Re: e39 2002, should I keep it?

Hi Floyd,
I appreciate you posting this info. However it seems to show only
parts costs and no labor costs. However your parts costs come to
about the same cost per mile as my total cost. I see a patttern of
about $1k per 10k miles. This cost is rather high. If you add your
labor costs this makes your cost per mile even higher which only
proves my point!

I posted an E39 2002 525i sport with about 65k miles. So far a bit
less than $6k in parts AND labor. This happened in a time between 45k
and 65k ($6k of repairs).

I've owned 2 hondas (accord and crv), a mazda rx7 and ford mustang.
All of these had MUCH less repair/labor costs at 65k than the bmw.
This is what is upsetting me!! I feel like I've been exposed to
fraud. BMW, german engineering, etc, etc - the best in the world. Oh
great !

Then you see the repair bills by 65k miles (which isn't that much) and
the picture starts to come into focus. It's not a pretty site!!
I have friends who are professionals (lawyers, doctors, small business
owners) who also had bmw and mercedes autos and their experience was
similar to mine - unexpectly high repair bills due to parts wearing
out very soon - compared to other cars. Most will never buy a bmw or
mercedes again. Some are die-hard fans and even though they realize
the very high repair bills they stick with it. After a while it seems
like it's more of a head trip (I drive a Mercedes!! or that's MY BMW!)
JD Powers and Consumer reports only give support to our experiences.

http://nhtsa.gov/

You can also look here for more unbiased information/statistics. This
place collects data from all autos sold in the USA. When the problems
get bad enough, they are the ones who prompt the auto makers for
recalls. A technical publication is one step before a recall. An
auto with lots of technical pubs is usually a bad sign.
This information is collected from dealers across the USA and from
independant auto shops. Please verify what I'm saying by reading
their website.


Oskar




On Jul 3, 11:51 am, "Floyd Rogers" <fbloogy...@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Let's try that paste again

"Floyd Rogers" <fbloogy...@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote> "Florida NRA SW" <flr...@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote
I like to stick to facts.

Oh, BTW, here are some *REAL* facts; the total cost of
maintenance for our E34 '91 525i (recently retired after
minor traffic accident :-( ):

Date Mileage Problem  Cost  My labor
Sep-96 52,447 Brake Light Switch recall  $-
Sep-96 52,447 Airbag ring recall  $-
Oct-00 99,699 Radiator cap recall  $-
Oct-00 99,699 Blowing Fuse  $100.15
Jan-92 1,200 1200 Mile service  $37.92
May-92 18,000 Inspection I  $285.81
Sep-92 22,800 Oil change  $24.96
Sep-92 22,800 Minor warranty stuff  $-
Dec-92 24,717 Minor warranty stuff  $-
Nov-93 36,854 Inspection II  $482.27
Nov-93 36,854 Fuel system recall  $-
Nov-93 36,854 Electrical/Ignition recall  $-
Apr-95 38,906 Engine miss/Check engine  $134.71
Jul-95 42,112 DME Recall  $-
Jun-97 59,868 Inspection II  $499.44
Jun-97 60,086 O2 Sensor, Coolant hoses  $305.26
May-98 70,126 Cruise/throttle cable recall  $-
May-98 70,126 Oil change  $62.93
May-98 70,666 Replace 2 coils  $297.40
Jul-99 86,164 Replace 4 coils  $489.94
Nov-99 91,032 Inspection II  $631.90
Nov-99 91,032 Brake Flush, Belts, Muffler  $895.78
Jun-00 96,452 CEL, O2 sensor  $395.05
Aug-01 110,016 Inspection I, fuse, Fan clutch, Brake Flush  $804.87
Sep-01 111,320 Thermostat  $53.88
Dec-01 113,190 Heater core, center muffler  $1,553.48
Feb-99 75,000 Coolant Level Sensor  $37.03  Yes
Jun-02 119,638 Inspection II, brake flush, valve cover gasket  $1,354.30
Mar-03 127,408 Water pump, thermostat, belts  $765.22
Oct-03 134,497 Front shocks, ball joints (labor)  $443.91
Oct-03 134,497 Front shocks, ball joints (parts)  $500.00
Oct-03 134,497 Rear shocks, ball joints (parts)  $250.00  Yes
Aug-04 140,904 Inspection I, Tests, speedo sensor, Fuel Sending Unit
$598.29
Jun-05 147,693 CEL, O2 sensor  $248.86
Dec-05 150,882 Radiator replacement  $656.19
Apr-06 160,830 Inspection II  $657.49
Aug-07 186,161 Inspection II  $762.75
    $13,329.79



(This doesn't include oil changes every 3-5K miles that I did myself.)
As you can see, your conjecture based upon your "facts", that you will
have to spend $5,000-$6,000 per year has no basis in real facts.

FloydR

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