And yet you bought another BWM and the insurance company is willing to insure it for a reasonable price. What happens if this time it catches on fire and you can't get out of it in time? I would have to say one of my top priorities in a car is for it not to burn me alive inside of it. I mean just on the damn principle of the thing, if I had a car that caught fire for no good reason I would never buy from that manufacturer again.
Yeah, because it's difficult to see when driving down the highway from the 1000's of BMWs on fire on the sides of the road
And now, car talk:
The old car was a 2002, I had it in 2013, and it was a fluke. Despite it being an old car, BMW contacted me and even compensated me with it as the fire was traced to a faulty heat sync on the climate control (this same module was used in GM Hummers and some other GM cars), so my insurance gave me the value of the car and BMW gave me a nice check as part of their lawsuit against the part manufacturer.
I went with a 2009 Mini Cooper S (still a BMW) after that, and it was a fun car that was surprisingly practical, but the engine was one of the worst designs ever cursed upon this planet and it turned into a headache. (side note- avoid 2007-2012 Mini Coopers like the plague. The engine was made by Peugeot and is great when it works, but expect a good $2000/year to keep it working. BMW put their own engines in them after the 2013 model).
The new one is a 2015 with the straight 6. BMW has been making straight 6's since the 30's, so they should have them down by now There are certain brands of cars you just "fit" in. I'm very tall, and BMW's interior has a V shaped center console that allows me to man-spread while driving. Their AWD system favors the rear wheels, so it's a great driver in the summer and practical in the NW Ohio winters. The new 3 series has as much interior room as the old 5 series, so I can fit 5 people in it. The M Sport Seats are hands-down the best seats in the industry. The new i-Drive infotainment system is fantastic paired with the Harmon Kardon sound system. I can even eek 32MPG out of it in eco mode on the highway, which is good for a performance car.
There's lots of reasons I stick with the brand. I'm also a fan of Audi (got my wife one!), and considered switching to a few brands. Here's some quick car reviews in my one year of searching:
Stipulation: When I get a car, I like to stay below $25000, 4 years old or less, under 40K miles, and get a CPO warranty. This is the sweet spot of value/performance/reliability. Normally you can find 1 owner off-lease cars in this range. All of these cars are 2014-2016 models.
Cadillac ATS - interior was too small and Cadillac's CUE system is god-awful. Best suspension in any car I've ever driven though. 3.6L is a must, but hard to find.
Cadillac CTS - more room than the ATS, similar driving dynamics, but same driver room is too cramped. V6 AWD slightly out of price range.
Infiniti Q50 - Fantastic interior and amazing amount of tech for the price, good AWD system, engine design is old and maxed out, poor fuel economy.
Nissan Maxima SR - What the Infiniti should be, great styling, great interior, affordable, only comes in FWD though. If they made an AWD variant would be a great sleeper car.
Mercedes C300 - Plush interior, handles very similar to BMW 3 series, engine performance is a bit anemic in the non-AMG versions, but specialized parts up the wazoo. Good lease car, not a good self-care car. CPO examples were too expensive (probably because they know the cost of maintaining them )
Audi S4 - God I wish this car was in my price range. An Audi interior is a work of art. You just want to live in it. The AWD Quattro system is very sure footed. You need an S series over the A series to have any fun though (those 2.0L turbos in the A just don't cut it), engine sound is great. Suspension not as good as the ATS. Fantastic car!
Lexus IS350 F Sport - Great car. Good interior, lots of tech, great performer, nice styling. Infotainment system isn't great. Suspension is a bit harsh on public roads, poor fuel economy, and they tend to keep their value more than other cars so it was a bit out of my price range on the used/CPO market.
Mustang GT - Interior worst of the bunch. Cramped, uncomfortable, cheap plastics. Sound system is blah. Engine note best of the bunch. Track car for street use. RWD only.
BMW 335i - Great interior room, nice infotainment system. Electric steering feels a bit numb, but tightens up when you need it too. Torque/HP balance of the straight 6 is fantastic. Engine note is impressive. Described as "Poop your pants" fast, but not as fast as the Mustang. Excellent adaptive suspension. Best of all worlds for me!