Not a 1 in sight

[bozola]

Went to the Dealer today... Bellevue BMW.

There was not a single 1 in stock. I looked everywhere. Is this the beginning of the end???

[uofmtiger]

When I shopped for a car last year, my local dealer had two or three 1s and Nashville had about twenty. I think they are selective about where they put them.

[jibaholic101]

Originally Posted by bozola

Went to the Dealer today... Bellevue BMW.

There was not a single 1 in stock. I looked everywhere. Is this the beginning of the end???

i was there several weeks ago, and they had 2 or 3, maybe they were parked at the secret lot.... are you local to bellevue, i am in clyde hill

[bozola]

I am local to Issaquah..

[jibaholic101]

Originally Posted by bozola

I am local to Issaquah..

sweet, when my 135i comes, if you see an AW over Coral Red Msport driving around, its me. i believe it is the only one of that color in this area right now?

[cagekicker]

a rare vehicle is a good thing.

[jibaholic101]

Originally Posted by cagekicker

a rare vehicle is a good thing.

[oneill3]

Its the same in Australia. I went to order a car last month and there was only about 5 or 6 in the whole country! If I wanted a specific car I was going to have to order from the factory, which is a 4 month wait at the moment.
Lucky for me there was one a boat that was just landing that I grabbed. Even so, I still had to wait a month.

[bozola]

My Ti is rare too.

[JB135i]

Originally Posted by cagekicker

a rare vehicle is a good thing.

The last few T-Rex's where pimping for awhile too. Rare is good in a 100K plus car, when a 40k car is rare, it's NOT GOOD people.

The 3 series is a better value (for most people), the 370Z is a bit cheaper and for sure more sport oriented, the Genesis Coupe is cheaper and has several financial advantages right now, the base C6 kills it (numbers wise), the STi and EVO are viable competition for some buyers.

The 1 series does not compete well against it's most of it's competitors. It's too sport for some, putting them in the 3 series right away. And it's not sport enough to compete against some cars I listed above. Then there is the price, it's just too high for a GT type car. The 1 series versatility is actually what I think it's downfall is.

[kb2dhg]

I was at a Concurs dElagance festivle of speed today. It was quite exciting. There were corrals from eveery european manufactor. So I of course went right over to the BMW corral. They had a wonderful selection of vintage BMWs. Through the whole event I did not know what was the show or the parking lot, GREAT CARS EVERYWHERE! I seen cars from the early 1900's to 2009 BUT NOT ONE 1!. I have to now start to wonder if this car is just not a good car or a car anyone wants? WHAT GIVES WITH NO 1's

[MOCKBA]

Interesting observation. I guess 1 is for limited number people who
1. Didn’t consider 3 series, since bigger and softer, and from luxury point of view a better take is C class
2. Didn’t consider two seaters since need extra space sometimes, so 370Z or C6 are out of consideration
3. Wanted a bit more luxury than STi and EVOSTi and EVO could offer
4. Didn’t want to deal with first year production of not so reputable manufactures as Genesis. E class coupe looks more attractive here.
5. Preferred German reliability, no Japanese cans

[bozola]

I am referring to this.

[rcracer_tx]

Originally Posted by MOCKBA

Interesting observation. I guess 1 is for limited number people who
1. Didn’t consider 3 series, since bigger and softer, and from luxury point of view a better take is C class
2. Didn’t consider two seaters since need extra space sometimes, so 370Z or C6 are out of consideration
3. Wanted a bit more luxury than STi and EVOSTi and EVO could offer
4. Didn’t want to deal with first year production of not so reputable manufactures as Genesis. E class coupe looks more attractive here.
5. Preferred German reliability, no Japanese cans

The first four are very good points... 1 & 3 are the reason I went with the 1er...

That being said, Japanese cars are pretty much always more reliable than German cars. Toyota/Lexus and Honda are pretty much always at the top of the list when it comes to reliability.

[JimD]

My primary reasons were:

1) I could get a convertible in the 30s - any convertible is hard to hold less than 30
2) It has a usable back seat and trunk including with the top down (not true for hard top convertibles and some with soft tops)
3) Sporty performance without a turbo (I did not want a turbo 4 or 5 just to get to the 128i level of performance (think VW or Volvo))
4) I like the looks and the reputation of BMW (again more so than VW or Volvo or Chrysler)
5) Pretty decent gas mileage (issue for Mustang)

In a coupe, I am not sure I would have purchased a 1. Maybe but there are lots of nice coupes. The 135i is very tempting. Especially when you can do a tuner mod and get it under 12 seconds in the 1/4 mile - but where do you use that level of performance (same reason I ruled out a vette)?

Jim

[scorcherjf]

For me it went something like this:

Had a 5 year old E46, wanted a new 3 series coupe.
Test drove a few 335's, felt too big and rolly (found out the dimensions were indeed quite a big larger than my E46).
Test drove 135, sold =)

[bozola]

Will there be enough of us to keep the 1 in the US?

I am predicting .. no.

[Mega Man]

Originally Posted by MOCKBA

Interesting observation. I guess 1 is for limited number people who
1. Didn’t consider 3 series, since bigger and softer, and from luxury point of view a better take is C class
2. Didn’t consider two seaters since need extra space sometimes, so 370Z or C6 are out of consideration
3. Wanted a bit more luxury than STi and EVOSTi and EVO could offer
4. Didn’t want to deal with first year production of not so reputable manufactures as Genesis. E class coupe looks more attractive here.
5. Preferred German reliability, no Japanese cans

I completely agree with the first 3, don't understand the 4th one, and disagree with the 5th one completely.

[MOCKBA]

Originally Posted by rcracer_tx

The first four are very good points... 1 & 3 are the reason I went with the 1er...

That being said, Japanese cars are pretty much always more reliable than German cars. Toyota/Lexus and Honda are pretty much always at the top of the list when it comes to reliability.

Here is something beyond of simple reliability. Japanese cars age quite fast. 3-4 years old Japanese car has a feel like you owned it decades. German car gives you a feeling of a new car in first 10 years of ownership. At least I can tell for Mercedes comparing to Lexus. However I am pretty sure that BMW is on the same level.

[Duckw]

If only some 10,000+ 1ers were made to sell in the states for our Year One, how can the car be anything but rare? The low number seen on the road, in and of itself, is no sign that the car is failing in our market. A better index would be the number of 1ers going begging in dealers’ lots. Is there any evidence that overstocks are sitting about looking for buyers, except perhaps for a handful of grossly over-optioned demos with auto boxes? I’ve been under the impression that Americans have glommed onto pretty much all of what’s been made available to them. Am I wrong? Have sales tanked? Figures, anyone?

It would appear that BMW doesn’t think the 1 series is going away any time soon. http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showthread.php?t=269943 There are quotations in the link suggesting that BMW includes the US in its plans for the 1er. Maybe they're just cockeyed optimists.

[kb2dhg]

I kinda like the idea that there are not many on the road. It makes me feel like I am driving a rare car. My major concern is that if this car does not sell, BMW will discontinue it and that would be a shame.
This car is a real sleeper. I think it looks real fine, and has both luxury and sports car feel and performance. The 1 Series is the best of all worlds when it comes to cars. Economy, the gas milage is great, luxury, the comfort and eminities are refined. Performance, This car rocks... Handles like it is on rails, is fast and has a great stance. Looks, this is a personal opinion but I love the look of this car. Price, for under 30 grand you can have a car that can compete with cars that are much more expensive and as price goes, you are getting a good deal more in quality and performance... All being said How could this car not become popular?

[warmtoes]

Originally Posted by bozola

Will there be enough of us to keep the 1 in the US?

I am predicting .. no.

Like others have said, they are only alotting/projecting 10,000 in the US so by definition it becomes rare because of the limited amount.

People keep saying it's not that much cheaper than a 3 but BMW learned with their failed attempts at a truly "entry" level vehicle (can you say 318ti) that it doesn't fit with their brand image. To make a car truly entry level would take too much away from their brand image.

This is why you see the N54 engine available for the 1. If they were trying to do a "Cadillac Cimarron" strategy like they did for the 318 they wouldn't have allowed the N54 into the 1 since it could then be compared to a 335i.

They have realized that there is a market (albeit limited) for a sporty performance coupe that is smaller than the 3 but without compromising their brand strategy. It is not so much the marketing strategy where you create an affordable car that owners can graduate from to their other more expensive vehicles.

Just my take. And, I had to wait 12 weeks for mine to arrive.