Chosing a car: Jetta TDI here or BMW X3 in the US

[bmnb4tches]

Hi,

I would like to buy a diesel car, I used to drive one in Europe and I was completely satisfied with it.
When I started to look for a diesel in Toronto I found a unsightly picture of new car market. Prices are so high, for example, new Jetta (wagon, automatic) costs more that 32000.

But what is the point to buy small golf class here if you can buy 2006 BWM X3 for 25000 across the border?

But there are some questions: financing and delivery. As I understand nobody is going to provide funding for me in the US as I'm Canadian PR. And delivery is the second question: I've heard about companies who can bring to you any car from US. But how to ensure that there is no major problem with such "blind bought" car?

[mr_raider]

No point in getting BMWs in the US. They charge a truckload for the of letter of clearance, and the free maintenance isn't valid here. I would prefer the Jetta since it will be cheaper on gas and cheaper to maintain.

Mind you, you're comparing a compact car to an SUV.

[bmnb4tches]

>>No point in getting BMWs in the US. They charge a truckload for the of letter of clearance, and the free maintenance isn't valid here. I would prefer the Jetta since it will be cheaper on gas and cheaper to maintain.
Could you please tell me more details? What is a "truckload for the of letter of clearance"? Free maintenance isn't valid here - are you sure? Is it BMW word-wide policy? If yes, than I am very surprised, for example in Europe you can get service at any authorized BMW dealer regardless country.

>>Mind you, you're comparing a compact car to an SUV.
Right, the cars are not equivalent - BMW is better :),
but I am looking into the price. Of course, I would prefer 2 years old BMW for 25-30 than brand-new Jetta.

[LegiT]

>>No point in getting BMWs in the US. They charge a truckload for the of letter of clearance, and the free maintenance isn't valid here. I would prefer the Jetta since it will be cheaper on gas and cheaper to maintain.
Could you please tell me more details? What is a "truckload for the of letter of clearance"? Free maintenance isn't valid here - are you sure? Is it BMW word-wide policy? If yes, than I am very surprised, for example in Europe you can get service at any authorized BMW dealer regardless country.

>>Mind you, you're comparing a compact car to an SUV.
Right, the cars are not equivalent - BMW is better :),
but I am looking into the price. Of course, I would prefer 2 years old BMW for 25-30 than brand-new Jetta.

My goodness.
There's a thread with over 2.5 million views with regards to importing a car and every piece of information you need. The search bar is a useful tool.
However, I'll answer the questions.
Yes, the free maintenance is not covered and is confirmed. Only the 4 year warranty is but in order to do so, you must pay ~$1500-2000 to have your car "suitable" to Canadian standards. I believe you also have to pay for the clearance letter but I'm not sure. Europe is different. If BMW really cared, would they have inflated prices compared to the US or be a hassle when importing a car from the US to Canada?

[Piro21]

If you can wait a year both Mercedes and BMW are bringing diesels out here. Acura should be bringing out the i-dtec engine from the euro Accord in the TSX as well. It looks like Nissan is bringing them here too:
http://www.autoblog.com/2007/04/18/nissan-will-sell-diesel-maxima-in-u-s-by-2010/

[tarnator]

If you can wade though the thousands of posts in the 'Hot Deals' forum, there is a thread on how to import cars from the US. BMW are notoriously difficult, but not impossible. Use the 'search thread' option to find BMW posts.

I am looking at cheaper cars from the US, but did consider the X3 at one point.

[bmnb4tches]

>>My goodness.
There's a thread with over 2.5 million views with regards to importing a car and every piece of information you need. The search bar is a useful tool.

However, I'll answer the questions.
Yes, the free maintenance is not covered and is confirmed. Only the 4 year warranty is but in order to do so, you must pay ~$1500-2000 to have your car "suitable" to Canadian standards. I believe you also have to pay for the clearance letter but I'm not sure. Europe is different. If BMW really cared, would they have inflated prices compared to the US or be a hassle when importing a car from the US to Canada?[/QUOTE]

Special warranty for Canada - go crazy! I didn't think that stuff like that is so neglected here... Canadian standards, famous Canadian work experience, Canadian taxes - Canada is a special country indeed :)

But the question remains: doest it make sense to bring equivalent in price to Canada but more higher class car from US?

[Drew_W]

http://www.bmw.ca/content/pressReleases/can_us_faq_fs.asp?

[bmnb4tches]

http://www.bmw.ca/content/pressReleases/can_us_faq_fs.asp?
I wonder to whom did they prepare this "****"?
I especially enjoyed their example of "Total Savings of Leasing In Canada" compare to US: it equals $6,940 :)

And 500$ "recall letter" is nice too. This is just 1 query to a database :)
Why on earth nobody couldn't bring BMW to trial?

[ilfsoy]

No point in getting BMWs in the US. They charge a truckload for the of letter of clearance, and the free maintenance isn't valid here. I would prefer the Jetta since it will be cheaper on gas and cheaper to maintain.

Mind you, you're comparing a compact car to an SUV.

Don't forget about the massive repair bills the Jetta will accumulate. Remember to check reliability numbers before buying. Jettas rate 4/10 and cost thousands a year just to keep on the road. The BMW would be cheaper in this regard. The TDI will save you in fuel (not gas) costs though. ;)

[seftonm]

Don't forget about the massive repair bills the Jetta will accumulate. Remember to check reliability numbers before buying. Jettas rate 4/10 and cost thousands a year just to keep on the road. The BMW would be cheaper in this regard. The TDI will save you in fuel (not gas) costs though. ;)
Where do you get this information? Most reports I have seen say the new Jetta has above average reliability. Thousands a year to keep on the road? I don't see how any car with a warranty could manage that unless fuel and insurance is included.

[ssainani]

for what it's worth my tdi was the most reliable (and cheapest to run) car i've owned -- our 'reliable' acura was traded in while still under warranty due to being on transmission number 3 :cheesygri

[ichpen]

Personal opinion here but the only thing that looks worse than an X3 is an X6. Sorry, had to get this off my chest. Frankly I don't see the point of this particular cross-over. The 3 series is a fine handling car not a fine handling caravan.

I'd vote for the TDI.

[bmnb4tches]

Don't forget about the massive repair bills the Jetta will accumulate. Remember to check reliability numbers before buying. Jettas rate 4/10 and cost thousands a year just to keep on the road. The BMW would be cheaper in this regard. The TDI will save you in fuel (not gas) costs though. ;)

Of course! How could I forget! These german cars, yep!

You buy VW, as soon as you live dealership - go immediately to the dealer workshop! You unreliable, according to the newest, very precise and accurate consumer reports new VW gonna be falling apart...

NEW one especially.

[bmnb4tches]

Personal opinion here but the only thing that looks worse than an X3 is an X6. Sorry, had to get this off my chest. Frankly I don't see the point of this particular cross-over. The 3 series is a fine handling car not a fine handling caravan.

I'd vote for the TDI.

Why not to have fine handling car plus caravan? :) instead of only Jetta wagon.