Bang for your buck and a little E-Bay shopping you could get a 03 BMW 540I for the same price as a new G35 with all taxes in, so the question is what are the pro's and con's as the new car will take a hit in the depreciation and the 540 has already taken a sizeable hit. I live in Canada so I would ship the bmw from the southern states but in the case of the G35 I would buy it here. I realize some people may get a little up set but it is an interesting question as both vechiles are great sedans.

 

This might be a better question for the guys over at http://bimmer.roadfly.org/bmw/forums/e39/.

I'm not sure what you're getting at regarding depreciation. Is it that you will want to sell the car shortly after buying it? In which case the 540 might be a better choice. But from what I've read regarding BMW's, the joy of ownership ends shortly after the warranty and free maintenance agreements run out. Unless you have very deep pockets, I'd avoid the 03 540i.

 

CJ's right on the money 'bout the 540 Beemer. Made the Consumer's Report hate list 3 years running.

 

I second you warranty comment. My lease end date is coming up on my Audi (July 05) and I have been out warranty since February 05. I dont drive it cause of any expensive repairs. For fun, I looked into an extended warranty and NO ONE will offer a plan. My wife drives a 2003 325 Wagon and once the warranty expires, the car will go as well.

 

In 98 I faced a similar situation 95 540 6 spd vs new 98 Audi A4. Wanted a 540 in the worst way so I bought the 95 with 19K miles on it for 35K. Had fair amount of in warranty work done on it, but when the car hit 70 K and was out of warranty, I had a ton of expensive stuff that needed replacement and that was the end of my love affair with the 540. From what I have read the 03s aren't much better in the reliability dept. I would always go for a new car vs a used car as there is just something special about a new car plus the fact that you have a couple of yrs more warranty left.

Japanese cars have an excellent track record for reliability while German cars don't.

 

I wouldn't necessarily be afraid of the 540 because of build quality. I think the early nikasil cars and 7 Series are a lot more risky. BUT the costs on owning any car that was 50K new are going to be much higher than a 30K car, and European cars more so than Japanese. Like Jag. Audi, and MB they absolutely soak you on most replacement parts.Twice as much for the car, twice as much for the parts. The 03 5 series is nice looking but the body has been around since 97. You would be buying something that looks old the first day you own it. 2 years left on th powertrain warranty vs 6. The 6 cylinder 5 Series has has a better reputation than the 8 except for performance and you would be able to a cleaner 6 than an 8 for the same money. As far as depreciation the Bimmer will still lose as much value per year as the G. If that is your biggest consideration buy the 04 G35. I don'y know if I would buy a mass produced car off of E Bay. Too many people use it for anonymously dumping problems. If you want a Lotus or Ferrari maybe but the Autotrader network will give you a thousand 540s to choose from. Both nice cars though.