BMW Offers $4,500 Discount on Diesels To Match Clunker Credits
By John O'Dell July 24, 2009
BMW, which you wouldn't expect to be a big player in the Cash for Clunkers program
, is trying to use it to move some metal by offering to match, or in one case double, the clunker cash for buyers of the company's diesels (right)
: the 335d sedan
or the X5 xDrive
35d
sport utility.
The German automaker says it will provide a $4,500 trade-in allowance on the two models to buyers who don't have qualifying clunkers to surrender for the federal clunker credit of $3,500 to $4,500.
That's a good thing because the X5 diesel has a base price ($51,200) that's more than the $45,000 clunker program cutoff and wouldn't qualify to be purchased with a clunker credit. And only the $44,000 base model of the 335d qualifies under clunker program rules - upgraded models quickly go over the limit.
In addition to the BMW incentive and any clunker credit, the $44,000 335d sedan also qualifies for a $900 federal "clean car" tax credit because of the diesel's lower CO2 emissions.
That means it would be possible, with the right trade-in (one that qualifies for the federal clunker credit) to get a $9,900 discount on a base 3-series diesel.
The X5 diesel qualifies for a tax credit of up to $1,800 under the same programs - making for a $6,300 discount including the BMW diesel incentive.
BMW's offer is good through August 31.
The vehicles have been well-received by critics but haven't been a hit with buyers, in part of the relatively low price of gasoline right now - which makes it hard for many to justify the extra cost of a diesel even though it provides 20 percent to 30 percent more fuel economy than a gas model.
BMW is hoping its offer will help change a few minds."We want people to know that even though our diesels (except for the base 335d) don't qualify for the clunker program, we will match it so you can get one," said Ruben Espinoza, sales manager at Nick Alexander BMW in Los Angeles.
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