For Sale: 2004 BMW 330i ZHP, $13,850, Silver over Black, 86K Miles, 6 speed, Houston, Texas, Dealer

[e34slt]

Hi all,
Cruising the ads and saw this car for sale on Cars.com...
Here's the actual dealer's link in Houston:

http://www.nxcessmotorcars.com/web/1274/vehicle/896285/2004-BMW-3%20Series-WE%20FINANCE!!%20330i%20M%20SPORT/PREMIUM%20PKG%20XENON%20HARMAN%20AUDIO%20IPOD!!!

[webster]

Eww to the woodgrain trim mod. Why would someone remove the cube? I can take a look if anyone's interested tho...

[Alphatek45]

Agreed on the wood :(

[ecrabb]

Son of a mother... Exactly the car I want. Color, miles, and price are all in my sweet spot. How much for a silver cube trim kit to restore the interior to not-so-specialness? Any market at all for the wood trim to offset?

Judas priest, a vinyl carbon fiber wrap would be better than the wood grain.

SC

[Marcus-SanDiego]

This could be a deal for someone who wants to swap black or silver in.

Doesn't look like dealer knows this is performance package. They call it M package.

[BimmerRules!]

Hey ecrabb, can you let me know if you are planning to act on it?

Thanks!

[ecrabb]

You go for it, BimmerRules. I'm in no rush, and it'll take me a week or so to get money together, which I've been procrastinating on (it's so much more fun looking for cars!). Let me know if you pass, though.

SC

[BimmerRules!]

Thanks for the heads-up man, I will contact the dealer to check the status and update the board on the maintenance, ownership etc.

ha-hah! I hear you, it is so fun looking! :biggrin

After my purchase for a fantastic silver 04 zhp fell thru (no offense to the seller, car was so good to ride with just 32k miles and I had no problems with him rethinking the sale), I took a step back and decided not to rush it. And now I realize that the track season is about to end and I am probably better off getting one next spring.

That said, I thought of pulling the trigger for the right color combo and low price (don't want to pay high NY sales tax!!).

Will keep the board posted. thanks again,

[ecrabb]

Are you telling me the state of NY lets you avoid sales tax by buying in another state? How the hell does a dealer in NY ever sell a car? Isn't it like a two-hour drive to a thousand dealers out of state?

In Iowa, we pay our sales tax when we register the vehicle, so I pay the 6% state sales tax regardless of where I buy it... It's neat, too because it doesn't matter whether it's a new car or a used car. $50,000 new 335? Buyer pays $3,000. Sells it a couple years later for $35,000? Buyer pays $2100. That guy sells it a several years later for $22,000? Buyer pays $1320... And so on. So, if the car changes hands half a dozen times in its lifetime, a nice car could easily generate 10, 15, even 20% of its original sales price in terms of sales tax revenue for the state.

I think most states are like Florida and Texas, though and exempt buyers from their own sales tax if the car is sold to a non-resident, and only driven in the state to move it to its new destination, and is immediately registered in another state. In your case, there may be no tax advantage for you at all - I'd be surprised if NY would let you avoid their taxes by buying out of state.

That's all on top of the annual use tax, which is based on vehicle price, weight, and number of axles. So, the annual use tax and tags will cost me about $300-350/year on something like the Houston ZHP. A new $30,000 car is probably more like $500.

I should start a thread on this... It might be fun to see what everybody's cars cost them in terms of tax and registration in various locales.

SC

[e34slt]

Are you telling me the state of NY lets you avoid sales tax by buying in another state? How the hell does a dealer in NY ever sell a car? Isn't it like a two-hour drive to a thousand dealers out of state?

In Iowa, we pay our sales tax when we register the vehicle, so I pay the 6% state sales tax regardless of where I buy it... It's neat, too because it doesn't matter whether it's a new car or a used car. $50,000 new 335? Buyer pays $3,000. Sells it a couple years later for $35,000? Buyer pays $2100. That guy sells it a several years later for $22,000? Buyer pays $1320... And so on. So, if the car changes hands half a dozen times in its lifetime, a nice car could easily generate 10, 15, even 20% of its original sales price in terms of sales tax revenue for the state.

I think most states are like Florida and Texas, though and exempt buyers from their own sales tax if the car is sold to a non-resident, and only driven in the state to move it to its new destination, and is immediately registered in another state. In your case, there may be no tax advantage for you at all - I'd be surprised if NY would let you avoid their taxes by buying out of state.

That's all on top of the annual use tax, which is based on vehicle price, weight, and number of axles. So, the annual use tax and tags will cost me about $300-350/year on something like the Houston ZHP. A new $30,000 car is probably more like $500.

I should start a thread on this... It might be fun to see what everybody's cars cost them in terms of tax and registration in various locales.

SC
Please DO start a thread on this topic ecrabb, that would be good info to know. I am returning to the states soon, and will hopefully have a 2004 E46 ZHP lined up to buy. I will have a fair amount of flexibility on where I register it, at least during the first year of ownership...and it would be nice to know which state has the lowest fees. I would assume that it would be a state that has no state sales tax...but that may not be the case. My annual renewal registration in Utah for a 1990 525 was around $70 +/-.
Part of Utah's annual registration fee formula is based on the cars perceived age/value.
Two questions I would like to see answered:
1) Which state(s) have the lowest initial title-transfer, sales tax, + registration fee?
2) Which state(s) have the lowest annual registration fees thereafter?
* Maybe using a hypothetical 2004 330i ZHP with a value of $15,000 as a reference point.
TIA

[MsRN]

BimmerRules--

Have the dealer send you better photos of the front seats--some of the photos look like the front seats are scuffed up, and have been 'touched up' in spots. I might be wrong, but then again, why was the trim replaced? Owner taste, or to hide rough treatment?

Just my $.02, FWIW. Caveat emptor.

[ecrabb]

Please DO start a thread on this topic ecrabb, that would be good info to know.

Done!

What did you spend on tax, title, registration, etc. for your ZHP in your city, state, etc.? (http://www.zhpmafia.com/forums/showthread.php?4391-What-did-you-spend-on-tax-title-registration-etc.-for-your-ZHP-in-your-city-state-etc.)

BimmerRules - You said "when you return to the states"... What are you doing out of country if you don't mind my asking? Just curious.

Cheers,
SC

[BimmerRules!]

Are you telling me the state of NY lets you avoid sales tax by buying in another state?

SC

Nope, I said I don't want to pay high NY sales tax.

Meant that more in terms of actual $.

Think that there are only four states which have no sales tax for its residents.

I am realistic enough to know that if I am not that impressed with the stick zhp, I will promptly sell it within a year. So, don't want to pay close to 2k in sales tax (i.e if my purchase price is > $20k) just to pursue driving dreams that might or might not be realized. :)

Hence the decision not to splurge @ this point in time.

[BimmerRules!]

BimmerRules--

Have the dealer send you better photos of the front seats--some of the photos look like the front seats are scuffed up, and have been 'touched up' in spots. I might be wrong, but then again, why was the trim replaced? Owner taste, or to hide rough treatment?

Just my $.02, FWIW. Caveat emptor.

Will do! Thanks!

I want to first get info on the maintenance and ownership. At 86k miles, there are many things that need to be replaced. So, without knowing much, I don't plan to pull the trigger just on the current offer price and the pictures.

UPDATE: Spoke to the salesperson at this used-car place, which apparently is an active one on ebay. He disclosed that they got it thru a trade-up from Delware and he has no information on the maintenance. He mentioned two owners and no accident based on carfax. Carfax mentions nothing on service except for atwo tires mounted and balanced when car had 68k miles on it. Extra notes: Since they sell many cars, he was quite comfortable with the PPI process and disclosed that they can ship it out anywhere at a low rate. Offer price is firm.

UPDATE 2: Checked with my dealer here for the service info but he couldn't pull up anything since 2007, when the vehicle last came in during its warranty period.

[BimmerRules!]

Done!

What did you spend on tax, title, registration, etc. for your ZHP in your city, state, etc.? (http://www.zhpmafia.com/forums/showthread.php?4391-What-did-you-spend-on-tax-title-registration-etc.-for-your-ZHP-in-your-city-state-etc.)

BimmerRules - You said "when you return to the states"... What are you doing out of country if you don't mind my asking? Just curious.

Cheers,
SC

When I bought my 530 four years back, I know I paid close to 10%!

Out of country - did I write that here?? :) edit - looks like you meant e35slt.

[BimmerRules!]

Leaning towards passing considering high miles and lack of maintenance records. Any thoughts? Thanks.

[webster]

i still can't get over the woodgrain. i don't trust an owner that would do that to a ZHP

[Marcus-SanDiego]

UPDATE: Spoke to the salesperson at this used-car place, which apparently is an active one on ebay. He disclosed that they got it thru a trade-up from Delware and he has no information on the maintenance. He mentioned two owners and no accident based on carfax. Carfax mentions nothing on service except for atwo tires mounted and balanced when car had 68k miles on it. Extra notes: Since they sell many cars, he was quite comfortable with the PPI process and disclosed that they can ship it out anywhere at a low rate. Offer price is firm.

UPDATE 2: Checked with my dealer here for the service info but he couldn't pull up anything since 2007, when the vehicle last came in during its warranty period.

Just a note to people who may be reading these for-sale threads. I hear this a lot from roadside dealers who do not specialize in BMW vehicles. While I believe that most dealers aren't lying about that, I do think that some dealers use that line so they can say: "hey, no idea. Buyer beware. We aren't standing behind this vehicle."

It's one of the reasons I would shy away from an otherwise nice looking car that's approaching 100,000 miles.

[das boots]

Eww to the woodgrain trim mod. Why would someone remove the cube? I can take a look if anyone's interested tho...

Webster...could you do a complete walk through? Making sure of all owners manual, spare keys, etc. etc, etc.....Houston is a whole lot closer to SoCal than East Coast. Just assessing the situation right now before pulling the trigger. Do you also have a reputable BMW that does PPI? PM you with my email so if you can take better photos of the car. Thanks.

[webster]

Webster...could you do a complete walk through? Making sure of all owners manual, spare keys, etc. etc, etc.....Houston is a whole lot closer to SoCal than East Coast. Just assessing the situation right now before pulling the trigger. Do you also have a reputable BMW that does PPI? PM you with my email so if you can take better photos of the car. Thanks.

i have no problem going to take a look/test drive of the car for ya. i work til 6:30ish every day this week...and they close at 7, so it would be tight. but i will try to make it out there, maybe weds night? is that soon enough for ya? i can for sure make it out there on saturday afternoon as well, if all else fails i will plan on doing that if you're still interested by then.

i have a good indy shop that i use, came highly recommended to me from a coworker who has an E92 328i ZSP. i can ask if the dealership would be willing to schedule a PPI there, if you want.

[das boots]

No hurry. Keeping my options very open. Karma will tell me when the time is right. Thanks.