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To those arguing that those who lease can't afford the car outright, I think you're generalizing and perhaps don't have the same circumstances as those who are leasing. Yes, there are those who lease becuase they "can't afford it," but every one of those, there are those who buy and finance it over 7 or 8 years too.
In CA, if you're not going to keep the car over 4 years, leasing is not a bad deal at all, especially if you're a business owner. And unlike a poster said above, you have the ability to register the car under your own name, and hence buy "regular" insurance as opposed to commercial, and what you do is essentiall allocate the "miles used for work as a percentage of the total payments made annually" as a business expense.
Even without the tax advantage, given BMWs free service, and warranty period, and the fact that BMW tends to produce successively great cars, leasing is a strong option. In my case, all of my last cars have been better than the ones before, and when first getting them, I've thought I'm never going to get rid of this. But two or three years later, reality sets in and I'm conteplating the costs of maintenance for something out of warranty, and eyeing a new car. I have two nice used cars in my garage, in my 944S and S2000, so I always have a back-up car, and two to call my own.
I drive about 30K miles a year (and that's with traveling and being out of the country for at least 8 weeks), and BMW's $0.15/mi upfront ($0.16/mi during the lease but up to 4 months before lease end) additional mile purchase is very well priced, so it doesn't affect my decision to lease.
As for pumping money down the drain, it's the same if you buy a car and sell it after 3-4 years. Except it's better because you keep more of your cash with you throughout that process. Now, if you keep your cars 5+ years, by all means, buy it and enjoy it.
The bottom line is there are no two cases that are alike, and BMW's leases are some of, if not, the best out there, especially if you're getting the ED wholesale price (residual is based on US MSRP). But by no means are those who are leasing, doing so, because they couldn't afford the car.
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