BMW F30 Sales?

[GTaudiophile]

In contrast to the new F10 (5-series), which seems to be selling like MAD both here in the DC area and in Germany, I am seeing very few F30 (3-series) models. Normally, when a new 3 debuts, they start popping out all over the place. In the affluent DC/NYC areas, I have seen a total of only 2 or 3 of them since February. I just got back from being on business in Germany and saw a total of 2 of them over the two weeks! Normally, the phenomenon of new BMWs popping up all over the place is only amplified in Germany as compared to here. As I said, this is all in stark contrast to the F10, which I am seeing EVERYWHERE.

And idea if sales of BMW's "bread and butter" car are slipping?

 

[SSSnail]

Too expensive for their own good, and people figure why buy a 3 when they can just buy a 5 series for not much more, hence the abundance of 5 series running around your neighborhood. It's the same here in SF.

 

[RbSX]

The 3 series has just become too expensive - the highest selling BMW dealerships are in my city - and despite that, there are none of the new 3 series.

Works fine with me, I think they're heinous anyway.

 

[GTaudiophile]

Interesting that you all are seeing the same thing on the WC. So it's not only me...the Germans are apparently thinking the same thing.

In addition to being too expensive, the 3 is just getting too big. And now BMW can't rely on the 1 series at all because it is DOG UGLY! No one will buy it.

I should also add about my recent trip to Germany: the new AUDI A1 is EVERYWHERE!!!! And it is a FINE little car!

 

[Dari]

The F30 is the same size as an E39...

 

[hans007]

Well the f10 has been out for 2 entire model years.

The 3 was given a half model year for 2012 and 2013 is already rolling out. Plus you live in the northeast and the f30 didn't come with awd models thus year. Awd ones won't come until September

3 series is expensive. Even for this class... but most people lease and BMW is still selling tons of cars. F10 is really expensive btw.... a 528xi cost just as much as an a6 3.0 t optioned the same

The f30 looks a little weird tho I agree. The windshield is too upright and the hood too coupe like for a sedan. I'm not entirely into the new headlights connected to the grill look either . The m sport one for 2013 looks OK. I'm waiting for the f32 to be unveiled to see if BMW hasn't lost it ..... the 2006 e90 wasn't that great looking either

 

[KIAman]

The dealers in my area just started to get them and advertise for them while the F10 has been available for a long time now.

For all those who say the 3 series was just too expensive, IT HAS ALWAYS BEEN TOO EXPENSIVE! LOL. That has nothing to do with the relative sales of the 3 series vs 5 series. I purchased mine for 46k while I could have gotten a base 5 series for around that much.

The 3 is BMW's high volume car. Trust me, you'll be inundated with the F30 within a year.

 

[SSSnail]

The dealers in my area just started to get them and advertise for them while the F10 has been available for a long time now.

For all those who say the 3 series was just too expensive, IT HAS ALWAYS BEEN TOO EXPENSIVE! LOL. That has nothing to do with the relative sales of the 3 series vs 5 series. I purchased mine for 46k while I could have gotten a base 5 series for around that much.

The 3 is BMW's high volume car. Trust me, you'll be inundated with the F30 within a year.

Just for shoots and giggles, I specced out a new one with the same options as my now 6 years old car (330ci) and it's about 7k more. Albeit I'm comparing a 335I coupe against an 330ci, but still.

 

[PricklyPete]

I see a lot of them right now...but then again I'm temporarily living near the only BMW plant in NA.

 

[KDKPSJ]

According to Bimmerpost, the production of 2013 3 series just started in July, which is roughly 22 days at most so far. 2012's has been only around for few months (about 6?), and the dealers were busy clean up their older E9x stocks for the most of the time.

 

[rh71]

I've only seen one and it was an M3 (side gills prominent) in "Estoril Blue" - not too dark or light - with a couple guys standing by talking about it at a Burger King parking lot. I can tell it was the F30 because the headlights / front face was very different. The beak looks a lot better in person. The nice rims didn't hurt either.

Next thing you're gonna say is they're not even out yet and all I'd say to that is I wish I had time to take a pic.

 

[Kelvrick]

I've only seen one and it was an M3 (side gills prominent) in the beautiful sharp blue. I can tell they're the F30 because the headlights / front face was very different. Looks a lot better in person. The nice rims didn't hurt either.

I don't like how the hood doesn't come all the way to the headlights/grill. Otherwise, looks good. I'm hoping to get an F31 next year.

 

[KDKPSJ]

I've only seen one and it was an M3 (side gills prominent) in the beautiful sharp blue - not too dark or light - with a couple guys standing by talking about it at a Burger King parking lot. I can tell it was the F30 because the headlights / front face was very different. Looks a lot better in person. The nice rims didn't hurt either.

Next thing you're gonna say is they're not even out yet and all I'd say to that is I wish I had time to take a pic.

Yah, I really want to see.. hope you took pic. Because it's not just even out, but it's not even announced yet. lol. Probably you saw some pre-production model. I really should stop by Woodcliff Lake (where BMW USA HQ is) to see if they have one around.

 

[Arkaign]

I imagine I'll start to see them en masse at some point. Right now I literally see more current-gen Maseratis, Astons, Lambos, etc, than the new 3-series.

 

[hans007]

I've only seen one and it was an M3 (side gills prominent) in "Estoril Blue" - not too dark or light - with a couple guys standing by talking about it at a Burger King parking lot. I can tell it was the F30 because the headlights / front face was very different. The beak looks a lot better in person. The nice rims didn't hurt either.

Next thing you're gonna say is they're not even out yet and all I'd say to that is I wish I had time to take a pic.

That's a 2013 with m sport probably . Only way you can get estoril blue. M3 is still in mules with spy shots.

 

[Don Vito Corleone]

I've only seen one and it was an M3 (side gills prominent) in "Estoril Blue" - not too dark or light - with a couple guys standing by talking about it at a Burger King parking lot. I can tell it was the F30 because the headlights / front face was very different. The beak looks a lot better in person. The nice rims didn't hurt either.

Next thing you're gonna say is they're not even out yet and all I'd say to that is I wish I had time to take a pic.

It strikes me as at least very surprising that an undisguised F80/F82 M3 would be parking in a Burger King parking lot on Long Island when it hasn't been photographed anywhere in the world. It's possible someone did some body work to a standard F30 328i or 335i to make it look like what we think the M3 will look like - in fact that seems more likely than this really being an M3.

I'm wondering if you know that the front of the E90 M3 looked quite different from the stock E90 (particularly before the refresh in 2009). Is it possible that's what you saw? The rest of the E90 and F30/F80 look pretty similar - the front is much more different than the rest of the car.

E90 330i:

E90 m3:

F30:

 

[GTaudiophile]

You guys still can't account for the sales in Germany. I was in four cities, from north or south. I saw A1s on EVERY street corner. Everywhere. You don't know the Germans. They love their cars and take pride in them. They SNATCH up the new models as soon as they can. Everywhere! But not so with the new 3. I only saw two of them over two weeks. Highly strange to me.

 

[KDKPSJ]

You guys still can't account for the sales in Germany. I was in four cities, from north or south. I saw A1s on EVERY street corner. Everywhere. You don't know the Germans. They love their cars and take pride in them. They SNATCH up the new models as soon as they can. Everywhere! But not so with the new 3. I only saw two of them over two weeks. Highly strange to me.

Maybe because A1's been out there since 2010 in Europe, while F30 is less than 6 months old (sale started 2/11/12)?? Plus, there's only sedan version of new 3 so far, and sedan is not the dominant form of car over there, is it? I thought Germans/Europeans like small hatchback/wagon, which A1 is?

 

[PhoKingGuy]

Seen a bunch of them in the Sarasota/Tampa area.

 

[rh71]

It strikes me as at least very surprising that an undisguised F80/F82 M3 would be parking in a Burger King parking lot on Long Island when it hasn't been photographed anywhere in the world. It's possible someone did some body work to a standard F30 328i or 335i to make it look like what we think the M3 will look like - in fact that seems more likely than this really being an M3.

I'm wondering if you know that the front of the E90 M3 looked quite different from the stock E90 (particularly before the refresh in 2009). Is it possible that's what you saw? The rest of the E90 and F30/F80 look pretty similar - the front is much more different than the rest of the car.


F30:

yeah it was definitely an F30 front end. I keep up with the spy shots and BMW changes also (redesigned X5 coming soon and will look similar).

The m-sport would explain the wheels - too bad I didn't see the rear to check for the quad exhausts, but I don't know why there were side gills... that's the one thing a BMW driver won't (or at least shouldn't) fake. I did see it once though on a 528 or something and was so tempted to say something to him.

There's also this guy that put an M-badge on his 750 in my neighborhood:
http://www.imagebam.com/image/da5dbc189344701

 

[thegimp03]

A friend of mine took euro delivery on his F30. Other than that, I haven't seen many of them.

 

[ballmode]

Been looking at getting a 2008-2010 135i and surprised on how much those have tanked in value

 

[ElFenix]

i see them from time to time around here. you really have to look hard to make sure it isn't the prior model though. the changes were rather subtle.