Tradition wins the day – 67% of you would grab the X3 M. I was going to walk away from the Bimmers this week, but something caught my eye that I just couldn’t pass up: The BMW M550i xDrive.
A twin turbo V-8…for how much?
The 2018 BMW M550i xDrive vs the 2018 BMW M5
I’m a big Star Trek fan. The problem with that: Star Trek isn’t cool, or at least it wasn’t when I was in high school. I’ve never been to a convention, but it’s something I’d like to experience one day – like-minded people sharing a passion. It’s as if you’re all part of the inside joke.
Why is this relevant, you ask? Because of these two cars *points at two BMWs*. You see, BMW fans are just like Star Trek fans. We’re nerdy about our cars, we use acronyms for everything, and we love to cosplay. Cars are costumes for the outside world, yea? So when we lower our butts into one, grab some friends and share a drive up the back roads, we’re pretending to be race car drivers. We think we’re so cool, though we’d never admit to it.
Shh, don’t tell anyone.
LCI for lyfe
The favorite acronym of the Bimmer fan? LCI. Life Cycle Impulse. Oh my God, do we love that one. Pre-LCI cars, ones before their mid-cycle refresh, are for poor peasants, barely above the dirt they drive over. But if you have an LCI car, wowie are you a Bimmer God. In reality there’s usually little difference between them – look to the G80 M3 as proof. Some headlights, a single screen. Whatever.
And if you’re willing to play that peasant role, you can actually score quite a deal. Case in point, this G30 M550i. Pre-LCI. High miles. But features a twin-turbo V-8 that’s good for 456 horsepower – no slouch. It’s less than half some M5 examples.
And yet, both of those are far cheaper than a post-LCI example. I do admit that it’s better-looking, but these can still go for for nearly triple figures.
The 2018 BMW M550i xDrive
This car cost about $74,000 in 2018, most likely more once you start adding options. But look at them now:
- 96,900 miles
- Black Sapphire Metallic over Ivory White
- Yellow DRLs (okay), and a LoJack security system. Did not know those were still around.
- Curb rash, chips, seat creases – normal stuff for the car’s age.
- The PDC sensors don’t work though. Trust no one and check for body work, even if the CarFax is clean.
- Bid to $19,111 – likely would have sold at $20k
I can’t think of a better daily – all-wheel drive, 456 horsepower and 480 lb-ft of torque, Adaptive M Suspension, Bowers & Wilkins stereo, M Sport Brakes. It gets to sixty in under four seconds, though I find it’s more 540i in terms of feel than M5. Not really all that fun.
You can grab these all day for under $30,000 though, a significant discount over an M5. Speaking of…
The 2018 BMW M5
For some reason, a lot of pre-LCI M5’s don’t have the Competition Package – you’ll have to make due with 17 fewer horses.
- 61,500 miles
- Delicious Marina Bay Blue over Silverstone leather
- S63 4.4-liter V8, rated at 600 horsepower and 553 lb-ft of torque with M xDrive
- CarFax says minor damage in 2019 to the rear bumper. Origin unknown
- No mods
- Sold for $44,750
Many examples available for this sort of price, some $25k more than the M550i. This one sports a great color combo, lowish miles, and no mods, but you could almost get two 550s.
However – the LCI is really pretty.
The 2021 BMW M5 Competition
Can I just sneak this in? I don’t think this car will ever reach the lows of the pre-LCI example. Too pretty, too many Competitions available. But you will pay.
- 24,400 miles
- Alpine White over Black leather – meh
- Carbon Ceramic brakes
- A surprising amount of wear, including curb rash, chips, scratches on the bumper, and wear on the badge
- No mods
- Sold for $69,500
What’s it worth? Here’s one that sold for $92,500 with just 4,100 miles. Our example isn’t as clean, but it’s still up there in price. You could buy nearly four M550i examples for the price of one F90 LCI M5. Just sayin’. Forget the CS by the way – those are in the $140k range.
So what will it be – the M550i or pre-LCI M5? Or just save up your pennies and crush those poor souls on Sunday morning.
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