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Based on "one bird in the hand vs. two in the bush", I went ahead and bought a second 530e. I thought long and hard about waiting for the LCI and the possibility that it would have Gen 5 electrics. I also thought that the new rules in CA requiring 30 mi EV range for some of their benefits would aid this. But, on the other hand, there were some negatives for waiting for a US buyer: 1) Will Trump wake up on the wrong side of the bed and tweet 25% duties on German imports? 2) Will the LCI have as generous discounts/incentives? 3) Will the LCI continue BMW's practice of pricing the 530e the same as the 530i, while they have an increased price for all their other PHEV's about equal to the Fed Tax Credit? 4) peculiar to Texas: will all of the $2500 EV/PHEV Grants be gone by the time an ordered LCI 530e arrives--Limit of 2000 of these and with the Mini EV coming in March I expect a lot of these to go quickly. I was looking for a transition PHEV for 2-3 years. I expect to replace it with a full EV and there are a lot of good ones coming in that time frame: Audi Q4 e-Tron, BMW i-next, Ford Mach-e, Volvo XC40 Recharge, VW ID.4, and Porsche Macan spring readily to mind. I got a stripper 530e from Dealer stock that cost me a grand total of $35, 448 out the door after all discounts, tax credits and BMWCCA rebate. The only options were Dark Graphite Metallic and a heated steering wheel. I got the dealer to throw in a Gloss Black grill, with the silver ones in a box in the trunk. I figure someone ordered this car and didn't take it, since I have never seen a stripper 5-series on a Houston lot. Even the stripper is VERY well equiped. Even with today's lousy resale on the 5-series, how much of that can I loose in 2 years on a car with about 6000 miles?
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