Is a $1500 warranty worth it for a 2001 330?

[alex05]

Hi, I'm in the process of purchasing a 2001 330IC with 23K (that's right...only 23K!) miles on it...I am purchasing it for $23,000 from a private party and I have the option of tranfering an all inclusive warranty that is good for 70000 miles or til 2011 for an additional $1500. Any thoughts? Is it really worth paying a total of $25,000 for a 2001? It is in perfect condition. Thanks...

[tdgard]

Do your homework on the transfering of that warranty and make sure you can use it. It does not sound like a BMW warranty, but I may be wrong. If you do all work yourself your basically banking on $1500 in parts. But if you tend to take your cars to the shop, that can add up fast. I just had some CPO warranty stuff done yesterday. Cam sensor and thermostat replaced. At dealer rates, that would have been $700. Not under warranty were the control arms. They want $600 to replace. I will just replace the bushings myself for $100.

[alex05]

Thanks, I'm sure that it is from the BMW dealership although I really haven't physically seen the warranty (I'm going over it on Monday). Any specifics I should be aware of covering for a five year old BMW?

[tdgard]

Thanks, I'm sure that it is from the BMW dealership although I really haven't physically seen the warranty (I'm going over it on Monday). Any specifics I should be aware of covering for a five year old BMW?

Well there is the whole rear subframe thing. Your profile says IC--I assume it's a convertible or CIC. There have not been many problems with that on them. But if you have a CI then those are the ones that seem to have a higher rate of failure.

The control arm bushings also seem to wear awful fast--even faster than on the 5s. Some folks are reporting being on their 3rd set in under 40k miles. I'm under 50K and need to do mine. Since I'm the second owner, I'm not sure if they had been done before.

If it is a BMW warranty they should cover all that. The reason mine were not covered is because the warranty ran out exactly one month ago. Global Imports in Atlanta actually did a goodwill on the emissions stuff--no such luck for the control arms.

[alex05]

Thanks for the heads up...the car is a 330 CI so I'll definetly look out for that in the warranty...

[94530inh]

I think its worth it. BMWs are expensive to fix. And Driving is more fun when you know that you wont have to pay for a huge repair if it comes along.

Just make sure its a good warranty that wont fight you for everything.

[Ross]

No!