Managed to Hang On to the 540!! - BMW Forum

Eric S. · 02-24-2006, 11:37 AM

I will definitely need to minimize my 540-related expenditures in the coming months and unnecessary accessories are definitely out. The good news is that at least for now I am hanging onto it, despite the fact that we put down a deposit on a <choke> new Honda Odyssey today.

:

This will replace our 4X4 Expedition, which was in effect my 540's "snow tires" (I drove it on rare snowy days instead of my 5-er). I guess the Honda's front-wheel-drive and traction control will serve well enough. For a minivan, the new-design Odyssey rocks, and offers interior volume that is comparable to the Expy. A recent one-week vacation rental of a 2005 Odyssey netted us in excess of 27 mpg highway, which sure as heck beats the 11.4 we are experiencing with the gas-swilling-but-testosterone-laden Expy.

Maybe this thread belongs elsewhere, but I just wanted to share/celebrate with my 5-er buds here that I was able to swing a deal that both made my wife happy AND enabled me to hang onto my 540 - and I am VERY happy for that!

superdeadman · 02-24-2006, 05:24 PM

ahh wifes, the things they want guys to do ....
i dont think that she'll ever make you sell your 5-er cuz it's your baby and you definitely put a lot of time into maintaning it in tip top shape.

congrats on the new car purchase

Eric S. · 02-25-2006, 04:57 AM

Hey Super - Good points, and you are right - my wife told me over the past 6 months that she would not allow me to sell my 540, even though I saw that as the only way for us to get the Odyssey (without having to have payments). Like I told her, she and our children need that vehicle more than I need the 540 (The Expy is giving us 11.4 mpg and has 177K miles now).

I figured the time to try to sell the Expy is now, while gas prices are in a lull, and the vehicle itself is running strong and has no major issues. Further, I was surpriised to find out that dealers (at least local to me) are willing to deal on these things. We managed to get our Odyssey for nearly $3K off sticker price, at a time when one-year-old used ones are going for only about $2K to $3K less than that.

If you are looking to get a new Honda Odyssey, the time is now, particularly the top-of-the-line Touring model, which local dealers seemed to have a lot of sitting around in inventory.

The thing that allowed this was the recent upswing in the stock market, whereupon I cashed in some stock I was holding. For ONCE in my life I "sold high"!

superdeadman · 02-25-2006, 12:22 PM

haha stock market FTW!

i wanted to change my major to business with intent on trading stocks, or maybe fstock advisor, and i told my parents, and my mom looked at me with this "wtf are you thinking?" look and said no...

so now i'm stuck with aerospace engineering...

maybe next year when i'm done, i'll get a job, work for few years, and go back to college and take few stock market classes and become rich!

yea, my family needs that new odyssey. My mom's caravan is starting to fall apart (but it does have 170k miles) but i dont think our family can afford them new cars. If only 5-series bmws would hold their value better ...

99 corvette and 99 5-er (528) both had more or less same sticker price.
now to buy 99 vette -> $20,000
now to buy 99 5-er -> $11,000-13,000

WTF?!

Eric S. · 02-25-2006, 02:57 PM

Super -

I hear ya. However, keep in mind that I majored in mechanical engineering and indeed worked as an engineer for 12 years. During that time, I earned my MBA going to school part time, and my company paid for that. (Once I decided to enroll, I only needed to take two classes at a local college in order to qualify for MBA school, because engineering school curriculum is so demanding.) I then segue'd my career into quality, which morphed into 6-sigma, which is now a hot item. I've been in that field about 7 years now.

So go ahead and finish that engineering degree, which is a highly coveted field, and go for a job in that field that you think you will like. Who knows? You just might love it! You may someday replace Chris Bangle and put BMW back on TRACK!

And while you are there, carpe diem and pursue that MBA or other master's degree, on your employer's nickel!

Whatever you do, make sure it is something you are passionate about and that you set goals for that are clearly mapped from where you are today.

Just my 2 cents from hard-won experience.

superdeadman · 02-25-2006, 03:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eric S.

Super -

I hear ya. However, keep in mind that I majored in mechanical engineering and indeed worked as an engineer for 12 years. During that time, I earned my MBA going to school part time, and my company paid for that. (Once I decided to enroll, I only needed to take two classes at a local college in order to qualify for MBA school, because engineering school curriculum is so demanding.) I then segue'd my career into quality, which morphed into 6-sigma, which is now a hot item. I've been in that field about 7 years now.

So go ahead and finish that engineering degree, which is a highly coveted field, and go for a job in that field that you think you will like. Who knows? You just might love it! You may someday replace Chris Bangle and put BMW back on TRACK!

And while you are there, carpe diem and pursue that MBA or other master's degree, on your employer's nickel!

Whatever you do, make sure it is something you are passionate about and that you set goals for that are clearly mapped from where you are today.

Just my 2 cents from hard-won experience.

thanks eric!

yeah dude - bangle is going down - i kinda was thinking about going more into windtunnels and aerodynamics and re-design some cars

bmw is #1 on my list