CD Article: 2006 BMw 550i

[CD_Editor]

You may discuss our cover story of the day in this thread....
Test Drive:

Updated with a larger engine and a new designation, the 2006 BMW 550i replaces the 2005 545i, and offers a tasty blend of raw power and sophisticated luxury. Assistant Editor Jil McIntosh stretches its legs, and makes peace, of sorts, with iDrive.    More...

[mdxtasy]

Wait for Ferrari to sue BMW for the 550 nameplate. 

[Bullet Blue]

This car with a 6 speed manual and sport package is yummy! 

The price for this awesome machine? Not so yummy...

[sirAQUAMAN64]

MAN that is pricey 

But they're sellin'...

[Shnak]

I think I would go with an A6 4.2 (or even the 3.2 Quattro) instead of this BMW though... the exterior design of this BMW doesn't do much for me, and its interior design is only so-so... I much prefer the Audi overall. I suspect that the BMW is most likely to be more fun to drive than the Audi, but the difference can't be that big, and the Audi makes up for it in other departments, like its close to perfection interior and more appealing exterior. But it's all a matter of opinion I guess.

That said, I wouldn't complain if a 550i magically appeared in my driveway when I wake up tomorrow morning... 

[eax]

If I was buying this car, I'd be picking it up in the US for sure!  At MSRP it would be $67k US equipped the same as the $93k Canadian Version....So even if you paid US MSRP (highly unlikely) and then added 13% exchange, 6% duty and 7% GST you'd still be $10K under the Canadian Version BEFORE tax! LOL  The difference after paying taxes would be $22,000!  Canadian prices were probably set when the exchange was at .75 instead of .87, in addition a helluva lot more will be sold in the US bringing down the transfer price..what a huge difference...but alas...

[G0dspd]

This car is very very nice ... but I'd rather have a M5 from the previous generation.  I don't want (or need) all the bells and whistles. 

[Snowman]

If I was buying this car, I'd be picking it up in the US for sure!  At MSRP it would be $67k US equipped the same as the $93k Canadian Version....So even if you paid US MSRP (highly unlikely) and then added 13% exchange, 6% duty and 7% GST you'd still be $10K under the Canadian Version BEFORE tax! LOL  The difference after paying taxes would be $22,000!  Canadian prices were probably set when the exchange was at .75 instead of .87, in addition a helluva lot more will be sold in the US bringing down the transfer price..what a huge difference...but alas...

Yep, buy from the good ‘Old US of A. You can save $15k on a new Honda S2000

[84im]

I wish I could get a car with lots of power and good handling, but without all those electronic doo-dads, that will eventually malfunction (somewhere down the road) and cost a ton of money.....hey I do;  it's called a V8 Miata.
Seriously, I wonder what these high hp/techno-wonders will be like in five to seven years?  Will they be 'throw-away' cars,  because they're too expensive to get fixed? (much like my Luxman stereo receiver  )

[johngenx]

I wish I could get a car with lots of power and good handling, but without all those electronic doo-dads, that will eventually malfunction (somewhere down the road) and cost a ton of money.....hey I do;  it's called a V8 Miata.
Seriously, I wonder what these high hp/techno-wonders will be like in five to seven years?  Will they be 'throw-away' cars,  because they're too expensive to get fixed? (much like my Luxman stereo receiver  )

There are already many 5-7 year old super-duper complex cars on the market.  The last of the W140 and the early W220 Mercedes S-Class cars are techno-freak cars filled with stuff like air-suspension, electronic everything and overly complex systems attached to every part of the car.  So?  Well, they're used-car nightmares!  People buy them because they're amazed they can buy a flagship car for about 20% of the new price, but then they can't believe the running costs.  Really, if you can't afford the car new, odds are you can't afford it used, either.  What runs up the tab for owning an older S500 or S600?  Is it big engine or trans repairs?  Nope.  It's GIZMO repairs.  Auto-door closers, hyper-complex HVAC systems, integrated audio systems, drive-by-wire, electronic suspension, and on and on.  Add on giant labour costs for service, and those cars can be wallet busters of the highest order.

[ovr50]

Funny how coincidences occur - today I was in the local Chapters store and bumped into an ex-client who has a personnel/headhunting business. I had seen him about 2 months ago at the new BMW store here, and he was looking seriously at a Benz convertible, used and still about $88k, I forget which model. Today, I asked what he got, and did he get the Benz? Nope. What he got was a new BMW 550i. He said once he drove the BMW, he forgot all about the Benz. Didn't get a chance to see the car, but he sounds very pleased with it. 

[Giant Dwarf]

I think I would go with an A6 4.2 (or even the 3.2 Quattro) instead of this BMW though... the exterior design of this BMW doesn't do much for me, and its interior design is only so-so... I much prefer the Audi overall. I suspect that the BMW is most likely to be more fun to drive than the Audi, but the difference can't be that big, and the Audi makes up for it in other departments, like its close to perfection interior and more appealing exterior. But it's all a matter of opinion I guess.

The one really big difference between the two is the available manual transmission on the BMW that can't be had on the A6 4.2.  That's enough to seal the deal for me should I ever be in that quandry.

[Shnak]

I think I would go with an A6 4.2 (or even the 3.2 Quattro) instead of this BMW though... the exterior design of this BMW doesn't do much for me, and its interior design is only so-so... I much prefer the Audi overall. I suspect that the BMW is most likely to be more fun to drive than the Audi, but the difference can't be that big, and the Audi makes up for it in other departments, like its close to perfection interior and more appealing exterior. But it's all a matter of opinion I guess.

The one really big difference between the two is the available manual transmission on the BMW that can't be had on the A6 4.2.  That's enough to seal the deal for me should I ever be in that quandry.

Oh ok, I didn't know that. Is manual available with the A6 3.2? But for me, I would take automatic. Nothing worse then being stuck in a traffic jam for an hour in a car with a manual transmission... I had to live through that in Montreal last winter, stuck about 2 hours trying to get out of the city in the rush hour, and right then and there, I vowed to myself to never buy another manual car. A few weeks after that, I was trading in my manual Golf for the automatic Jetta... 

[tpl]

Hmmmmm my record is 6 hours on the dvp with a manual (1984 iirc)... even that would not cause me to get a slushbox.

[Giant Dwarf]

Agreed Tpl.  Despite living in a traffic war-zone of the GTA, for the few times having a clutch annoys me, (maybe once or twice a year?), I'd never pass it up for the rest of driving enjoyment I get out of having a stick shift.  My wife feels the same way and she commutes even further into the bowels of the GTA.