Buying another 3 series coupe - UK or IRL?

I would go UK every time, from a main dealer. Total
peace on mind, immaculate cars, better spec. Fun
too. There may not be much in it in terms of price, but
you will get a better car, no question.

I'd agree with Don if you have a clear idea of what you want and appropriate UK prices, but emphasise that there might not be much in it in terms of price vs. here.

You also need to check out the VRT of all possible models you are interested in, including trim level variations, because there are anomolies, e.g. there is only about €500 between the VRT on a '01 320Ci and a 325Ci, same age and mileage, while a 330Ci with the same details is over €2k more than the 325Ci.

As regards price there are four things you need to consider to decide if a car is worthwhile to bring in.  Forget about technical comparisons for a moment.  The factors are:

• UK price
• Stg exchange rate
• VRT
• Asking prices here.

Obviously, the final price (and worth) on the road here is a factor of all 4 combined.

For example, a '01 320i and 325i.  In the UK there is a slight price difference between a 320i and 325i in likely purchase price.  However, the VRT for a 01 325i is actually a tiny bit less than a 320i so the actual price difference for 2 comparable cars will be relatively small.  Compare then a 325i and a 330i.  The VRT for a comparable 330i is approx €3k more than a 325i and also the price of a 330i will be higher in the UK.  The end result is that a 330i will be considerably more than a 325i.  In the comparison the Stg exchange rate is a constant.  Its reasonable to assume that a 325i should fetch slightly more here than a 320i and likewise a 330i will fetch a bit more than a 325i, although, as they get progressively older the prices will tend to come close to converging.

Now look at the technical bit, a 320i has 170bhp, a 325 193 and the 330i has 231.  Roughly speaking the standard specifications are the same (although typically the owners of the bigger engined cars are more likely to have dipped in to the options list).  So the decision then is whether a 325i is worth a (relatively) few euro more than a 320i by the time you have the car back here.  Its probably easier to dismiss the 330i because they will be several thousand more expensive than the others.  By the way, the assumption is that all of these cars are UK SE spec.

Another example, VRT for a '98 e46 328i SE is nearly 50% more than a same age and mileage e36, the car itself will be considerably more expensive in the UK so you could end up with the e46 costing twice the price of the e36.

Another example, VRT for a '00 323iSE is €1500 less than a same age and mileage 328iSE.  However, the difference between a '00 323Ci and 328Ci is only about €200 and a 328iCi is actually €500 less than the 328iSE.

If you look at these carefully then it will be clear that there are some cars that are bettwr value than others relative to the asking prices here.

The problem is that it varies from year to year and model to model.  Trim levels can also complicate things (an e36 328i Sport coupe has lower VRT than a std 328i coupe, so although the non-sport should be a bit cheaper to buy in the UK, the difference after VRT is smaller). 

What it means is that you have to do a lot of homework if you want to take advantage of the anomolies and you may need to be a bit more flexible about the precise make/model/year/spec that you buy.

I'm going home now, 'cause my head hurts from thinking!

Edited by Dergside

Thanks Dergside, that is a very detailed answer, I appreciate it.

Will start looking for cars around the end of this year... might pick your brains again then please.

Robin

I got my car from the UK in May. When I was looking I did see some great deals over there which would have saved a few grand. The spec of the cars are better there, and most are kept in superb condition.