If you get the tC over the BMW you will live to regret it. BMW is a much tighter safer car. It handles better and brakes wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy better. I feel like the brakes on the tC are trash. I'm trying to find a solution to that because my fiance has a tC and even she complains about the brakes and she drives slow. I can speak this way about BMW because I own a 97 M3 and those cars are solid. I would never expect a tC to last as long as a BMW does.

 

BMW's also carry higher insurance premiums and much much higer repair bills if anything goes wrong. If you get the Tc your getting Toyota quality which speaks for itself. Ultimately a midlife BMW is going to carry a much higher cost of ownership and you never know what to expect when buying a used car... I would either buy the Tc or save up your money and get a new BMW.

 

Always enjoy your posts, X. Just wanted to say, though, I don't think this is all that unusual -- my '89 Corolla never had its shocks replaced (118,000 miles), and my '99 Corolla never had its shocks, battery, or anything else (other than tires and brake pads, of course) replaced (98,000 miles). The latter didn't even require brake maintenance for the last 78,000 miles I had the car! Now THAT is amazing...

 

tC brakes are fine -- might be something wrong with your fiance's. Oh, and I would never bet against a Toyota lasting as long as a BMW.

 

A run-of-the-mill 3 series is a far far cry from an M3. A used 3 series is less likely to be properly maintained than an M3 as well. . . not to mention these are cars that have been used. The whole new vs used argument is entirely different. . . but you wanna use your head, get a tC. Wanna think with that dangly thing between your legs. . . get a BMW. The man who uses his head always comes out. . . er. . . ahead in life. A car is not the best investment to be throwin your money at. . . the tC would be a wiser investment (despite off-the-lot depreciation, these cars WILL hold their value). Add up all maintainence and insurance costs, and you will have a lot of money left over.

 

tC brakes are fine compared to what? Her old 93 Civic EX coupe stopped faster than the tC. Don't get me wrong I like the tC and I think it's a great car for the money. But I don't believe you can compare it to a BMW. And I would never take the tC over any BMW.

 

something's wrong with your brakes. . . from what I've read, the tC's outbrakes the Honda Civic by a lot. You're talking about stickier tires (wider and better compound) and disc brakes all around (vs rear drums for the civic). Maybe the civic is sans ABS. . . maybe you guys don't know how to push the brake pedal to the floor. . . maybe the tC brakes are not broken in yet. . .

 

Don't know how to push the pedal to the floor? Come on man that's just dumb. Well I do notice something about honda automatics, that their transmission helps with the braking. It down shifts in a way similar to how you would do in a manual transmission car when you want the engine to help with the braking. I don't see toyota cars doing that. But from what I can gather here there seems to be something wrong with the brakes on my girl's car, I guess we'll have to now take it to the dealer.

 

my s/n says it all