Need Advice-Close to Pulling Trigger on a 2006 X5

[Chris_731]

That's a reasonable price for an '06. The '05 models are in the upper $20k's.

BUT, this is a buyers market for SUV/SAV's right now so you should make a serious offer for $29k and then walk away... they will probably call you back sooner than later.

[x5pdx]

Originally Posted by princetonX5

I've already looked at Ebay....they are a few thousand cheaper than CPO, that's where the difference lies. At the same time, people here will say don't buy a used one that's not CPO. Not only that, all of those were almost 30K miles. I understand that it may take some time, but I would love to see someone truthfully come on here and say the got a 4.4 with 20k (or less) miles CPO'd at under $30K. I know it will take some time.

Tell them you will not spend more than $30k for the car (and stay firm) and call you when they are ready to sell it to you. Then keep looking. BTW, what is your time frame?

[princetonX5]

by January, before the baby arrives....my wife said she's not having her child drive around in our 1996 Camry (commuter lot car that will last forever)!! I couldn't argue with her on that one, plus I love the X5. So can I send a blast email to all the tri-state area dealers, stating my specs and that I don't need the car tomorrow etc. etc....or is that too impersonal?

[x5pdx]

Originally Posted by princetonX5

by January, before the baby arrives....my wife said she's not having her child drive around in our 1996 Camry (commuter lot car that will last forever)!! I couldn't argue with her on that one, plus I love the X5. So can I send a blast email to all the tri-state area dealers, stating my specs and that I don't need the car tomorrow etc. etc....or is that too impersonal?

That is what you should do. Email all the 3state dealers with exactly what you want. Do not offer them a price. Tell them you have a 4 month time frame, but are ready to pull the trigger if the price is right. Within the next four months, I guarantee you one of the dealers will have exactly what you want, and will be desperate enough to want to get rid of it. The 06 x5 I told you about in Oregon was on the lot for 3 months, went from 35499 down to 31999 b4 he sold it.

Since u have time, look into reading up on "car buying tips" I'll try to look some up later.

[sleepless]

Dude... when is the last time you bought a vehicle ???? 1996 ? C'mon this is all basic 101... If you don't know how to play the game, then you might as just go and buy it @ the price the dealers want to sell it to you..... its so simple, .... keep remebering that you are the boss, you ultimately pay for the sales person's salary....enough said...............

Originally Posted by princetonX5

by January, before the baby arrives....my wife said she's not having her child drive around in our 1996 Camry (commuter lot car that will last forever)!! I couldn't argue with her on that one, plus I love the X5. So can I send a blast email to all the tri-state area dealers, stating my specs and that I don't need the car tomorrow etc. etc....or is that too impersonal?

[princetonX5]

I lived in NYC for 8 years and rarely kept the Camry in the city because garage space cost was worth more than the car. It has 80K on it. Probably the smartest $6K I ever spent. The funny thing is this car will survive far longer than my wife would like it to. If I left it unlocked in the Princeton parking lot with the keys in the ignition, it would still be there at the end of the day. This is why I am doing my homework about spending $30-35,000 on an X5. Because I know that I am spending money on something that will probably not be as reliable after year 4 or 5 (so I need good warranty baked in). Plus I just bought a house in Princeton after doing plenty of research, despite the good value, the tax alone is $9K a year and I commute to New York City---so I need to be prudent with my hard earned money...which brings me here. I understand the concept of being firm on price and will let you know how it works out. Just thought all of the BMW gurus had some magical negotiation formula with these cars other than good old fashioned steadfastness.....

[simoncpw]

May be I can share my recent experiences in getting a used X5.

(I won't better mentioning the exact $s as the car market here is totally different)

- I started the search with only the X5 3.0 in mind... because I'd thought the price for 4.4 and 4.6 would be way off the scale for me, and fuel economy would be pretty bad with the all-time-high oil prices... etc. So, I have evaluated a couple 3.0

- then one day I saw one X5 4.4 with similar years / millage, and the price was only slightly more (about 10%) then the 3.0. So I started talking to the dealer seriously

- then again, I saw 2-3 X5 4.6iS with similar years / millage, and the price was also about 10% more than the 4.4, from different dealers. So I started talking to them more seriously as well.

At the end, I ended up getting the one which I would never have thought of getting - the X5 4.6iS. Because:
- yes, it's about 20% more than my original budget, but it has way more options fitted: 16:9 screen, DSP Audio, sports package, body kits, sports seats and steering, 20" Rims.. etc.
- the 4.6iS has a significnally more horses and put it at a completely different class. I won't feel bad at all if I stopped at the traffic lights next to the new or old X5 or even the Cayennes (except the Turbo, of course)
- Dealers were ALWAYS the one calling me first, which lead me to believe E53 (or most large SUVs) are NOT at high demand;
- but of all 3 engines, the 3.0 are still selling faster than the bigger brothers.

So do your maths and look at the options again. For my case, I know for sure I'll be 200% happier in the X5 4.6iS by paying only 20% more.

Just my 2 cents and good luck

[x5pdx]

Originally Posted by sleepless

Dude... when is the last time you bought a vehicle ???? 1996 ? C'mon this is all basic 101... If you don't know how to play the game, then you might as just go and buy it @ the price the dealers want to sell it to you..... its so simple, .... keep remebering that you are the boss, you ultimately pay for the sales person's salary....enough said...............

It's not basic 101. Some people have a lot more experience than others. My family (all 80 incl uncles/cuz) would never go car shopping w/o me. I use to love walking away from the dealership and having them chase after me. I could tell how much we could get off the asking prices. Now it's even better with the internet. Anyway, I got raped on my first car and vowed never to have it happen again. Let's just educate him and help him to get the car he'll love at a price he'll be content with.

[princetonX5]

I can wake up every morning..wondering when I'll get that call from the dealer...and be that much closer to ownership....

[x5pdx]

Here's a start...

http://www.carbuyingtips.com/carintro.html