[champignon]

Five percent off of the price of an M2 is going to be less than $3000 in most cases. I have read travelogues of a number of BMW owners who have done E.D. and for whom this was a "trip of a lifetime." I have a friend who is a fellow 1M owner in San Diego who was extremely positive about his E.D. experience and I have discussed it in person with him.

All of this having been said, this maneuver is not going to save you any money in the end unless you were intending to go to this part of Europe (the region surrounding Munich) anyway, and the E.D. of your car just sealed the deal. In addition, if you read about the transport time involved on various threads here, you will read that it can take up to 3 months (14 weeks in one case I read here recently) to get your car back after you drop it off at a European drop off point before boarding your flight back. Transit time will obviously be longer for Western US destinations than Eastern ones. I have also read of people having issues with damage, albeit minor, to the car in shipping, and having some difficulty in getting it addressed when the car arrives in the USA.

Other things to consider are the break-in period, which may limit the amount of fun you might have with the car on your trip, and having to spend time worrying about where you are going to park the car as you travel around Europe, since it is more likely to be a target than your basic rental car shitwagen would be.

I travel in France a couple of times a year and were I to do E.D., not only would it add enough additional expense to the trip that the savings would be minimal, but also I would worry about where I would end up parking it in some locations. Depending on where you travel in Europe, parking can be a real issue and is this something your really want to worry about on your vacation, e.g. what is going to happen to that brand new car you just bought?

Not trying to dissuade anyone from doing this, but the amount of money involved is not huge when it comes to the savings, and negative factors would definitely be worth considering before you start counting all the money you will be saving with this delivery option.

[bobert]

Originally Posted by champignon

Five percent off of the price of an M2 is going to be less than $3000 in most cases. I have read travelogues of a number of BMW owners who have done E.D. and for whom this was a "trip of a lifetime." I have a friend who is a fellow 1M owner in San Diego who was extremely positive about his E.D. experience and I have discussed it in person with him.

All of this having been said, this maneuver is not going to save you any money in the end unless you were intending to go to this part of Europe (the region surrounding Munich) anyway, and the E.D. of your car just sealed the deal. In addition, if you read about the transport time involved on various threads here, you will read that it can take up to 3 months (14 weeks in one case I read here recently) to get your car back after you drop it off at a European drop off point before boarding your flight back. Transit time will obviously be longer for Western US destinations than Eastern ones. I have also read of people having issues with damage, albeit minor, to the car in shipping, and having some difficulty in getting it addressed when the car arrives in the USA.

Other things to consider are the break-in period, which may limit the amount of fun you might have with the car on your trip, and having to spend time worrying about where you are going to park the car as you travel around Europe, since it is more likely to be a target than your basic rental car shitwagen would be.

I travel in France a couple of times a year and were I to do E.D., not only would it add enough additional expense to the trip that the savings would be minimal, but also I would worry about where I would end up parking it in some locations. Depending on where you travel in Europe, parking can be a real issue and is this something your really want to worry about on your vacation, e.g. what is going to happen to that brand new car you just bought?

Not trying to dissuade anyone from doing this, but the amount of money involved is not huge when it comes to the savings, and negative factors would definitely be worth considering before you start counting all the money you will be saving with this delivery option.

True - it's less than $3k for sure, as it's only 5% off the base price, which made the savings $2675 (before the price went up two weeks ago). Back when the discount was still 7% a few years ago, they used to say that it 'just might pay for your trip', but clearly that's unlikely these days (tho it did for me, even if mostly cz we got stuck in France for the last 3 days).

At any rate, that's not really the point of doing ED. There's definitely risks involved so it's not for everyone but for me it was worth it. It took me 7 weeks to get my car back on the east coast, which was a week or two longer than I expected but still within their safe estimate of 6-8 weeks.

I've heard the same as far as minor damage in transit - it can happen - but if you save the inspection sheet from the drop-off (where there's a diagram and they're supposed to mark any scratches or damage the car may have obtained before you hand it over), then you should have the necessary proof should it arrive with any unfamiliar marks upon re-delivery. The folks at BMW NA Special Sales are really helpful (just in case your dealer needs a kick in the arse, considering they have to file the claim for you should there be any transit damage).

The car is still fun even during break-in, and most people who do ED tend to go over 1200 miles and get the break-in service done while in Europe (for which BMW NA will reimburse you as a courtesy upon request from your CA after your return from your trip).

As for parking in Europe, it didn't really concern me any more than parking here in the US - there was only one time I was really concerned (which ended up being 3 days instead of 1 while in France), as my M2 looked huge in a parking spot that looked like it was meant for a Smart car (hotel parking). But, in the end, it's just a car - a very nice one but hardly a priceless exotic.

All that said, I agree with your conclusion - anyone doing ED primarily for money savings best think again, and there are definitely a number of factors worth considering before making the decision. For me, I loved the experience and made a choice not to worry about all the things that could have happened. And I'd do it all over again, despite some hairy moments ascending Stelvio and on a snowy Swiss mountain the following day.

[M2day]

I just ordered my new M2. I wish I would have pushed for a ED but I was getting resistance from my dealer. Then he offered a discount I couldn't refuse so I feel pretty satisfied. I'll have to save my European delivery for my next car. $4,200 discount plus a $2,000 corp fleet discount so a total of $6,200 of MSRP.

[huesaurus]

Just picked up an M2 yesterday for 3250 off MSRP and 1%/60 mo with 0 down.

BMW incentives show that the MY18 M2s are open to Recent Graduate and Loyalty Programs but dealers are all saying no.

[tazam2]

How’d you guys get so much off MSRP? I’m planning on picking mine up at the end of the month. I’d love to really save some $$.

[champignon]

Originally Posted by tazam2

How’d you guys get so much off MSRP? I’m planning on picking mine up at the end of the month. I’d love to really save some $$.

Compelling stories by 2 "individuals" with no history here and no prior posts.

[Damage Inc]

Originally Posted by tazam2

How’d you guys get so much off MSRP? I’m planning on picking mine up at the end of the month. I’d love to really save some $$.

Same here. Please share! I'm about to pull the trigger.

[DVG 335]

Originally Posted by huesaurus

Just picked up an M2 yesterday for 3250 off MSRP and 1%/60 mo with 0 down.

BMW incentives show that the MY18 M2s are open to Recent Graduate and Loyalty Programs but dealers are all saying no.

Was this an in stock unit in NY by any chance?

[huesaurus]

Originally Posted by champignon

Compelling stories by 2 "individuals" with no history here and no prior posts.

This might help.

View post on imgur.com

[huesaurus]

Originally Posted by DVG 335

Was this an in stock unit in NY by any chance?

No this was in California

[Spa2k]

Originally Posted by huesaurus

This might help.

View post on imgur.com

So, a $1,250 discount and $2,000 BMW money, plus the dealer bought down the interest on the loan? That’s a pretty good deal, especially for California.

Welcome to the M2 life. Oh, and post pictures of the car or it didn’t happen!

[huesaurus]

Originally Posted by Spa2k

So, a $1,250 discount and $2,000 BMW money, plus the dealer bought down the interest on the loan? That’s a pretty good deal, especially for California.

Welcome to the M2 life. Oh, and post pictures of the car or it didn’t happen!

Honestly not quite sure what they used for discounts or the 1%/60mo but either way impossible to find in Bay Area so I am happy .

It's raining right now but I will post some pics when it clears up.

[SM2]

AARP use to have something I heard.

[champignon]

Originally Posted by SethC

AARP use to have something I heard.

Currently, it's a couple of cases of "Attends" adult diapers with each purchase

[champignon]

Originally Posted by huesaurus

This might help.

View post on imgur.com

First, congratulations, looks like a good deal!

Actually, it's not that surprising to me that deals are starting to crop up, especially on more fully loaded M2s, especially those with the DCT. There will presumably be more of them as the rollout of the newer version with the S55 motor approaches. If a potential purchaser lives somewhere that there are a number of dealers located within a reasonably roaming range, it should pay off to play the dealers off against each other.

I'm reasonably certain that if I was willing to devote the time needed to the search, and had been willing to fly up to 1500 miles then drive a car back, that I could easily have saved two or three thousand dollars; I think the savings would have been capped at that level since what I want is a stripped car in MG with 6MT and no sunroof. Also, since I don't finance cars, that's one less source of possible profit for the dealer. And, I had a car to trade in, which cuts my sales tax exposure on the new car, as long as it is part of the transaction. Having to deal with a long distance trade in would have been a deal killer for me.

Everyone will have their own set of circumstances which will dictate to what extent they are willing to inconvenience themselves to save XX thousands of dollars. It also depends on how much the time you spend searching and completing that deal is worth to you otherwise. In my business dealings, a few thousand dollars isn't even a rounding error. It simply doesn't pay me to hunt around the best deal on a car across the country when it will cost me more in other ways. Everyone has to decide these sorts of things for themselves.

[Damage Inc]

Originally Posted by champignon

First, congratulations, looks like a good deal!

Actually, it's not that surprising to me that deals are starting to crop up, especially on more fully loaded M2s, especially those with the DCT. There will presumably be more of them as the rollout of the newer version with the S55 motor approaches. If a potential purchaser lives somewhere that there are a number of dealers located within a reasonably roaming range, it should pay off to play the dealers off against each other.

I'm reasonably certain that if I was willing to devote the time needed to the search, and had been willing to fly up to 1500 miles then drive a car back, that I could easily have saved two or three thousand dollars; I think the savings would have been capped at that level since what I want is a stripped car in MG with 6MT and no sunroof. Also, since I don't finance cars, that's one less source of possible profit for the dealer. And, I had a car to trade in, which cuts my sales tax exposure on the new car, as long as it is part of the transaction. Having to deal with a long distance trade in would have been a deal killer for me.

Everyone will have their own set of circumstances which will dictate to what extent they are willing to inconvenience themselves to save XX thousands of dollars. It also depends on how much the time you spend searching and completing that deal is worth to you otherwise. In my business dealings, a few thousand dollars isn't even a rounding error. It simply doesn't pay me to hunt around the best deal on a car across the country when it will cost me more in other ways. Everyone has to decide these sorts of things for themselves.

Too funny reading your post. I'm trying to close up a deal for a MG 6 spd only deal. Having to travel out of state with my trade in is a huge hassle. First dealers dont want to discount M2's then having the wildcard of my trade in.

I'm just going to pull the trigger for a deal 8 hours each way. Get it over with this week. I hate burning time on this search, plus its taking time away from my efforts at work. At the end of the day I wont miss a few extra $$$ in my bank account, but it is worth it to travel to get the car you want.

[champignon]

Originally Posted by MojorisinM3

Too funny reading your post. I'm trying to close up a deal for a MG 6 spd only deal. Having to travel out of state with my trade in is a huge hassle. First dealers dont want to discount M2's then having the wildcard of my trade in.

I'm just going to pull the trigger for a deal 8 hours each way. Get it over with this week. I hate burning time on this search, plus its taking time away from my efforts at work. At the end of the day I wont miss a few extra $$$ in my bank account, but it is worth it to travel to get the car you want.

First, good luck with your deal; post some pictures when you get the car.

The problem with the trade in on a long distance deal is that you could think that you had a deal, and once you get to the distant dealer he finds some hidden "defect" in your trade in. At that point he has you by the balls and you are left with a series of bad options, including driving back home empty-handed, or caving in and thinking that you got screwed. Given the generally accepted opinion about car dealers, which seems to have a large basis in fact at least in my own experience, this kind of an outcome is not unlikely to happen.

What I did was that I traded in my (continuing to depreciate) 135i coupe a week after we made the MSRP deal on ordering the car I wanted. Since I have other cars that was pretty painless and it eliminated the possibility of someone running into the car the rest of the winter, plus unexpected and expensive BMW repairs that seem to crop up :-) So that part of the deal is already done, and the rest of it is at a price already negotiated in December.

I'm willing to pay up for convenience, and I do have other more valuable uses of my time than chasing car deals across the country. Also, in my real life there are frequent negotiations when property is bought or sold, for services to be provided, dealing with people who work with and for me. It's really easy to get caught up in the small stuff. I have seen significant real estate deals fall apart for the want of $3,000. I have a friend who lost a house he wanted to buy over less than this. What I said to him at the time was, "what were you thinking?" It took him about 2 more years of searching to find something else to replace it, all wasted time in my opinion.

[tazam2]

Originally Posted by huesaurus

Honestly not quite sure what they used for discounts or the 1%/60mo but either way impossible to find in Bay Area so I am happy .

It's raining right now but I will post some pics when it clears up.

Insane deal. Awesome man. LA definitely isn’t getting the same love.