Is a 5 series BMW worth double the price of a top range Honda Accord?

[MrJ]

Hi all,

Just saw the current offer from BMW Thailand of 0% finance for their 5 series including 5 years warranty+ all service costs - 520d 3.699 MioTHB vs. Accord 2.4 1.799 MIO THB.

Any comments?

THX Mr.J

[FarangTalk]

Simple answer; yes.

Sent from my SM-N900 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[richard_smith237]

Only you can decide that.....

You will get many replies telling you that the prices of cars here are ridiculous and only a fool would get a car.

You will get other replies telling you that with all the taxis and public transport why bother with a car (if in BKK).

You will get other replies telling you that a pickup is a better option than a car.

You will get other replies telling you that a Japanese car is equal in quality to a European car.

And you will get other replies telling you that if you can afford greater luxury, just get what you want and enjoy.

This is purely an individual choice - If you have already made the decision to buy a sedan car then you are thinking of more than just going from A to B. You want something comfortable and perhaps other factors matter to you such as Brand.

You don't have to explain your decisions to someone else. If you can afford the 5 Series don't worry about the opinions of those who can't.

[FarangTalk]

I drive an E60 525iSE and love it. Going to trade for the new 3, 4 or 5 soon though. Just cannot beat the ride or handling of the 5 series. The Accord is fwd and suffers from horrendous understeer as it is a medium to large size car. Says it all really. I drove Camrys and Accords before buying the bimmer and none of them aroused any passion in me whatsoever. It was like performing a function such as going to the bathroom.

The styling of the German marques is still light years ahead of the Japanese models too. 20 year old Audis and bimmers still look better than modern Japanese or Korean cars IMO.

Sent from my SM-N900 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[Spoonman]

Only you can decide that.....

You will get many replies telling you that the prices of cars here are ridiculous and only a fool would get a car.

You will get other replies telling you that with all the taxis and public transport why bother with a car (if in BKK).

You will get other replies telling you that a pickup is a better option than a car.

You will get other replies telling you that a Japanese car is equal in quality to a European car.

And you will get other replies telling you that if you can afford greater luxury, just get what you want and enjoy.

This is purely an individual choice - If you have already made the decision to buy a sedan car then you are thinking of more than just going from A to B. You want something comfortable and perhaps other factors matter to you such as Brand.

You don't have to explain your decisions to someone else. If you can afford the 5 Series don't worry about the opinions of those who can't.

That 5 series is 4 times the price here than in Europe.

[stevenl]

Only you can decide that.....

You will get many replies telling you that the prices of cars here are ridiculous and only a fool would get a car.

You will get other replies telling you that with all the taxis and public transport why bother with a car (if in BKK).

You will get other replies telling you that a pickup is a better option than a car.

You will get other replies telling you that a Japanese car is equal in quality to a European car.

And you will get other replies telling you that if you can afford greater luxury, just get what you want and enjoy.

This is purely an individual choice - If you have already made the decision to buy a sedan car then you are thinking of more than just going from A to B. You want something comfortable and perhaps other factors matter to you such as Brand.

You don't have to explain your decisions to someone else. If you can afford the 5 Series don't worry about the opinions of those who can't.

That 5 series is 4 times the price here than in Europe.

Yes, that would be the first of his points.

Plus Spoonman's statement is true for some European countries, not for others.

[MrJ]

even if I can afford it - I would like to have other opinions if you compare both cars in terms of quality/comfort/performance/resale value/service etc. and of course consider the price gab

[hansgruber]

The BMW will depreciate like no other car. The Accord will hold it's value much better.

After 5 years you would be lucky to get a million for the BMW.

[topt]

I haven't driven the 520D but I have always had the suspicion it would be underpowered (like the 318i)compared to rivals. But depends how you drive I guess.

Last car I had in the UK (2008) was a 525i and like FarangTalk I thought that was great.

[I knew this would happen]

Only you can decide that.....

You will get many replies telling you that the prices of cars here are ridiculous and only a fool would get a car.

You will get other replies telling you that with all the taxis and public transport why bother with a car (if in BKK).

You will get other replies telling you that a pickup is a better option than a car.

You will get other replies telling you that a Japanese car is equal in quality to a European car.

And you will get other replies telling you that if you can afford greater luxury, just get what you want and enjoy.

This is purely an individual choice - If you have already made the decision to buy a sedan car then you are thinking of more than just going from A to B. You want something comfortable and perhaps other factors matter to you such as Brand.

You don't have to explain your decisions to someone else. If you can afford the 5 Series don't worry about the opinions of those who can't.

That 5 series is 4 times the price here than in Europe.

Ask yourself what will make you happy? Numbers and facts will even make the Accord look unreasonable..........

Concerning the depreciation, look for a demo car or one that´s about a year old, then it´s a better deal and still like new. I highly doubt that after 5 years its only 1mil left, though it will hurt.

[Woodsie888]

Is the Pope Catholic?

Same answer for the cars

[kurnell]

I drive an E60 525iSE and love it. Going to trade for the new 3, 4 or 5 soon though. Just cannot beat the ride or handling of the 5 series. The Accord is fwd and suffers from horrendous understeer as it is a medium to large size car. Says it all really. I drove Camrys and Accords before buying the bimmer and none of them aroused any passion in me whatsoever. It was like performing a function such as going to the bathroom.

The styling of the German marques is still light years ahead of the Japanese models too. 20 year old Audis and bimmers still look better than modern Japanese or Korean cars IMO.

Sent from my SM-N900 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

My wife spent 4 hours driving from Central World to Bangkapi in her new Accord and never noticed any under-steer problems.

[richard_smith237]

Only you can decide that.....

You will get many replies telling you that the prices of cars here are ridiculous and only a fool would get a car.

You will get other replies telling you that with all the taxis and public transport why bother with a car (if in BKK).

You will get other replies telling you that a pickup is a better option than a car.

You will get other replies telling you that a Japanese car is equal in quality to a European car.

And you will get other replies telling you that if you can afford greater luxury, just get what you want and enjoy.

This is purely an individual choice - If you have already made the decision to buy a sedan car then you are thinking of more than just going from A to B. You want something comfortable and perhaps other factors matter to you such as Brand.

You don't have to explain your decisions to someone else. If you can afford the 5 Series don't worry about the opinions of those who can't.

That 5 series is 4 times the price here than in Europe.

Yes, that would be the first of his points.

Plus Spoonman's statement is true for some European countries, not for others.

Oh I should also have added...

You will get other replies greatly exaggerating the cost of cars in Thailand compared to our home countries...

Example:

BMW 528i Thai Cost: THB 4,050,000 / £80,000

BMW 528i UK Cost: THB 1,984,920 / £39,335

Roughly double the cost of the UK (not 4 times).

Regarding depreciation:

A BMW 525 (E60) after 5 years in Thailand is about THB 1,600,00 (one2car.com)

New it would have been about THB 3,600,00. It looses approximately THB 400,000 per year (a loss of about 55% over 5 years).

A Honda Accord 2.4 after 5 years in Thailand is about THB 900,000

New it would have been about THB 1,600,00. It looses approximately THB 100,000 per year (a loss of about 43% over 5 years).

When comparing the two, the Honda makes far more financial sense which ever way you look at at. But if you are going to look at it that way, buy a 5 year old Toyota pickup !...

[richard_smith237]

I haven't driven the 520D but I have always had the suspicion it would be underpowered (like the 318i)compared to rivals. But depends how you drive I guess.

Last car I had in the UK (2008) was a 525i and like FarangTalk I thought that was great.

I have the 528i M Sport - it has twin turbos, 8 Auto Gears 0-100 kmh in 6.2 seconds (or about 5mins to forever in Bkk traffic)...

I find it slightly underpowered (but I came from a 4.4 V8)...

If the Op wants the diesel I would recommend he takes a look at the 525d rather than 520d.

When weighing up my choice the 525d was comparable to the 528i - both models significantly outweighed the 520d which in my terms appeared a little wet with regards to performance but still the interiors etc are the same (I'm not sure if the 520d has the M Sport option if desired though).

[Familyonthemove]

In the UK market some buyers would consider the top range Accords as a direct rival for the mid range BMW's. Honda has a reputation as an older persons car - so for old codgers (like me) the Honda would be a serious consideration. I had an Accord Coupe for a couple of years and replaced it with BMW 3.0 Coupe - and I preferred the BMW for the great 6 cylinder engine but they were on par for comfort, quality, reliability and noise levels and the Accord handled pretty well too (better than the BMW in snow - but that's not really a factor in Bangkok).

The big price difference here makes us think that the BMW is significantly more upmarket - but in reality they are in the same segment.

If the price of the Honda was around 20% more the BMW I would probably still go for the BMW as I like the looks, rear wheel drive handling and 'solid' interiors ... but as others have the said I'd be worried that the 520 would be a bit underpowered.

But at 100% price difference I'd go with the Honda - as it's 80% as good as the BMW.

With the money I'd saved I'd buy a Ducati for the weekends!

[IMHO]

The BMW will depreciate like no other car. The Accord will hold it's value much better.

After 5 years you would be lucky to get a million for the BMW.

Nonsense. Both will depreciate around the same rate, 40-50% in 5 years.

[arkom]

I haven't driven the 520D but I have always had the suspicion it would be underpowered (like the 318i)compared to rivals. But depends how you drive I guess.

Last car I had in the UK (2008) was a 525i and like FarangTalk I thought that was great.

I have the 528i M Sport - it has twin turbos, 8 Auto Gears 0-100 kmh in 6.2 seconds (or about 5mins to forever in Bkk traffic)...

I find it slightly underpowered (but I came from a 4.4 V8)...

If the Op wants the diesel I would recommend he takes a look at the 525d rather than 520d.

When weighing up my choice the 525d was comparable to the 528i - both models significantly outweighed the 520d which in my terms appeared a little wet with regards to performance but still the interiors etc are the same (I'm not sure if the 520d has the M Sport option if desired though).

I would go with the 525d and I just bought one and love it, I tested the 520d as well and it does seem underpowered.

The M-Sport package is not available on 5 series disel models, but I was able to negotiate the M Streeting and body kit on the 525d for free, as well as get a pretty decent discount.

[richard_smith237]

I haven't driven the 520D but I have always had the suspicion it would be underpowered (like the 318i)compared to rivals. But depends how you drive I guess.

Last car I had in the UK (2008) was a 525i and like FarangTalk I thought that was great.

I have the 528i M Sport - it has twin turbos, 8 Auto Gears 0-100 kmh in 6.2 seconds (or about 5mins to forever in Bkk traffic)...

I find it slightly underpowered (but I came from a 4.4 V8)...

If the Op wants the diesel I would recommend he takes a look at the 525d rather than 520d.

When weighing up my choice the 525d was comparable to the 528i - both models significantly outweighed the 520d which in my terms appeared a little wet with regards to performance but still the interiors etc are the same (I'm not sure if the 520d has the M Sport option if desired though).

I would go with the 525d and I just bought one and love it, I tested the 520d as well and it does seem underpowered.

The M-Sport package is not available on 5 series disel models, but I was able to negotiate the M Streeting and body kit on the 525d for free, as well as get a pretty decent discount.

That would have made my decision making between the 525d and 528i a little easier then !! Millennium told me that the 525d also came with the M Sport package (an option that I wanted)... It was tough deliberating between the 525d and 528i... my concern was the acceleration between gears of the 528i when compared to the addition torque of the 525d. But with 8 gears and 2 turbo's the in and between gear stats were similar so I opted for 528i M Sport.

I'm kind of regretting not going for the 535 hybrid - but that was an additional 1MB+ and for that money the Merc ML and CLS come into play...

Op: Have you also considered the New Merc CLA at THB 2,640,00 ?

[BSJ]

Buy with your heart, not your head. A BMW, no matter how underpowered and underspec'ed is better than equally as good as a Honda Accord.

[transam]

I want a Merc...........

[Jitar]

Only you can decide that.....

You will get many replies telling you that the prices of cars here are ridiculous and only a fool would get a car.

You will get other replies telling you that with all the taxis and public transport why bother with a car (if in BKK).

You will get other replies telling you that a pickup is a better option than a car.

You will get other replies telling you that a Japanese car is equal in quality to a European car.

And you will get other replies telling you that if you can afford greater luxury, just get what you want and enjoy.

This is purely an individual choice - If you have already made the decision to buy a sedan car then you are thinking of more than just going from A to B. You want something comfortable and perhaps other factors matter to you such as Brand.

You don't have to explain your decisions to someone else. If you can afford the 5 Series don't worry about the opinions of those who can't.

That 5 series is 4 times the price here than in Europe.

Yes, that would be the first of his points.

Plus Spoonman's statement is true for some European countries, not for others.

Oh I should also have added...

You will get other replies greatly exaggerating the cost of cars in Thailand compared to our home countries...

Example:

BMW 528i Thai Cost: THB 4,050,000 / £80,000

BMW 528i UK Cost: THB 1,984,920 / £39,335

Roughly double the cost of the UK (not 4 times).

Regarding depreciation:

A BMW 525 (E60) after 5 years in Thailand is about THB 1,600,00 (one2car.com)

New it would have been about THB 3,600,00. It looses approximately THB 400,000 per year (a loss of about 55% over 5 years).

A Honda Accord 2.4 after 5 years in Thailand is about THB 900,000

New it would have been about THB 1,600,00. It looses approximately THB 100,000 per year (a loss of about 43% over 5 years).

When comparing the two, the Honda makes far more financial sense which ever way you look at at. But if you are going to look at it that way, buy a 5 year old Toyota pickup !...

Richards summary is good apart from the last sentence. Buy a pickup if you need / want a pickup. If you want a sedan buy a sedan.

An Accord is a perfectly reasonable car. The price in LOS is still inflated, just less so the the BMW. Foreign prices do not matter and Richard's depreciation estimate is a better indication of the cost. For about 100,000 baht a year the Accord is not particularly exciting but easy to live with, comfortable, reliable and easy to service etc.

If you like the BMW looks, image or whatever else and are prepared to pay 400,000 baht / year for the nicer drive, go for it. Cars are rarely chosen for logical or financial reasons alone so you really need to drive them to decide if the difference is worth the premium.

[sjonburi]

+1 this reply. In terms of built quality I would even say the Accord is at least on par or even more reliable than the beemer. The BMW certainly outshines the Accord in handling and performance and it's up to each individual how much they are prepared to pay extra for that. Both cars get you in comfort from A to B. "Worth" is pretty subjective and closely related to one's personal financial situation.

Richards summary is good apart from the last sentence. Buy a pickup if you need / want a pickup. If you want a sedan buy a sedan.

An Accord is a perfectly reasonable car. The price in LOS is still inflated, just less so the the BMW. Foreign prices do not matter and Richard's depreciation estimate is a better indication of the cost. For about 100,000 baht a year the Accord is not particularly exciting but easy to live with, comfortable, reliable and easy to service etc.

If you like the BMW looks, image or whatever else and are prepared to pay 400,000 baht / year for the nicer drive, go for it.

[Ace of Pop]

Some Cars just suit You, i still miss my old B.M Alpina 3.Litre 6.Pot. but Im glad to be C Class Benz Free. Its personal thing as you get older. .

[OMGImInPattaya]

Simple answer; yes.

Sent from my SM-N900 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Equally simple answer...NO!

Over to others.

[OMGImInPattaya]

I drive an E60 525iSE and love it. Going to trade for the new 3, 4 or 5 soon though. Just cannot beat the ride or handling of the 5 series. The Accord is fwd and suffers from horrendous understeer as it is a medium to large size car. Says it all really. I drove Camrys and Accords before buying the bimmer and none of them aroused any passion in me whatsoever. It was like performing a function such as going to the bathroom.

The styling of the German marques is still light years ahead of the Japanese models too. 20 year old Audis and bimmers still look better than modern Japanese or Korean cars IMO.

Sent from my SM-N900 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Arousing passion...give me a break...it's a car not a bird!

[transam]

I drive an E60 525iSE and love it. Going to trade for the new 3, 4 or 5 soon though. Just cannot beat the ride or handling of the 5 series. The Accord is fwd and suffers from horrendous understeer as it is a medium to large size car. Says it all really. I drove Camrys and Accords before buying the bimmer and none of them aroused any passion in me whatsoever. It was like performing a function such as going to the bathroom.

The styling of the German marques is still light years ahead of the Japanese models too. 20 year old Audis and bimmers still look better than modern Japanese or Korean cars IMO.

Sent from my SM-N900 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Arousing passion...give me a break...it's a car not a bird!

I must disagree. My Pontiac had 700hp on tap AND I loved pulling it out of the garage. Nothing to do with other stuff.

[Ace of Pop]

I drive an E60 525iSE and love it. Going to trade for the new 3, 4 or 5 soon though. Just cannot beat the ride or handling of the 5 series. The Accord is fwd and suffers from horrendous understeer as it is a medium to large size car. Says it all really. I drove Camrys and Accords before buying the bimmer and none of them aroused any passion in me whatsoever. It was like performing a function such as going to the bathroom.

The styling of the German marques is still light years ahead of the Japanese models too. 20 year old Audis and bimmers still look better than modern Japanese or Korean cars IMO.

Sent from my SM-N900 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Arousing passion...give me a break...it's a car not a bird!

Exept a Nissan Bluebird , a Ford Falcon , and a Reliant Robin.

[Heng]

Generally speaking the locals (at least the uninsured ones) give you a little more margin on the roads with the 5 series.

You also meet a far greater quantity of trashy loose women with the bimmer. I think that might be one for either the plus or minus column.

[MadMac]

Being a German I'd not buy a BMW there. Why would I buy a completely overpriced car not made in Germany but in Thailand for a premium, I could get a premium japanese car for? Go figure.

[bkmbkk]

I bought the 520d earlier this year.

I do not find it under powered, and I like fresh driving now and than.

The price is high (but still less than from where I come from), but as I only wanted a diesel the Honda was not an option.

It is cheap in fuel as well.

I think you would have to buy the 3,0 l Accord to mach some of the performance / quality of the 520d.

If I where to buy now, I would have a closer look at the 3 Series Hybrid at 4,2 mill and a lot of HP

Go and get a test drive.

BTW I have a almost new Cicic 2,0 for sale