Used car guys....what's up??

I am thinking of doing something stupid and replacing the GTI with a BMW M2 or possibly M4. I don't know how many of these cars are built, but there seems to be very few available on the used market. Like as in 5 (3 on Carvana and 2 on eBay) and maybe 2 of them are manual.

I know COVID shut down the auto auctions for months, and thus used car prices were high as dealers scrambled for inventory.

What is going on now?? Or is it just because this is a specialty vehicle with low production?

 

They were expensive and not a lot of people took the plunge in the US and even less sell them. As for manuals, the semi auto were faster and people are too stupid to appreciate shifting a manual.

How is pricing on the used ones? Once again, might be easier to buy new.

and don't forget, the used market is the hottest market for a lot of cars right now.

 

I don't consider them rare or hard to get, we just avoid them as BMW's don't sell well these days. Too many people figured out they are crap lol. Sweet when they work though, and they aren't any worse then VW so you'll be fine.
As for manual's, yeah good luck. Its an automatic world we live in. Majority of people who buy these are going for bragging rights and the auto is faster and less effort plus boy/girlfriend can drive it too. Not to mention most people who can afford them new are old and hate using their body for anything anymore.

 

My GF has a 2018 M3 sedan she daily drives. The thing is amazing. Her's is the paddle shift semi auto. The older SMGs were complete shit, but the new ones are a huge improvement. They crack off crisp in manual mode and shift smoothly in auto mode. Even matches revs nicely on downshifts in auto mode. I've spent plenty of time behind the wheel and highly recommend one, even though I would buy a manual if it were mine.

 

I would have never considered an auto sports car until my daughter let me take out a Cayman S last year with an auto. The hell with manual's...if I want to shift gears, I'll ride a motorcycle.

 

This is the truest statment I have heard in a while. I am not kidding you that I have owned over 20 BMW's from E28-F36 and the F36 was the last straw. It has less then 40k miles on it and the engine mount broke, not doing anything crazy, just merging on to an on ramp, little acceleration, then clunk and the mount broke and took out the intercooler pipes etc, it was something like $1800 in damages and labor, thank GOD I bought it CPO. I have had fairly good luck with the M cars, (E30, E36, E46, E39 I have owned) but I bought all of those from enthusiast prior to my ownership and because its an M car people seem to maintain them a little better. Though I am not as sure anymore as anyone on youtube/streaming these days seems to be able to afford a $100,000+ sports car. Just my 0.02, skip the BMW if you need one get the M2, its THE LAST great M car that BMW will make.

 

I’ve never considered a car unless it had three pedals. Then I got a C7 with a 7 speed manual and couldn’t stand it. You would think with 7 gears 1st would be a stump puller but fuck no. Pain in the ass if you were trying to stay below 10 mph for any one of a thousand reasons. So my next C7 (Z06) had to be auto and it is the shit. Though my taste for hot rods and muscle cars remains the same. Three pedals or nothing.

 

Low mileage manuals 2017 and newer 45k-ish. I actually thought along the same lines as you, but none of the dealers have any.

I know the auto is great/faster but I don’t care. I’m not trying to set lap records on the way to the grocery store.

the most annoying part is getting excited about a used one listed as manual, then going into the pics and seeing the stupid auto shift knob. Makes me want to punch the poster in the face.
I am aware any car like this can have reliability issues, but the GTI hasn’t exactly been stellar, either.

 

What about a new Golf R?

Weird: was Just talking to the neighbor kid and he's looking for the same cars you are but also an S4 with a manual. He said he can't find anything and when he does, they are modded.

 

I got a deal for you @Gino230 ... I’ve been thinking about selling my 2011 335xi with the chippable N55 engine. 6 spd with 45k miles. 300 herspers stock and
Can easily chip it up to 380. Thing just sits around and I might be going with the new Bronco. Last year of hydraulic steering and the first year of the N55 with the better and more reliable turbo. It’ll save you 20k from what you’re thinking about.

 

Cant help you finding the car, but one of my co-workers has an M2, he let me drive it the other day and its great fun, but quite small inside (smaller than your GTI, if a MK7).
Another coworker has a M3 Competition and its much bigger.

I personally prefer the M2 but the size is something to keep in mind.

 

I bought a 2018 M2 Auto a year ago for 44k (dealer auction outside of DC) that had 7k miles on it. Sold it two weeks ago for 43,4oo.00 (to a dealer in AZ) and it now has 17k miles on it. The automatic transmissions in them are amazing. I dont think I could manually shift it as well as it does with the stall like clutch that it has. I know I cant use the bump shifter and make it run faster than the car can. Very stable and well balanced car. Super fun to drive.

 

So do I have this correct, various BMWs have plastic intake manifolds, plastic thermostat bodies, plastic water pump impellers?

 

Many vehicles across multiple brands do this.

 

The GTI had a plastic intake manifold that failed around 90k miles. Some actuator arm failed and they can't be fixed, only replaced. They have a service bulletin to fix them for free on all the models up to 2013, but not the 2013 for some reason, so I had to replace it. Then the turbo failed shortly after. I got VW to pay for the parts but the whole thing still cost me around $2 grand.

The oil pan is plastic, too.

My new F-150 has a plastic oil pan, and a quarter turn thumb screw for an oil plug.

Built to last?

 

I actually looked at just trading it on a another GTI. But they're all 4 doors, now. I don't like the body style nearly as much. Plus we're approaching 10 years on this car, It would be nice to be looking at a different interior.

It's just the wife and I, the 3 series are too big for us. I was originally looking at the M4, but the M2 is almost identical performance wise and I can count on one hand the times we've had someone in the back seat of the GTI.

 

Audi is bringing in the S3 and RS3. Doubt you can get a manual in either and the interior is kinda close to what you're used to but that RS4 is like 395 HP and a shit ton of torque (like 350 lb-ft) out of that crazy ass 5 cylinder.

 

Zero M2's going through Manheims in the SE

Bunch of M4's going in Florida

 

How do you feel about the A7? I love the looks and features though Audi doesn't even match Kia in terms of their infotainment. Is it worth stepping up the the S7?

 

There are a bunch of M2 and M2 competition on swapalease- I haven’t looked at any of the buyouts so I don’t know if they are good deals or not. I have been looking as I don’t want a huge commitment but would like something fun with a fixed cost.