Found a Really nice e46.

Originally Posted by aahmed2016

sit guys.. alright, I didn't mean to start WWIII...

No worries.


I'd would reccomend getting the car checked out by your own mechanic and see what he says. If there is a list of issues we should be able to tell you if it's worth it.

Originally Posted by aahmed2016

sit guys.. alright, I didn't mean to start WWIII...

ahem.........

Originally Posted by aahmed2016

should I go to the dealer, or an indy?

A car is a significant purchase. I'd start with the CARFAX. If that is acceptable to you, then it makes sense to make a small investment to help insure you get what you expect for your money. Unless you know cars very well, without a PPI (and objective comparison with the vehicle you currently own), making plans to sell your current car might be premature.

If you have an indie that you trust (and, even better, knows the e46), that's the best. If not, a local dealer with a good reputation in the service dept is your best bet.

If you are OK with the results of the PPI and decide to follow your friend's suggestion (and he has a pretty strong financial interest in the matter), keep in mind a couple of things:

• The dealer may not want to sell your current car on commission.

  You would need to find another that wants to sell on commission, or sell it yourself. Unless you have mad sales and negotiation skills, this probably means a lower transaction price than a retail sale.

• A commission arrangement is one where the devil is in the details.

  Fixed commmission? How much is fair?
  A percentage of sale price? How much is fair?
  A combination? How much makes sense?
  Do you have the legal background to write a clear and enforceable contract? If not, you'll want to visit an attorney.

• You may recall that the common wisdom from the list is that the car you have now wasn't worth $7K. Granted, this was sight-unseen, but some thought less.

  These assessments were from people who are passionate about E46s. The dealer may not find another buyer at the price you paid. In that case, you are out the difference between what you paid and the selling price, plus the commission.

• If he does sell on commission, he may not push the sale as hard vs. a car he owns. It could take a long time to sell and the car won't get more valuable with age.

  This is because his profit is likely to be smaller. Your commission will probably be far less than his average markup which pays for the salesperson's commission, rent on the land and other overhead, plus profit. He also has loans to "floorplan" the other cars. So selling one of his own means taking something from the cost side of the ledger. I can imagine something like this: Oh, you like that 325? It does look nice, but has almost 200K miles. Unless you're in love with the color, why not look at this 330/328/Audi/C-class/Infinity/ etc. instead? It has much lower miles!

• The likely result is that you will come out of this weeks--or even months--later with a lot less money.

If you decide that this "new" vehicle is twaht you want, it might be easier to shop your car around to a couple of dealers and sell it outright. If you get $6K (which isn't likely for "trade-in" value), then you are even money (less taxes) and almost no hassle. If it looks like the car will bring less, then it is time to decide whether this new vehicle is worth the cost differential compared to what you now own.

This is great wisdom.