Well now I'm really fustrated. I posted this before the forum changed and I don't remember my old user name so I'm under a new one.
I've been looking for a bmw 3 series for the past 2 months. Now my uncle is a mechanic for japanese cars and has told me and my parents that BMWs are very hectic. They break down a lot and parts + labor are very expensive etc etc.
The main purpose of this car is for my enjoyment + commute to school. I live in the San Francisco Bay Area and go to school in the Los Angeles area... making it around a 400+ mile trip one way. I'll probably drive home a total of 4 to 5 times per year.
If I were to buy say a 328i/is 96-98 would it be able to last me the remaining years of college (maybe around 3 years). Also, would this kind of long drive put a lot of stress onto the car?? I mean I don't want to have to pay for replacement parts if anything goes wrong... Also I have heard that if you need work done on your car you pretty much have to go to a BMW dealership to get it done... I mean aren't there any certified BMW shops also?? Is it rare to find these kind of shops?
My last resort is to go back to japanese cars ( I really dislike american cars ). I don't really like any japanese cars within my price range.
I've been looking for a bmw 3 series for the past 2 months. Now my uncle is a mechanic for japanese cars and has told me and my parents that BMWs are very hectic. They break down a lot and parts + labor are very expensive etc etc.
The main purpose of this car is for my enjoyment + commute to school. I live in the San Francisco Bay Area and go to school in the Los Angeles area... making it around a 400+ mile trip one way. I'll probably drive home a total of 4 to 5 times per year.
If I were to buy say a 328i/is 96-98 would it be able to last me the remaining years of college (maybe around 3 years). Also, would this kind of long drive put a lot of stress onto the car?? I mean I don't want to have to pay for replacement parts if anything goes wrong... Also I have heard that if you need work done on your car you pretty much have to go to a BMW dealership to get it done... I mean aren't there any certified BMW shops also?? Is it rare to find these kind of shops?
My last resort is to go back to japanese cars ( I really dislike american cars ). I don't really like any japanese cars within my price range.