[iDOorDIE]

i'm seriously thinking about doing a ED for my newly ordered 335i, however i have some concerns i'm hoping a few people here can help me with....

#1) is there different pricing (invoice, MSRP or otherwise) for ED orders on the cars AND/OR their options? what should i be paying (more or less) for a ED 335i fully loaded with all the options?

#2) i've never been to germany, munich, austria, the alps etc: and am a little worried about my ability to get around (even with navigation) and was wondering if (or how safe) would it be for someone with NO experience in those countries to get around and navigate thru out those areas without ending up lost on some mountain top trying to find my way back down.

#3) how dangerous (from an experienced point of view) would it be to safely drive in those countries without really knowing their road rules, laws etc:
(i would hate to be involved in some wreck in my new ride because i couldn't understand some road sign because it was written in german)

#4) i'm from south florida and i normally drive my current car (through some deserted back roads) at speeds ranging between 100 - 120mph quite often.
undertanding that the ED has alot to do with enjoying the autobahn and driving faster than one normally would in the U.S., driving the autobahn or at least driving at a high rate of speed would be nothing really new to me, so would there be other alternatives for me other than the autobahn? it would serve me better to maybe take some sight seeing roads with maybe a few twist & turns. does anyone out there have any road/trip suggestions in where i can see more of the roadside sight seeing stuff as opposed to the high speed stuff?

#5) i'm thinking of taking my ED on the first day, checking into my hotel (any close by hotel suggestions) and spend the rest of the day relaxing from the jet lag and familiarizing myself with the owners manual and the car itself. any hotel suggestions that are close to the ED pick up center?

on day 2 (and once familiar with my new car) i would like to do some traveling to see some different sights/areas. i wouldn't mind driving several hours (with lunch/dinner/sight seeing pit stops in between to get there). once at my new found destination maybe check into a hotel to relax, walk the neighborhood and enjoy the night life a little.

day 3, check out and drive to yet another destination (several hours away is okay again with my usual lunch/dinner/sightseeing pit stops etc) once at my new destination, check in, relax, and do the same as mentioned on day 2.

day 4, on this day i would like to drive my car to the drop off point closest to the actual shipping area (where it actually gets on the ship) to drop it off so i can then check into some hotel and spend the night, or take a cab back to the airport so i can fly my way back home.

any ideas, suggestions or information on how i should handle some of my concerns and/or driving plans??

i thank you all in advance for your suggestions!!

thank you!!

[CALIF65GM]

You asked a lot of questions that have already been answered many times over. I'll try to answer some of them, but I recommend that you check out bimmerfest.com. There's a while forum on EDs there.

1. Yes ED invoice price is lower the US invoice price. No price difference on the options though, but you should only pay for them at invoice cost also. Check the pricing sticky that's posted here.

2. It's actually well marked and there's a site (don't have the link) which has the signs translated for you. I would avoid driving in the middle of the cities though.

3. Once you get the road and got for a few miles, it'll be like riding a bike. Besides the roads are typically a lot better than the states.

4. Yes you can take the smaller roads that go through the towns, but the A-bahn through the alps give you quite a lot of curvest too.

5. A lot of people have stayed at the Marriot or Renaissance's which is 10 mins from the Munich pick-up location in Freimann. You can bid on Priceline. Honestly if you're spending a few days in Munich, it's probably better to pick-up the 2nd day then the first because you're jet-lagged and not familiar with the roads nor the car.

6. Well the cars actually are loaded onto ships in Bremerhaven which is in Northern Germany. It's not exactly a hub for Trans-atlantic flights. If you're not planning to visit any other countries, then dropping off the car back off at Munich is your best bet or Frankfurt.

Good luck.

[iDOorDIE]

thank you! i'll look into those other sticky's for the pricing. thanks for all your help!

one last question! when doing th ED, do you get to keep (and bring to the U.S.) the license plate they give you over in germany?

[JSpira]

Originally Posted by iDOorDIE

thank you! i'll look into those other sticky's for the pricing. thanks for all your help!

one last question! when doing th ED, do you get to keep (and bring to the U.S.) the license plate they give you over in germany?

You can remove the front one and take it with you; the rear one stays on the car and may or may not be there when you get redelivery in the States

[iDOorDIE]

i'm leaving for my ED from southwest florida on 10/21/06 (saturday) and landing in Munich on sunday 10/22/06 (early morning) to which i don't have to pick up my 335i until monday 10/23/06.

i'll be returning home on 10/28/06 via frankfurt (or hamburg)(i'm still undecided).

my driving plan is to explore germany along the western border where i will eventually work my way into frankfurt for the drop off on friday 10/27/06.

so here are my questions:

#1) would it be wise to drop my car off at Bremehaven (the actual SHIPPING POINT) and either train, car rental, or taxi my way back to frankfurt (or hamburg) for my flight back home the next day? (by dropping off in Bremehaven i'm hoping to shave a few days off the actual shipping process).

#2) are there any special routes, cities, areas or stops along the way which anyone here can recommend?

#3) is there anyone on here doing ED around the same time who would like to meet up over there?

#4) i can use that Lufthansa 2 for 1 deal so is there anyone on here who would like to join me on the trip? (hotel and airfare will be covered so all you have to bring would be your own spending $$).

any ideas? or any takers?

thanks for the imput!

[CALIF65GM]

IDo, try posting this on bimmerfest.com ED Forum. You'll get much better response.

[iDOorDIE]

ok, thanks!

[chicagolab]

Our first 2 days of European delivery were similar to what you envision. The first day we picked up the car, recovered visited downtown Munich a little bit. Day 2 we took a day trip through the Alps stopping in Mittenwald, Germany and Innsbruck, Austria and returning to Munich at night. Day 3, we tok another day trip to the town of Fussen, also a nice drive and we visited the "Disney castle".

ED is safe, the german respect driving rules more than Americans and in some ways it is easier to drive there. Defniately get the navigation. For safety research the street symbols in Germany before you go, there are many sites that give you pics and meanings of roadsigns.

As mentioned above , check out the stickys in the Bimmerfest.com European delivery section, lots of good info.

I would drop off the car in a city that you actually want to visit because it is very difficult to speed up the delivery and there are many variables so dropping off in a port may not end up in a time savings.

Read my link below about my trip for details and some possible ideas, also read about other peolpes trips and pick and choose things/sights that seem interesting to you. e.g.I never heard of Mittenwald before, but I read about it at bimmerfest and it was one of the best days of our trip, I never used priceline before and I got a room at the Sheraton for about $70.

[zibawal]

Can some one plss post revised aughust price sheet for E92 coupe?

[horatiub]

Originally Posted by CALIF65GM

IDo, try posting this on bimmerfest.com ED Forum. You'll get much better response.

also, you can check Irv's site, he has really good info on there also.

www.edBMW.com

[zibawal]

thnx

[THE JEDI]

Okay so how much did anybody pay for a 330 or 325 or X3 using european delivery...and did you have to pay for plane tickets to germany or europe where you picked up you car...I'm considering doing this for an 335 coupe..really need your help on this one fellas..thank in advance....

Jedi

[panzer948]

To answer the question above. You will have to pay for your on plane tickets.

I have a question too. I am seriously thinking of the ED, but cannot travel till early next year (January) due to other vacations planned this fall/Christmas. So I will need to time my order accordingly. I do not want to wait much later than the first of the year (obviously) but am concerned about the winter in Germany. I really want to enjoy driving the car on the autobahn and seeing a few sights in Germany, but the road conditions may ruin the trip. Does anyone know what its like over there in January? ANyone else did ED in January?

[jadeddjay]

when visiting the dealership and showing some interest in ED for a 335i, the dealer keeps telling me that the price is not negotiable becuase "its alot of paperwork" and he keeps saying that unprovoked. any thoughts on how to handle that?

[IrvRobinson]

Originally Posted by jadeddjay

when visiting the dealership and showing some interest in ED for a 335i, the dealer keeps telling me that the price is not negotiable becuase "its alot of paperwork" and he keeps saying that unprovoked. any thoughts on how to handle that?

Find a different dealer to take care of you and give you great service.If a CA knows what they're doing,it's not that much more work.I spend more time answering emails than the actual paperwork,that's why we developed a web site dedicated to ED,to answer a lot of questions and have most of the information in one place to make it easier for the people that are on these forums and for the average person who doesn't go on the Internet.Let me know if I can help..

[jadeddjay]

thanks for the headsup, i really appreciate all the effort that was put into the site

[horatiub]

Originally Posted by jadeddjay

thanks for the headsup, i really appreciate all the effort that was put into the site

yeah, the website looks really cool. Good info and very easy to navigate

[scubajag]

Irv, I didn't find this answered on your website - Can I order a ED car from you and have stateside delivery at my local BMW dealer? Thanks.

[IrvRobinson]

you could order from me,but then I would have to charge you an additional 500 to pay the dealer that agrees to do a courtesy delivery,and if they didn't get the order in the first place, most of them are not willing to do it.I could have your car sent on a flatbed or or a larger carrier,but that could run about 750 to Fl. Think about this,when you drop your car off in Europe, you won't have it for six weeks and you will suffer from car withdrawal.Once you get it from your local dealer,you usually go back to your daily routine.By coming up here to pick it up,you get some quality time in your car,with guaranteed flashbacks of your European driving experience.When was the last time you drove 1500 miles in the beautiful USA ?

[scubajag]

Thanks, Irv, I appreciate the information. When the time comes for the E-93 I will look into this further.

[Wosby]

Originally Posted by Jason

Check out this slick European Delivery price calculator. Courtesy of YvesJ. Need Excel to run this.

CLICK HERE FOR EUROPEAN DELIVERY PRICE CALCULATOR

Does anyone have this calculator with the 335i Sedan prices?

[Wosby]

Originally Posted by stressdoc

Everyone is right in their own way here. Athos correctly notes that the invoice price difference btw ED and regular delivery for a 330 is $2,510 (2,150 for 325). Unless the dealer is willing to cut more off the ED that is the difference. Airfare, hotels, jet lag, the wait, putting up the cash before you get your new car back in the states (and having to keep your old car until the ED arrives) make it a difficult option. That is probably why only 1% of buyers opt for ED.

Others have noted that their dealers were willing to cut more off an ED, for reasons involving allotment. They got a great deal via ED. Some can get a free ticket to Munich. And save not having to rent a car. But anyone can get a reasonable fare off-season, and there is the 2 for 1 Lufthansa deal. Stick to reasonable hotels, and getting to enjoy Germany and beyond, and it is a wonderful experience. The few Gs I save are a deal maker -- I have to convince the wife that a BMW is a good deal compared to a, gulp, Accord or a Camry.

There is US MSRP, US Invoice, ED MSRP, and ED Invoice!

You and Athos must be comparing ED MSRP v. US MSRP, which is only about a $2500 difference. If I priced a 330i(SP,PP,CWP, etc) using US MSRP, then priced it using ED Invoice, then compared the 2, the difference between ED Invoice and US MRSP is $5800.

The difference is the choice between a dealership that wont negotiate on a domestic purchase and you paying full MSRP, and finding a dealer that negotiates on ED invoice, and taking advantage of the program.

Personally, I'd go ED everytime.

Wosby