[demark]

Hi everyone,

I'm contemplating selling my wife's 2011 Alpine White 6 Speed E91 xDrive. It's got 119K miles, has been serviced and maintained religiously, and we are the second owner since 25K miles. The original owner was a BMW Master Technician. I know the manuals are extremely rare and I'm reaching out on a few BMW forums with hopes of getting some honest feedback on what I should consider listing it for.

Bringatrailer completed sales are actually much higher than I was expecting, but are kind of all over the map, and I did the usual round of online estimates (carmax, carvana, KBB, NADA, etc.) though I don't believe that those sites appreciate or factor into the pricing the rarity of a manual AWD wagon.

Thanks in advance for any input. Here are a few pics of our car for reference.









https://bringatrailer.com/bmw/e91-3-series-touring/

[michaelalex17]

Beautiful ride. Definitely worth a premium that CarMax etc won't factor in for it being a manual wagon unicorn. Also it has no idrive which makes it worth even more. List it on BAT, you'll get good money. Or hold onto it forever.

[demark]

Originally Posted by michaelalex17

Beautiful ride. Definitely worth a premium that CarMax etc won't factor in for it being a manual wagon unicorn. Also it has no idrive which makes it worth even more. List it on BAT, you'll get good money. Or hold onto it forever.

Thanks man, appreciate it. I've been considering BAT (presuming they accept it) but haven't used a service like that before so I'm on the fence, especially if the car would have to be shipped somewhere. In the past I've used the usual autotrader, etc. with good success. Would definitely open up the potential buyer list though going that route.

[rick100]

How much do you think its worth...

Im not a fan of wagons myself but i know there is a market out there..

[demark]

Originally Posted by rick100

How much do you think its worth...

Im not a fan of wagons myself but i know there is a market out there..

Yep there appears to be a pretty strong market for the Touring models. Hard to say but here's one that is spec'd close to mine (just different color combo, power seats, and no xDrive) that sold a month ago on BAT for 22, with 40K less miles.

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/2011-bmw-328i-wagon/

Perhaps mine would land somewhere in the range of 12-15?

[eljay]

Many E91 enthusiasts and would be buyers on this forums are in this thread where you can see what's out there and what members think they are worth. If BaT doesn't bit on yours, post it in that thread and you'll have good interest.

Good luck and don't sell it.

[demark]

Originally Posted by eljay

Many E91 enthusiasts and would be buyers on this forums are in this thread where you can see what's out there and what members think they are worth. If BaT doesn't bit on yours, post it in that thread and you'll have good interest.

Good luck and don't sell it.

Haha thanks. I'd love to keep it but can't really justify having 3 cars

[jsunma]

Nice E91 (yours)! I'm curious, what are the other 2 cars...which apparently trump keeping the wagon?

As for your original question, I'd say that the major disadvantages you're going to experience in terms of getting crazy high money like that one you linked to on BaT is that your car has slightly higher mileage than is desirable for a 2011 and that it's xdrive. In the real world, neither of those things matter (and yes, I realize a lot of people desire xdrive), but I do think those could be issues in terms of stumbling into a big BaT payday. Oddly enough, buyers seemed to overlook the fact that that BaT car didn't have sport seats...which I also think is a disadvantage in terms of value (but obviously a lot of buyers don't seem to notice when a car doesn't have them...so the fact that your car doesn't have the sport package either may not make much of a difference).

In terms of the mileage, it's not a big deal to someone who really wants an E91 as we all know that the car will go 3 times that amount if well-maintained...but again, I think that BaT operates in a weird bubble and people seize on funny - sometimes entirely bs - things to either raise or lower the bidding.

My advice like others here is to sell it locally and through these forums. You'll get a fair price from folks here who are looking for a desirable car. If that seems like too much hassle for you, then you can go the easier route of selling it to a used car dealer or giving BaT a spin, but I'd predict you'll get less in the end that way.

good luck with the sale!

[oVeRdOsE.]

^^

well options is 50/50, since people looking for a 6mt wagon can be very likely enthusiast.
This wagon seems to have not much options. seems to have leather. HID? can't see.

what people are crazy for : CIC (any sort of screen), Bluetooth, keyless. I agree most people won'T look at the sport package, but for most enthusiast, its the #1 option to have.

[CTinline-six]

Originally Posted by oVeRdOsE.

^^

well options is 50/50, since people looking for a 6mt wagon can be very likely enthusiast.
This wagon seems to have not much options. seems to have leather. HID? can't see.

what people are crazy for : CIC (any sort of screen), Bluetooth, keyless. I agree most people won'T look at the sport package, but for most enthusiast, its the #1 option to have.

Hard to say. As an enthusiast, I had a hell of a time just finding a RWD E90 in my area. Most were XDrive. My goal of RWD 6MT was basically non-existent within several hours of where I lived.

6MT wagons are even more rare, and I think many enthusiasts actually prefer not having IDrive as it is already outdated, more to go wrong, etc. He will have no issue finding someone to purchase this wagon, but I would just be certain you want to get rid of it since finding another one with a similar setup will be practically impossible.

[demark]

Originally Posted by jsunma

Nice E91 (yours)! I'm curious, what are the other 2 cars...which apparently trump keeping the wagon?

As for your original question, I'd say that the major disadvantages you're going to experience in terms of getting crazy high money like that one you linked to on BaT is that your car has slightly higher mileage than is desirable for a 2011 and that it's xdrive. In the real world, neither of those things matter (and yes, I realize a lot of people desire xdrive), but I do think those could be issues in terms of stumbling into a big BaT payday. Oddly enough, buyers seemed to overlook the fact that that BaT car didn't have sport seats...which I also think is a disadvantage in terms of value (but obviously a lot of buyers don't seem to notice when a car doesn't have them...so the fact that your car doesn't have the sport package either may not make much of a difference).

In terms of the mileage, it's not a big deal to someone who really wants an E91 as we all know that the car will go 3 times that amount if well-maintained...but again, I think that BaT operates in a weird bubble and people seize on funny - sometimes entirely bs - things to either raise or lower the bidding.

My advice like others here is to sell it locally and through these forums. You'll get a fair price from folks here who are looking for a desirable car. If that seems like too much hassle for you, then you can go the easier route of selling it to a used car dealer or giving BaT a spin, but I'd predict you'll get less in the end that way.

good luck with the sale!

Great advice, thanks so much. Totally agree on BAT. I can't believe what some cars sell for there. Like a car playground for rich people Yep I'm not aiming to oversell the car or look for a huge payday, just a fair price that I and a future buyer can be comfortable with. It's a great back to basics E91 with a manual, for those who simply enjoy driving and having the ride of a car (vs. SUV) with the added utility of a wagon. When I bought it off lease from the BMW tech who owned it, he told me he purposely optioned it limited so there was less to break over time. If it had idrive as an example it would probably feel more dated now vs. the tech currently available in most modern cars.

I still have some time but will most likely take this forum classified route when ready. The other cars are a 2013 6MT S4 (mine) and a soon to be 2018 6MT A4 (Wife). The kids are older now so we have less of a need for the wagon utility.

[demark]

Originally Posted by CTinline-six

Hard to say. As an enthusiast, I had a hell of a time just finding a RWD E90 in my area. Most were XDrive. My goal of RWD 6MT was basically non-existent within several hours of where I lived.

6MT wagons are even more rare, and I think many enthusiasts actually prefer not having IDrive as it is already outdated, more to go wrong, etc. He will have no issue finding someone to purchase this wagon, but I would just be certain you want to get rid of it since finding another one with a similar setup will be practically impossible.

I hear you. Yes we're on the fence and I may regret selling it down the road, but if it's not going to be driven much I'd rather it go to another enthusiast who will properly enjoy it the way it deserves to be. At least that's my current thinking

[oVeRdOsE.]

Originally Posted by CTinline-six

Hard to say. As an enthusiast, I had a hell of a time just finding a RWD E90 in my area. Most were XDrive. My goal of RWD 6MT was basically non-existent within several hours of where I lived.

6MT wagons are even more rare, and I think many enthusiasts actually prefer not having IDrive as it is already outdated, more to go wrong, etc. He will have no issue finding someone to purchase this wagon, but I would just be certain you want to get rid of it since finding another one with a similar setup will be practically impossible.

i drive might be outdated, but there's a lot you can do that is not outdated (phone calls, car service, fm radio , etc) and the screen can be cheaply replaced with modern android one. This is what I got , and its one of my fav mod. Looks OEM and waze !

double din headunit is so 2000 lol

[hassmaschine]

meh, I dunno. Even on our newer BMW, the iDrive is a *lot* better - but it's still mostly a useless distraction. Since it's an X3 and isn't exactly fun to drive anyway, it fits the car ok. I wouldn't want it in a car with a manual transmission though, and I'm glad my 330i doesn't have it. I don't need a screen to drive my car, the only slightly useful thing is mapping but I hardly ever need to use that anyway.