Newer Hyundai Genesis vs older BMW 3 series

[slackerinabox]

This isn't a this week purchase, but I'm planning to get my wife something a little more zoomy than our minivan once it's paid off and have a budget of around $15,000. As far as her likes - I'm a NYC driver and am very A to B oriented but she grew up in Americana, she likes performance and driving feel and the minivan has been purgatory for her - she likes zoom zoom, so a v8 genesis seems like fun.

I've seen 2012 Genesis' at that price range and older (2007-09) BWM 3 series for the price. If I'm not a brand name snob and my #1 priority is less headaches at the dealership, what would you chose?

I'm weird in that I actually prefer Korean reliability - my Kia sedona and Hyunda elantra have been absolutely bulletproof compared to our luxury but quirky Volvo s80 that cost us much more to maintain (pricier gas, oil change) and had more trips to the dealership than either koreans, for often non-"luxurious" reasons (trim falling off, brake lights going out monthly).

Is my impression that the genesis would just be less of a hassle accurate?

Other cars we considered:

2012 Volkwagen Passat (she just likes the look, I consider them questionable reliability wise)
Impala SS - She was born in Detroit and likes american muscle (her favorite car would vintage chargers, but you can't fit car seats in the bag)
Nissan Maxima

 

[Dice144]

From personal experience, avoid the passat

 

[slackerinabox]

From personal experience, avoid the passat

annoying minor issues (like loose trim) or fundamentally flawed driving system (faulty transmissions, engine issues?).

 

[Dice144]

Transmission went with 53k on it. Now the engine is burning oil and some other issue which I need to get checked soon.

I got the car used with 43k on it, now 70k on it. I feel like it is a ticking time bomb

 

[Jimzz]

Less headaches? Asian or American over European cars IMO and experience.

Get the Genesis out of those 2 options. The Genesis was on our short list with the CTS and G37. Found a CTS we liked and they came down enough so we got that.

The Genesis is a full size car so its bigger than a CTS or 3 series. But a 2012 or newer had the updated engine and transmission. So look at the 2012-2014 for the first gen models.

 

[slackerinabox]

Transmission went with 53k on it. Now the engine is burning oil and some other issue which I need to get checked soon.

I got the car used with 43k on it, now 70k on it. I feel like it is a ticking time bomb

Yikes, thank you for sharing - removed from our list.

 

[slackerinabox]

Less headaches? Asian or American over European cars IMO and experience.

Get the Genesis out of those 2 options. The Genesis was on our short list with the CTS and G37. Found a CTS we liked and they came down enough so we got that.

The Genesis is a full size car so its bigger than a CTS or 3 series. But a 2012 or newer had the updated engine and transmission. So look at the 2012-2014 for the first gen models.

Hmm, my instincts as well. How are you liking the CTS? It looks a little flashy and bling for me but the mrs. would like it, and I have weirdly good experiences with saturns. The vue was a piece of junk, but cheap to fix. I remember being annoyed the a power mirror would fail or taillight out, but then exhale when I found parts for like 60 bucks. CTS similar? Quirky, but cheap to fix?

I think my wife likes the bling of bmw, but I really like how chill our korean minivan has been. Everything's working smoothly, and fit and finish feels great. For less than $1,200 I set it up with carplay, backup cams, and invisible subwoofers and it's a great people move- but she finds it soulless. Is the genesis soulless and perfunctory? I suppose a test drive is in order.

 

[Jimzz]

Hmm, my instincts as well. How are you liking the CTS? It looks a little flashy and bling for me but the mrs. would like it, and I have weirdly good experiences with saturns. The vue was a piece of junk, but cheap to fix. I remember being annoyed the a power mirror would fail or taillight out, but then exhale when I found parts for like 60 bucks. CTS similar? Quirky, but cheap to fix?

I think my wife likes the bling of bmw, but I really like how chill our korean minivan has been. Everything's working smoothly, and fit and finish feels great. For less than $1,200 I set it up with carplay, backup cams, and invisible subwoofers and it's a great people move- but she finds it soulless. Is the genesis soulless and perfunctory? I suppose a test drive is in order.

I like it a lot. We had a first Gen and this is a 2009 RWD with the performance package. Only thing bad about the CTS is many do not have a lot of options. Ours has the heated seats, performance package, HIDs, and some other things so that was one of the big reasons I went for this car.

The AWD had some issues the first couple years and the motors you need to check the oil as the level sensor is to low so low oil will starve the timing chain a little without turning the low oil light on. Nothing major if you keep it up, my first gen had the same issue and never had a problem.
Other than that its been great. MUCH more reliable than our previous car, Mercedes E350. Owned it for 1 year and my wife was to tired of all the issues from minor to trans work with less than 50k on it.

 

[jlee]

I've read some bad stuff about the CTS-4 -- particularly the output shaft breaking on the diff. The RWD model seems to be fine except for some occasional timing chain problems.

 

[NutBucket]

Probably depends on year. I would avoid anything before 2011 or 2012 that has the 3.6 V6.

 

[Jimzz]

Probably depends on year. I would avoid anything before 2011 or 2012 that has the 3.6 V6.

I've had/have 2 CTS with the 3.6 (2005 and 2009), 2 BiLs with the 3.6, and a couple customers with the 3.6 as well. All of them, except my current one with 38k, went 100k+ with no timing chain issue. Biggest problem is people run syn oil and do not check between oil changes. GMs fix was to reprogram the oil life monitor to change sooner.

 

[slackerinabox]

I like it a lot. We had a first Gen and this is a 2009 RWD with the performance package. Only thing bad about the CTS is many do not have a lot of options. Ours has the heated seats, performance package, HIDs, and some other things so that was one of the big reasons I went for this car.

The AWD had some issues the first couple years and the motors you need to check the oil as the level sensor is to low so low oil will starve the timing chain a little without turning the low oil light on. Nothing major if you keep it up, my first gen had the same issue and never had a problem.
Other than that its been great. MUCH more reliable than our previous car, Mercedes E350. Owned it for 1 year and my wife was to tired of all the issues from minor to trans work with less than 50k on it.

Thanks for the feedback. I think we'll drag this out and test drive away, because on paper the cts does seem to have a lot more personality than the genesis, but the genesis gets more power for the money and lots of feature bang for buck. I see a huge inventory of cheap 3 and 6 series in the used market on the north east, I'm thinking a lot of people have issues with the years I can afford so are dumping them.

 

[RayH]

I helped my parents pick a 2009 Genesis over an Avalon. Depending on how you drive the V6 has plenty enough power but where it's going to fall short from BMW is the suspension and handling. This is compared to a 2001 BMW 540i which I had for a while.

Hyundai really cheaped out on the OEM Dunlop tires but I don't know if they used them on later model years. I upgraded them to Continental ExtremeContact DWS and it made a huge difference in the ride quality. They haven't put many miles on the car but the only thing they've had to do maintenance wise was change a battery and swap tires along with a wheel alignment.

If you are looking for a used BMW (or any used car in general), don't forget to find the service interval on the car and whether it's been done yet and factor that into the cost.

 

[Jimzz]

Thanks for the feedback. I think we'll drag this out and test drive away, because on paper the cts does seem to have a lot more personality than the genesis, but the genesis gets more power for the money and lots of feature bang for buck. I see a huge inventory of cheap 3 and 6 series in the used market on the north east, I'm thinking a lot of people have issues with the years I can afford so are dumping them.

Yea the updated trans in 2012 Genesis helped a good deal with the power band shifts and even gas mileage if you are not to hard on it.

Its a good car if taken car of.

 

[KentState]

I've read some bad stuff about the CTS-4 -- particularly the output shaft breaking on the diff. The RWD model seems to be fine except for some occasional timing chain problems.

Mine had no issues at 35k miles and I wasn't easy on it being a lease.

 

[senseamp]

I'd look at Infinitis, if she wants something sporty without the usual German car headaches.
I feel like driving a Generis will be too much like driving a minivan in the handling department.

 

[core2slow]

I'd look at Infinitis, if she wants something sporty without the usual German car headaches.

Dumb, regurgitating, archaic nonsense.

 

[senseamp]

Dumb, regurgitating, archaic nonsense.

My friend has a mid 2000s 3 series. He always has stuff go wrong with it. The engine gaskets, suspension, some other stuff, I don't even remember the whole thing, but he's always either DIY fixing it, or paying someone to do it. Germans over-engineer things too far up the diminishing returns and increasing headaches hockey stick.

 

[jlee]

Mine had no issues at 35k miles and I wasn't easy on it being a lease.

I thought you had a V?

 

[KentState]

I thought you had a V?

Had both actually. '08 CTS-4 and then an '11 CTS-V. First time in my life that I purchased the same generation of a car twice. That's how much I actually like the feel of the car.

 

[core2slow]

My friend has a mid 2000s 3 series. He always has stuff go wrong with it. The engine gaskets, suspension, some other stuff, I don't even remember the whole thing, but he's always either DIY fixing it, or paying someone to do it. Germans over-engineer things too far up the diminishing returns and increasing headaches hockey stick.

Well, he got the short-end of the stick for the cut-off date. I agree that they're a fickle bunch, but anything made in the last 10yrs by any of the german mfgrs are leaps and bound better than they were before (not japanese quality per-se). Let's not use anecdotal evidence as some empirical rule to go by, because let's be honest, there are bound to be lemons in every manufacturer. Plus, who knows if his DIY didn't introduce more headaches?

I've owned 3 audis (2 of them being TTRS and RS5) in the last 10 years and they're just as reliable as my past Prelude, S2K, Celica and Pilot.

 

[senseamp]

Well, he got the short-end of the stick for the cut-off date. I agree that they're a fickle bunch, but anything made in the last 10yrs by any of the german mfgrs are leaps and bound better than they were before (not japanese quality per-se). Let's not use anecdotal evidence as some empirical rule to go by, because let's be honest, there are bound to be lemons in every manufacturer. Plus, who knows if his DIY didn't introduce more headaches?

I've owned 3 audis (2 of them being TTRS and RS5) in the last 10 years and they're just as reliable as my past Prelude, S2K, Celica and Pilot.

I am going to stick with my recommendation. I think German cars are OK to own/lease under the warranty period, not afterwards, unless one is mechanically inclined.

 

[KentState]

Well, he got the short-end of the stick for the cut-off date. I agree that they're a fickle bunch, but anything made in the last 10yrs by any of the german mfgrs are leaps and bound better than they were before (not japanese quality per-se). Let's not use anecdotal evidence as some empirical rule to go by, because let's be honest, there are bound to be lemons in every manufacturer. Plus, who knows if his DIY didn't introduce more headaches?

I've owned 3 audis (2 of them being TTRS and RS5) in the last 10 years and they're just as reliable as my past Prelude, S2K, Celica and Pilot.

It's all anecdotal without the true details of all repairs, but it's a staggering amount of people I know that have had major issues with Audi and BMW cars. Not talking about a malfunctioning turn signal, but issues that make the car inoperable. The counter to that is most people I know that driver luxury cars have either an Audi or BMW. So maybe all luxury vehicles are more likely to be trouble prone due to their complexity.

 

[senseamp]

It would be very simple for Audi and BMW to instill confidence in their reliability. Do what Hyundai did. Put their money where their mouth is and offer a free 100K mile warranty.
If the car is truly reliable, it shouldn't cost them much.

 

[XavierMace]

It would be very simple for Audi and BMW to instill confidence in their reliability. Do what Hyundai did. Put their money where their mouth is and offer a free 100K mile warranty.
If the car is truly reliable, it shouldn't cost them much.

Except people buying that sort of car are frequently pickier about the behavior of their car. My uncle saw it all the time working at Lexus dealers. People bringing their car in for issues most people would never consider bringing a econobox in for.