Best Financing Option For 2013 M3 Coupe?

[NYM3FAN]

So I'm finally about to order an M3 after many years of waiting and have a question about paying for my car.

I would like to own my car but I am getting a good rate (after 5k down) for a 36 month lease (approximately 800 a month).

Now the residual buyout comes out to about $41k at the end of the lease which is about $7k more than if I were to simply finance the car.

Now I know that the M3's are getting a complete overhaul in the later half of 2013, so I'm thinking the actual value of the car at lease end would be significantly lower than the $41K.

Would I be able to negotiate a buyout price much lower than the $41K?

Another option I have is BMW Select for 60 months which would end up costing me about $4K more than if I were to finance but I would again have lower monthly payments.

Only negative of this is that I will probably be stuck with a balloon payment that is much larger than the actual value of the car (especially with the new M3s).

I guess my main question is how much will the newly remodeled M3s depreciate the value of this last generation of M3s?

Also, any suggestions on how I should finance?

Thanks.

[Team Plutonium]

The buyout price is determined during the initial lease agreement based on the current residual numbers, I don't believe you can renegotiate afterwards. Leasing makes sense if you don't wanna keep the car, or if you run it through an LLC or corporation and write off the lease payments. If you plan on keeping the car for a long time I suggest you finance the car from the get go. If you need lower payments I would look at other cars, you'll be happier in the end.

[M3 Esq.]

Originally Posted by SehrSchnell

The buyout price is determined during the initial lease agreement based on the current residual numbers, I don't believe you can renegotiate afterwards. Leasing makes sense if you don't wanna keep the car, or if you run it through an LLC or corporation and write off the lease payments. If you plan on keeping the car for a long time I suggest you finance the car from the get go. If you need lower payments I would look at other cars, you'll be happier in the end.

The buyout can usually be negotiated.

For me, leasing vs. buying is about transfer of risk. If you buy, you bear the risk of loss, depreciation, gas prices, etc. however you have pride of ownership, freedom to mod, drive as many miles as you want, and such. With leasing the risk of loss, depreciation, gas prices are all borne by the leasing company. If you have a crash, you walk away. If the car is worth less than the buyout at lease end you walk away. If gas is $10 per gallon at lease end, you can walk. However, you are constrained in terms of milage, mods and the like. There are plusses and minuses to both, just depends on what you want. At least that's how I view it. Hope that helps.

[///Machine]

If you have significant year end bonuses, also look at balloon financing. It combines the lower monthly payment of the lease (lower than regular financing, but still a bit higher than lease) with benefits of ownership. If you use your bonus cash flow to prepay the balloon payment, you end up owning like a regular financing after the term. But like it was said above, the risk is transferred to you, like in a regular financing.

I like ballon for the low payments with optionality of ownership (also my irregular cash flow), but prefer leasing due to risk transfer and not deal with the trade-in bs.

[mjposner]

The buyout can usually be negotiated.

I know when my Caddy lease expired they could not sell to me at a discount but offered to sell to my wife for $1,500 less than buyout and certify the car...

[Transfer]

No one has mentioned yet that you typically should not put money "down" on a lease. Multiple safety deposits makes sense but money down is just prepayment on the total lease cost and you are at risk of losing it if the car is a loss.

[///Machine]

Originally Posted by mjposner

The buyout can usually be negotiated.

I know when my Caddy lease expired they could not sell to me at a discount but offered to sell to my wife for $1,500 less than buyout and certify the car...

I don't think BMWFS will do that. As far as I understand they have a centralized lease return policy that all cars return to them and are put into dealer auctions. As opposed to other makes where the dealer has contractual ability to make individual offers for lease returns.

[M3 Esq.]

Originally Posted by Transfer

No one has mentioned yet that you typically should not put money "down" on a lease. Multiple safety deposits makes sense but money down is just prepayment on the total lease cost and you are at risk of losing it if the car is a loss.

This too.

[IFX]

Originally Posted by Transfer

No one has mentioned yet that you typically should not put money "down" on a lease. Multiple safety deposits makes sense but money down is just prepayment on the total lease cost and you are at risk of losing it if the car is a loss.

If you don't put any money down on a lease, your payments would be higher though, correct?

[gatorfast]

Don't know what your financial situation is like but have you considered preowned? You can save tens of thousands on a slightly used car.

[Team Plutonium]

Originally Posted by McLoven

The buyout can usually be negotiated.

For me, leasing vs. buying is about transfer of risk. If you buy, you bear the risk of loss, depreciation, gas prices, etc. however you have pride of ownership, freedom to mod, drive as many miles as you want, and such. With leasing the risk of loss, depreciation, gas prices are all borne by the leasing company. If you have a crash, you walk away. If the car is worth less than the buyout at lease end you walk away. If gas is $10 per gallon at lease end, you can walk. However, you are constrained in terms of milage, mods and the like. There are plusses and minuses to both, just depends on what you want. At least that's how I view it. Hope that helps.

How? I thought the residual will set the buyout price?

[M3 Esq.]

Originally Posted by SehrSchnell

How? I thought the residual will set the buyout price?

I can't really point to anything definitive, but I know others have negotiated the buyout price of their leases. I am not sure if BMWFS will negotiate with you, but if you turn it in and the dealer takes into their inventory, you can negotiate with the dealer. I found a thread on the 3 series forums on this subject.

http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=198880