[CarBrain]

Do most people lease the 5-series more than buy them?

I have never leased a vehicle before.

From reading many threads on here, I see more people leasing the F10 than buying it.

Oh, one side note: Can you get a personalized license plate if you lease the F10 ?

[dpwr]

it's a never ending debate, bottom line is, do whatever suits your needs, nobody's situation is the same

[ibimmer954]

Originally Posted by CarBrain

Do most people lease the 5-series more than buy them?

Don't know. But compared to the 3-series, I'm guessing the lease percentage is higher. I leased my car, primarily because I like getting new cars every couple of years. And I'm OK with the limitations of leasing (mileage limit, non-ownership, etc.).

Oh, one side note: Can you get a personalized license plate if you lease the F10 ?

Yes, as long as your name is on the registration. Which was the case with my 335i lease. Haven't seen the registration for the F10 yet.

[Mr. Magic]

I have done both.

I leased 3-series when I wasn't sure if I'd keep the car, but when lease was up after 3 years, there was no newer car that i liked better. I ended up buying it.

For new 5-series, I am just going to buy it. Hence, I am making sure the car is what I like.

I also put 20k miles on the cars per year, so lease is not a good thing.

-magic

[delvek]

I leased once back in the 90's when everyone was doing it lol ... didnt care for it much and havent since. For me, I just dont like renting a car and having to play by someone else rules, I do know many people however that given the way they use their car and the write off they receive, leasing is a no brainer. Like mentioned above, I think its not a one size fits all correct choice but an individual choice reliant on all sorts of factors.

[raleedy]

A lease is a lot like a car loan with a balloon payment at the end — except that you can choose to turn the car back instead of making that big payment.

[pharding]

Leasing combined with Euro Delivery yields low monthly payments if you know what you are doing.

[shipill]

I leased twice ( 2005 Jetta and 2007 BMW 335 ) I purchased my 07 335 E92 at end of lease and i will never in my life lease a car again.

[delvek]

Except you pay a crapload of money over the course of the lease and have absolutely nothing to show for it. In my opinion the only real good reason for a lease is if its conducted as a business expense. As consumers though we all have our preffered buying methods and I am sure there are a slew of folks who wouldnt dare touch a 60 month loan at 3.99% over a 36 month lease, I just dont see it.

[raleedy]

Originally Posted by shipill

I leased twice ( 2005 Jetta and 2007 BMW 335 ) I purchased my 07 335 E92 at end of lease and i will never in my life lease a car again.

Why not?

[raleedy]

Originally Posted by delvek

Except you pay a crapload of money over the course of the lease and have absolutely nothing to show for it. In my opinion the only real good reason for a lease is if its conducted as a business expense. As consumers though we all have our preffered buying methods and I am sure there are a slew of folks who wouldnt dare touch a 60 month loan at 3.99% over a 36 month lease, I just dont see it.

And this leasing is different exactly how? A car depreciates. Ultimately it is worth less than the cost to dispose of it. And those who borrow to buy usually find themselves upside-down at some point. What is so attractive about owning something like that?

[delvek]

I have no good answer for you although if I looked it up I can probably find something. For me its just gut feeling of something over owning something.

If I pay a loan for 48 months at 3.75% my car is still worth around 30k or so thousand I can take that and trade it in or sell it or just keep it. If I have a lease for 36 months and pay i have no idea but guessing 500 a month, thats 18k I have spent plus any up front costs for lease and I walk away and have nothing except a whole lot of worry about miles and damage.

To me, any sort of owing is bad and usually only owe on my home and 1 car, my other car is a shit box that gets me around. If I could I would just owe on my house. The idea of renting just never sat well with me.

Sorry if this is a basic explanation with no hard technical facts but thats how I roll

[Hoss NY]

Originally Posted by delvek

thats how I roll

I buy my cars -- no lease, no loan. That's how I roll.

[dpwr]

Originally Posted by delvek

I have no good answer for you although if I looked it up I can probably find something. For me its just gut feeling of something over owning something.

If I pay a loan for 48 months at 3.75% my car is still worth around 30k or so thousand I can take that and trade it in or sell it or just keep it. If I have a lease for 36 months and pay i have no idea but guessing 500 a month, thats 18k I have spent plus any up front costs for lease and I walk away and have nothing except a whole lot of worry about miles and damage.

To me, any sort of owing is bad and usually only owe on my home and 1 car, my other car is a shit box that gets me around. If I could I would just owe on my house. The idea of renting just never sat well with me.

Sorry if this is a basic explanation with no hard technical facts but thats how I roll

so if you buy your car for 60k and in 3 years you sell it for 30k, that's a payment of $833/month, how is that better then just leasing it for lower price?

[Grizzles]

i need someone to come with me and help negotiate the sale, even paying them $500 COULD SAVE ME THOUSANDS.

also negotiate your lease first as a sale price then negotiate your lease from that #

[rocco90]

bmwusa seem to be to have a finance offer at 0,9% for the 2011 535i. I'm curious if somebody got such a rate?

I never leased a vehicle before, please correct me if my math below doesn't seem to be right. Regarding bmwusa.com here is what you will pay when you lease and eventually buy:

535i, MSRP of $52,275.0 (includes Premium Package, Automatic Transmission and Destination):
- 36-month lease at $619/month
- $3,500 Down payment
- $725 Acquisition fee
Total lease will cost: (36 x $619) = $22,284 + $3500 (down payment) = $25,784.
If you want to buy the car at the end of the lease it will be $31,888.
Total it will cost you:
$25,784 (lease payments + down payment)
+
$31,888 (Purchase option)
+
$725 (Acquisition fee)
================
= $58,397.

You can make your math for financing based on rate and down payment you can afford...

[raleedy]

Originally Posted by dpwr

so if you buy your car for 60k and in 3 years you sell it for 30k, that's a payment of $833/month, how is that better then just leasing it for lower price?

Make that $833/month plus what you could have earned on a three-year CD of $30,000 and the interest on a money-market account with an average balance for those 3 years of $15,000. Call it another $3,000, only $83 a month but enough for a latte or two.

[tony20009]

I don't know what most people do, but I'm sure you can find a study somewhere on the Internet that indicates what the rates of increase/decrease in leased automobiles is. BMW probably has the specific statistics on BMW automobiles. I found this (http://www.bts.gov/publications/nati...ble_01_17.html) which only goes up to 2008, so behaviours may have changed since that fateful year. Businesses mostly lease cars because of the tax position that accompanies leasing (operating leases, not capital leases).

I can tell you that many folks are more interested in their monthly payment amount than they are in the total cost to purchase/drive a vehicle. Accordingly, such people lease. Also, I suspect that folks who lease want a new car every few years, and they are folks who don't have unlimited resources. (Folks who consistently have substantively unlimited resources -- at least as goes the resources needed to buy cars valued up to $80K -- don't fit into many norms of car buying behavior, but such folks probably buy because overall, it's cheaper.)

I buy my cars because it's the least expensive way for me to have a car I like and can rely on, and because I tend to keep cars for 10-15 years (longer if they are still in good shape). Even now, I have a 1988 car that's starting to show it's age and I think, after it's been out for a year, the new F10 will be its replacement.