[izaazk]

So I have an f30 335i I bought last year with 49k miles

I'm a college student that commutes in rush hour everyday

I can afford the car but is it smart to keep ??

I'm considering trading it in for a civic .... for fuel economy and maintenance....

I love cars and tuning / working on them....

What should I do

[izaazk]

Here she is

[obert]

Keep it

Unless you want to go back to working and driving a civic?

I have had both and I would keep the BMW. I like the style inside and out compared to a civic.

[fluke]

Nothing is cheaper than the car you already own. There is increased risk in switching from a known car to a car with an unknown history.

[cobra2814]

If you can afford maintaining it then keep it. I had a fun car in college too and spent every dime I had on it at the time and don’t regret a thing. Enjoy the car.....life is too short not to.

[obert]

What type of civic? Type R

[RTPenland]

remove that bumper decal and keep it (keep the car - decal goes in trash)

[Billfitz]

Originally Posted by izaazk

I can afford the car but is it smart to keep ??

Nobody drives a BMW because it's the smartest car to own. The point is to enjoy it.

[floridaorange]

Did you pay cash or are you making payments?

[izaazk]

Originally Posted by floridaorange

Did you pay cash or are you making payments?

Payments still going owe 14k on car

[floridaorange]

And the civic you would buy cash or also make payments? The less debt you have in general the better, especially right after college. Generally building wealth means not being in debt - but everyone is different just my opinion.

[obert]

He is thinking about trading it in on a civic. So he would be making payments

[obert]

Also you have only had the car for a year. So you should take into consideration all the payments you have made and if you put money down. Add that all up and that is what you have paid to use the car for one year. You would be losing money I think.

[cfm56d7b]

Originally Posted by fluke

Nothing is cheaper than the car you already own. There is increased risk in switching from a known car to a car with an unknown history.

So true. Your current vehicle is the cheapest to own. If you maintain it well, keep driving and enjoy the ride.

[jimbobiggens]

It would be a punch in my gut every time I walked out into a parking lot and see my Honda and think, "I used to drive a BMW". But that's just me. YMMV

[izaazk]

I am paying about $400 a month

I would pay civic outright maybe 8-10k cash...

The only reason why I am thinking of even this is because of gas and issues ...

My car runs like garbage in the winter for some reason (revs high barely moves - not slipping tho)

I slip all over the place and I literally watch my gas fly away sitting in rush hour

[vinzcast21]

Originally Posted by izaazk

I am paying about $400 a month

I would pay civic outright maybe 8-10k cash...

The only reason why I am thinking of even this is because of gas and issues ...

My car runs like garbage in the winter for some reason (revs high barely moves - not slipping tho)

I slip all over the place and I literally watch my gas fly away sitting in rush hour

why would you think a civic would do better?

[BMWinAZ]

Originally Posted by izaazk

I am paying about $400 a month

I would pay civic outright maybe 8-10k cash...

The only reason why I am thinking of even this is because of gas and issues ...

My car runs like garbage in the winter for some reason (revs high barely moves - not slipping tho)

I slip all over the place and I literally watch my gas fly away sitting in rush hour

I have to admit that I am slightly confused. You are paying $400 a month on a used 335i with 49k! Did you finance the car in its entirety? If you did, you probably should not have bought it in the first place. Also, you complain about poor winter road behavior. Get a second set of wheels with proper snow tires and this issue will go away.
You claim to be into tuning and working on your car but tell us it runs like garbage in the winter. What are your attempts at solving this issue? What are your suspected reasons for this poor performance?
You tell us you would pay cash for a used Honda Civic but act like you don't have funds to maintain a fairly new BMW. In my personal experience (I am older and have owned several BMWs) more costly problems don't manifest in these cars till the 80ks or later (for a reasonably well maintained 3 series).
Not to be harsh, but I am not sure this f30 is the car for you.

[vinzcast21]

Originally Posted by BMWinAZ

I have to admit that I am slightly confused. You are paying $400 a month on a used 335i with 49k! Did you finance the car in its entirety? If you did, you probably should not have bought it in the first place. Also, you complain about poor winter road behavior. Get a second set of wheels with proper snow tires and this issue will go away.
You claim to be into tuning and working on your car but tell us it runs like garbage in the winter. What are your attempts at solving this issue? What are your suspected reasons for this poor performance?
You tell us you would pay cash for a used Honda Civic but act like you don't have funds to maintain a fairly new BMW. In my personal experience (I am older and have owned several BMWs) more costly problems don't manifest in these cars till the 80ks or later (for a reasonably well maintained 3 series).
Not to be harsh, but I am not sure this f30 is the car for you.

80ks km or miles?

[BMWinAZ]

Originally Posted by vinzcast21

80ks km or miles?

Sorry, omitted the miles.

[vinzcast21]

Originally Posted by BMWinAZ

Sorry, omitted the miles.

I see! Because I just bought an F30 too with 21k miles on it! its a 2016 340i and your comment meant a lot to me since I was worried at what miles the car would have the small problems gradually

[upsidedownfunnel]

Just add up the total of your down payment and all your monthly payments and subtract what you can sell it for. Financed including tax, I'll assume you paid&owe about $30k and you might be able to sell it for $20k. Remember that you can only get a sales tax deduction if you trade your car in and getting even $20k might be tough. So you'd be out about $10k after only using it a year. Just plug in your actual numbers as these may be way off. A fair amount of money for one year of usage of the car is probably about $3k. If you are out less than $3k, then you're in OK shape.

Then also figure out how much cash you'd end up with. If you still owe $20k on the car, then you'll end up with no money. This isn't necessarily as important as the first calculation. But this is important to make sure you know how much cash you'll end up with. You're in college, seems like this should be pretty easy to figure out.

Generally, selling a used car (unless you got a great deal - in which case you should keep it) after a short period of time will lose you money. A significant amount of money.

As far as winter driving. Learn how to drive better, no disrespect. Winter tires will give you a significant amount of control over what you have now.

My car runs like garbage in the winter for some reason (revs high barely moves - not slipping tho)

What does that mean? your engine revs but your tires aren't slipping? Or do you mean transmission? Is the traction control or ESC kicking in? Are you filling up with premium at good gas stations? Winter blends can affect how your car runs. They are also far less fuel efficient. If driven carefully, a 335i can get good enough mileage. All cars get worse mileage in the winter, especially in places like Chicago.