2000 Porsche Boxster vs. 2001 BMW 330Ci

[Perfectlap]

buy an old enthusiast owned Miata that has been well maintained. Take the rest of the money you didn't blow and put the first $1,000 in a picture frame in $100 bills. Hang it on the wall. If at any point you have more money in that picture frame than your money market account you are missing out on one of the biggest oppourtunities of your life: investing early, which is the quickest way to become a millionaire. Your next car can be a Ferrari F430 or Carrera GT. Go to Barnes and Noble and check out some of the books by Dave Ramsey, he specializes in the less complicated ways to invest. I'd already invested $100K (and lost it a few times) through stock trading by the age of 21, mostly by working part time at a high end watering hole but boy do I wish I had known about the easier, no-brainer ways of letting my bankroll just grow itself into a million dollars before the first grey hair. Once you are 30 or 40 that advantages of that early start are gone and your old Porsche or BMW is worthless.

p.s.
I just spent over $5K on major maintenance (including the IMS ugprade), dropping that kind of cash is not something a college student should be worrying about. A veteran of a late 90's Asian currency meltdown, dot com bust, subprime Chernobyl meltdown, pump and dump commodity bubble.....different story. But dang if it still didn't hurt to fork over that kind of cash from my blood sweat and tears. Why not put it on the Credit card? You'll never consider entering into a WORSE agreement in your life than putting money on plastic. Budget for the big repairs before you buy.

[mikefocke]

Cars depreciate and they may impress your buddies but few girls give a darn what you drive. In fact my wife told me once if I had been driving the Porsche I had before the sedan I had when I dated her, she would have been warned off me as not husband/father material (she is also the one who told me to go buy the 2 recent Porsche Boxsters I've bought so she isn't against my toys, just for me waiting till the kids college tuitions were paid for and the retirement secure).

Get that career going. Invest in your education. Put a little aside for the next layoff.

Buy transportation now and defer the gratification for later. Buy the car that depreciates the least and drive it into the ground. Take any $ you save by doing that and invest it. My kids had 401Ks before they were out of high school.

Buying a higher maintenance expense car that is 9-10 years old makes little sense in your situation IMHO. Not that they aren't great cars.

Eventually, you'll probably want a house, kids (talk about an expensive hobby!), trips, etc.

And when you have all that paid for, the fun of being able to pay cash for a toy car is darn near nirvana.

[Samson]

The flip side to the saving money argument is that you're only young and in college once, so enjoy it while you can. A good compromise would be to spend a bit less on your car and stick the remainder in whatever one of these financial advocates would recommend. If nothing else, put it in a high-interest savings account so you can still easily tap into it if needed.

I don't know your budget, but I'd guess low teens based on the cars you've mentioned. Stick a few grand away and for under $10k, you can probably find a higher mileage S2000 or one hell of a nice '02-'03 Miata.

If you want a sedan, there are good options that aren't an '01 330i, but still fun and relatively new sport sedans for under $10k. IS300, G35, maybe an Audi A4, 328/323i, something like that.

[wake&moto]

I was a prior e46 M3 owner and they are solid cars IF MAINTAINED PROPERLY however:

1) The automatic/tiptronic trannys WILL fail between 100-120k miles. Reverse is the first to go and then eventually you are looking at a $4,000 repair bill at minimum.

2) Lower control arms and front end bushings as well as tie rod and steering components also fail around 120-150k which will run about $1,500.

3) Oil changes are every 15k but i suggest doin them around 9-10k and will run you $180 if done at BMW dealerships. Brake jobs will set you back around $1,000 as well.

4) I also replaced an AC motor resistor which is a common failure and a DIY type fix at around $200 and seems to be common.

5) If the radiator coolant expansion tank has not busted on a used e46 it will lol and that will set you back about $800 + a tow to the BMW stealership.

Other than the above mentioned problems the BMW is a stellar car when maintained and is a blast to drive.