mine was low I extended it to 7/100, so I have the ability to now drive it to my heart's content (or so I think)....

[JunkStory]

As long as you park it inside a garage most of the time, your car will remain pretty new. IMO it's the extreme temperatures and weather of the outdoors that corrode a car.

[hunt55]

Cars are meant to be driven and even more so with performance cars need to be driven! Just think about it if the fluids sit and do not circulate, belts sit, tires sit etc. and the engine is not run for long periods of time all kinds issues develop.

[John 070]

Originally Posted by hunt55

Just think about it if the fluids sit and do not circulate, belts sit, tires sit etc. and the engine is not run for long periods of time all kinds issues develop.

What are the issues that develop?

[aznevoviii]

my porsche sits in garage most of time with battery charger I didnt have any problem at all when I drive once a while. Yours should be fine too!!

[Kolyan2k]

^ you have those 4 cars !.... Damn....

I would feel like its a waste of money not to drive the car.... warranty going to waste too. I don't work now and stay home most of the time, on weekends I try to put the most miles I can on my car......

[pruettfan]

First and foremost thanks for your service to our country. Low miles are pretty much always a good thing. Just make sure your wife drives long enough trips to get the car up to temp etc. Really short infrequent trips are not the best for any car. Perhaps have her drive it a little more than you have. Of course for resale and in terms of warranty low miles are a good thing.

[username604]

Originally Posted by John 070

What are the issues that develop?

Just like he said, he's just thinking about it; no factual proof.
I don't see anything wrong with a fluid "just sitting there" or a belt, or tires for that matter (unless they're under-inflated, which could cause a flat spot).

[Legion5]

Originally Posted by Bimmer84

I didn't know exactly how to title this, but I'll try to explain....

I am deployed right now, 7 months in to my 12 month deployment.. so I have a lot of "sitting around and thinking about stuff" time. Two months before I left, I bought my 2010 335i, and have less than 7k on it right now. My wife maintains it once or twice a week, taking it to work and cleaning it and stuff. In the year, she will MAYBE put on 1-2k miles.

Should I be happy that when I get back after this year that my car will still have incredibly low miles, or should I be worried about the fact that I have one year less of warranty now, and haven't even driven it enough to worry about possible issues that may arise in its 50k mileage warranty span.

On one side, it will help resale value if I try to get rid of it before the warranty is up and get something else, but if I want to keep it, should I try and put up a lot of miles when I get back and start weeding out the possibly issues that may arise?

It has already had the HPFP replaced and software reprogrammed. I wasn't having issues, but my dealership called my wife and decided to do a just in case replacement. I found out about it AFTER it had already been completed. Thanks for the help ahead of time.

BMW 7 year Extended warranty can be had for a little over $2000 with some negotiating. These cars are very expensive to fix and even the manager of the service department at my dealer says he would never own a BMW out of warranty, even with his massive discounts on parts and labor.

I'm a financial analyst and looking at it from any reasonable perspective it makes sense just to buy the extended warranty. My car has an extended warranty and needed about $5000 of work for just a few minor things.

So drop the $2000+ on the warranty and forget about any problems for 3 more years.

[m@rco]

No need to worry about driving your car often or not. Sitting still for 4 or 6 weeks at the time is no issue at all. Especially if it is for one year only. "BMWs need to be driven", is based on weak arguments - if you ask me. But that's the view of a mechanical engineer with great interest in and some knowledge about cars...

It is more important that you always "take it easy on the gas" when you drive the car after it has been sitting for a while. Do not just crank it and let it run in the drive way! Start driving immediately and make sure that the engine reaches normal operating temperature before you "store" it again. That requires a trip of at least 10 miles. If you wish, you can push the car to it's limits then. Not earlier because your oil temperature of engine and gearbox will not be up to normal operating temperatures! If you believe that the battery is getting weaker, drive about 30 minutes to get it fully charged again.

From a financial point of view: if you intend to keep your car for a while after your return, keep it for now. If you plan to sell it, you might as well sell it now.

Personally, I don't believe in the extended warrantee. I did some calculations and didn't think it was worth it. I now have ~60k miles and, so far, spent $120 on an engine light issue (corrosion on a cable resulted in bad connection and an error message). Remember that BMW would only offer this service if they would not loose any money on it (read: would make a profit). Guess who is paying for that profit?

[cotmfk]

Thanks for your service.

I wouldn't worry about it too much. Most of the issues that will develop should happen while you are under warranty. For the ones that develop when you are finished with warranty, get upgraded aftermarket parts for!

[Bimmer84]

Thanks for the advice so far guys. Still undecided what I will do for now. I may trade it in for something else when I get back. I didn't get a lot of drive time on it, but I like the new Z4 35is a lot and may leave that open as a possibility.

Also, yes, my wife has another car, we have a 2010 Audi Q5 Prestige with S Line. Pretty nice SUV, sold my 2006 X3 to buy it and haven't had any regrets yet.