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Personally, I wouldn't be spending that sort of money on a car. I would rather keep my liquid assets intact so they will, hopefully, last for most of my retirement.
You asked, I answered.
You asked, I answered.
October 2012 build X3 30d SE, Bluewater. Now with Webasto sunroof and paddle-shift 
New car
I understand what you are saying, £80k is a crazy amount, but that’s what premium cars cost now. As far as keeping your cash for retirement, that would buy a lot of word searches or jigsaws, I have now been retired for Six years, and saving money for a rainy day brings you to the realisation that it is poring now, doo things today - there may be no tomorrow!
New car
Assuming prices haven’t got even worse, that’s pretty much what an i4 M50 retails at now. Think electric M4 (despite BMW marketing it that way, it isn’t as it’s really an M-Performance car). Had mine 3 1/2 months and am very impressed. Deals are there, but how long you may have to wait could force your hand.
The M50 is twin-motor (AWD) with 544bhp on tap!!! It’s also available in two lower power/RWD only versions, eDrive35 and eDrive 40. Range around 300 miles in Summer. More (~365 claimed) for the eDrive40 - which is a few £k cheaper.
Whether you go electric will depend upon whether you can charge at home (cheaper but slower) or need public chargers (faster but a lot more expensive). I’ve also got mine on a 4-year PCP.
The M50 is twin-motor (AWD) with 544bhp on tap!!! It’s also available in two lower power/RWD only versions, eDrive35 and eDrive 40. Range around 300 miles in Summer. More (~365 claimed) for the eDrive40 - which is a few £k cheaper.
Whether you go electric will depend upon whether you can charge at home (cheaper but slower) or need public chargers (faster but a lot more expensive). I’ve also got mine on a 4-year PCP.
Never anthropomorphise computers. They hate that.New car
Other options (electric) might be:
Kia EV6, Hyundai Ionic 5, Genesis EV60, VW ID4, Tesla 3 (build quality not good according to some but cheap ish), IX3 (electric X3), Polestar (Volvo) and the other Chinese brands.
We thought long and hard about ICE power even had an M340d Touring on order for a while but in the end went full-electric. Full hybrids are OK but the use case (for me) is a bit off. Most can only do 30-50miles on battery and then you’re running a petrol engine and carrying a dead battery! On battery you’re carrying a dead engine….it’s fine if most of your journeys are short, and they work if you need occasional longer runs beyond the battery range….but not if your journeys are always longer.
Most of my journeys (for the next 3 1/2 years anyway) are a 60 mile daily commute and electric works well. I also get free (for now) charging at work which helps. If you have solar panels then you can do even better
(That’s my plan for 2024 or 2025).
If you can home charge, and using the i4’s 80.7kWh battery as an example, a full charge on a 32A domestic connection takes about 8-9 hours and costs £24-79. That gives around 300 miles. My X6 does double that on 80L of diesel and costs £117. An EV will therefore typically do the same distance for £50. If you can home charge, have smart meters, and an EV tariff, you can charge for 6 hours for around £0.075p/kWh instead of the standard £0.307p/kWh. That makes it even cheaper to go electric. You really do need a charge point though, and that’s a £1.2m-£2k investment. Charging mine from a 13A socket is doable, but takes 42 hours, and would you want the power of an electric kettle running from a domestic socket for that long? Probably not!
However what no one tells you about EVs is you don’t run the battery from 100% to 0%. You run it between 80% and 20% and then charge. 100% is OK for occasional use (such as a longer journey) but otherwise damages battery life. Just how long that takes no one yet knows, but it could be at least 10 years. Repeated fast charging is more damaging due to heat. But what ‘repeated’ is defined as no one is clear about, and manufacturers are a bit coy about it. It’s not that I’m trying to put you off electric, it’s just something to be aware of, and for the vast majority of owners won’t matter as the battery warranty is 8 years/100,000 miles anyway.
Servicing for EVs is much cheaper. The i4 fixed service plan (4-years/60,000miles) was £420. The M340d was £1,600.
Kia EV6, Hyundai Ionic 5, Genesis EV60, VW ID4, Tesla 3 (build quality not good according to some but cheap ish), IX3 (electric X3), Polestar (Volvo) and the other Chinese brands.
We thought long and hard about ICE power even had an M340d Touring on order for a while but in the end went full-electric. Full hybrids are OK but the use case (for me) is a bit off. Most can only do 30-50miles on battery and then you’re running a petrol engine and carrying a dead battery! On battery you’re carrying a dead engine….it’s fine if most of your journeys are short, and they work if you need occasional longer runs beyond the battery range….but not if your journeys are always longer.
Most of my journeys (for the next 3 1/2 years anyway) are a 60 mile daily commute and electric works well. I also get free (for now) charging at work which helps. If you have solar panels then you can do even better
(That’s my plan for 2024 or 2025).If you can home charge, and using the i4’s 80.7kWh battery as an example, a full charge on a 32A domestic connection takes about 8-9 hours and costs £24-79. That gives around 300 miles. My X6 does double that on 80L of diesel and costs £117. An EV will therefore typically do the same distance for £50. If you can home charge, have smart meters, and an EV tariff, you can charge for 6 hours for around £0.075p/kWh instead of the standard £0.307p/kWh. That makes it even cheaper to go electric. You really do need a charge point though, and that’s a £1.2m-£2k investment. Charging mine from a 13A socket is doable, but takes 42 hours, and would you want the power of an electric kettle running from a domestic socket for that long? Probably not!
However what no one tells you about EVs is you don’t run the battery from 100% to 0%. You run it between 80% and 20% and then charge. 100% is OK for occasional use (such as a longer journey) but otherwise damages battery life. Just how long that takes no one yet knows, but it could be at least 10 years. Repeated fast charging is more damaging due to heat. But what ‘repeated’ is defined as no one is clear about, and manufacturers are a bit coy about it. It’s not that I’m trying to put you off electric, it’s just something to be aware of, and for the vast majority of owners won’t matter as the battery warranty is 8 years/100,000 miles anyway.
Servicing for EVs is much cheaper. The i4 fixed service plan (4-years/60,000miles) was £420. The M340d was £1,600.
Never anthropomorphise computers. They hate that.-
Onlinesapphireblack
- Snr Member
- Posts: 1666
- Joined: Mon Apr 18, 2011 8:30 am
- Location: Kent, garden of England
New car
Reading the above and with an age negative bias, EVs seem to me to be smply too much compromise and too expensive and thats without the necessary infrastructure. If the battery operating range is 80>20%, that's another major negative.
£80k to spend on a car I've never contemplated, the biggest loss incurring expense ever. If the OP is very wealthy, fair enough but the principal of effectively discarding many £000s is an odd concept to me.
£80k to spend on a car I've never contemplated, the biggest loss incurring expense ever. If the OP is very wealthy, fair enough but the principal of effectively discarding many £000s is an odd concept to me.
New car
It may be an odd concept to you, but then suggestions on what to go for would be welcomed.
After over 28 years of BMW ownership, not sure this is a future option, do I need an x5, maybe not but I did buy an x4 when they first came out, and hated it ( build was not in the same class) don’t want to make that mistake as this may be my last new car.
After over 28 years of BMW ownership, not sure this is a future option, do I need an x5, maybe not but I did buy an x4 when they first came out, and hated it ( build was not in the same class) don’t want to make that mistake as this may be my last new car.
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Onlinesapphireblack
- Snr Member
- Posts: 1666
- Joined: Mon Apr 18, 2011 8:30 am
- Location: Kent, garden of England
New car
Each to their own, freedom of choice etc....only ever bought brand new twice, the financial losses are still a painful memory.
I already have my last/exit vehicle, a thoroughly nice X6 that the previous owner took all the hit on.
I already have my last/exit vehicle, a thoroughly nice X6 that the previous owner took all the hit on.
