toddwalton wrote

I get it! I too am a great negotiator- in my work life. In my private life, I don't want the hassles or the drama in something that is supposed to be joyous. I don't want to stare down and get angry and shop 10 different dealerships to save McNuggets money.

Hey, if I were building a house I'd too be rolling up the sleeves and manipulating every last nickel. But this is a leased car. It's a $500 monthly payment. It's a utility no different than your cellphone bill or your electric bill, you need a car, it costs a certain amount each month, you pay it, and you don't think about it again.

I've leased 11 of my 12 BMW's and never needed a single repair, never went over the mileage limit. My financial advisor insists we lease because it's a flat and predictable expense and so far he's right. The money that a purchase would have cost all those 36 month cycles was far better served in his hands as our portfolio has been incredible the last 15 years.

Like I said, BMW enthusiasm is a big hobby of mine. A joyous and happy moment in a life filled with typical executive effort and anxiety. Leasing without much negotiating is easy. And that's how I like it.

Ravenous666 wrote

Everything what you can do today with the wheels in the G45 can already be done by touchscreen.

I thought I might use it more often but tbh I find myself far less fiddling around in the menus than on my previous G01. I mainly use the touchscreen or voice commands.

I was a real fan of the iDrive controller in the G01, but won't realy miss it in the G45 if it wasn't there. Part of that is due to less usability of the controller in the G45.

PGHBMW1 wrote

I considered a 50 but for 15k more is was not worth it for me. In my driving environment the 30 is quick enough and returns excellent FE.

Artdnj wrote

same for me I guess, the dual exhaust and rear diffuser is to my liking but as you said, my build would be 10k apart. If you know, if leasing, Is that 10k really 5k (onlease you pay roughly half of car) for 39 mo which is roughly 150/mo more? We find our current x3 30i msport is fast enough and we really love it...that's why it's so hard to move on but buying it out isn't what I want to do.

gohawks23 wrote

Before doing anything if you are going to lease spend some time on learning how a lease actually comes together and be able to run your own numbers...or hire a broker because you will leave a lot of $ on the table doing it yourself.

Go to Edmunds lease forums to find MF and RV and create a spreadsheet or use AI or below calculator to get target payment/DAS.

https://forum.leasehackr.com/t/lh-calculator-and-how-to-use-it/246415

EWL5 wrote

I guess you live in a different world from many of us. I think some of us amassed our wealth by not being "pound foolish". I grew up frugal and have taught my kids to make good informed decisions and not be wasteful with money. It can all go away tomorrow (especially if this Iran war drags on)!

toddwalton wrote

Not a different world. Just a different way of looking at the cash.

Instead of pulling $70,000 out of the bank in one shot, I get to keep that invested in the market slowly trickling out $500 a month towards the lease.

The money made off of that money left with my financial team a) offsets the "foolish" spend, b) provides me a guaranteed $0 maintenance/repair expense, and c) puts me in a brand new car every 36 months.

Any time we go back and forth on this in the forums, the math says that one must keep their BMW 7+ years in order to make it work out ahead of leasing, the delta in 'savings' is only around $3,000, and therefore all it takes is 1 bad mechanical problem and BOOM, you just suffered in a 7+ year old car for no reason. And, again, I can make more than $3,000 with my investment team.

I'd to me and you'll do you, but no need to call my approach "foolish" when it's you who are rolling the dice that you won't have 1 measly out of warranty repair costing more than $3,000.

toddwalton wrote

Not a different world. Just a different way of looking at the cash.

Instead of pulling $70,000 out of the bank in one shot, I get to keep that invested in the market slowly trickling out $500 a month towards the lease.

The money made off of that money left with my financial team a) offsets the "foolish" spend, b) provides me a guaranteed $0 maintenance/repair expense, and c) puts me in a brand new car every 36 months.

Any time we go back and forth on this in the forums, the math says that one must keep their BMW 7+ years in order to make it work out ahead of leasing, the delta in 'savings' is only around $3,000, and therefore all it takes is 1 bad mechanical problem and BOOM, you just suffered in a 7+ year old car for no reason. And, again, I can make more than $3,000 with my investment team.

I'd to me and you'll do you, but no need to call my approach "foolish" when it's you who are rolling the dice that you won't have 1 measly out of warranty repair costing more than $3,000.

minus.spire wrote

This is sounding worse - you use your investable assets to pay for cars? Ouch. That should only be done in the retirement phase, about once every 6 years.

WhoopieCat wrote

My dealer showed me the sheet for production end of all US models in 2026. I was thinking I might want to wait for 2027 since the individual paint wait is so long, so I was given this information. It's consistent with the future model thread that mentions an updated powertrain for the M50 in December.

toddwalton wrote

No, it’s the opposite. I’m saying that instead of pulling $70,000 from our cash reserves I can put the money into our investment portfolio. I don’t need to pull $500 a month out of our market positions, that was just a figure of speech, salary covers that of course.

Artdnj wrote

If I go with the M50 in Aug I may have quite the dilemma, 26 vs 27...It will probably come down to price as I can wait a few months if necessary

minus.spire wrote

Ok yeah makes sense. I do the same but with the almost free financing. Just more flexible and I feel like 5-6 years goes by pretty fast. My cars still feel kinda new at that age. When I leased I felt rushed into swapping too often.

Arctic Blue wrote

I see the dilemma for summer buyers who aren't in a hurry. I’d assume that if you can get a massive discount, the 2026 is the way to go; otherwise, wait for the 2027.
-What does everyone else think?
-What would be considered a strong discount for a year-end model?

Artdnj wrote

Do you purchase an extended warranty for thw extra 1-2 years or just wing it? Also, when you trade it in after 5-6 years is it a wash or do you have neg equity...the worst part of any dealer transaction with me is doing the trade part but that's just my experience. If it had an accident it's especially horrible hence the reasin I lease lately 39 mo

minus.spire wrote

The B58 is a pretty solid powertrain at this point. I don’t do extended warranties. I may sell this one at the 4 year mark to avoid potential drama. We’ll see.

Trade is always positive equity because when you own cars outright they become the substantial down payment on the next one. I have positive equity already, I went into the loan with positive equity. This what I mean about having that flexibility. Especially important to reduce the sales tax burden on another purchase.

Trade in values are well established based on tons of sales data out there. Never had a hard time getting a fair price. May have to shop around a bit but it always works out. Accidents are tough, insurance comes into play regardless.

Artdnj wrote

If you know, would the m50 hold it's value at trade in more than the 30i? Since it's more expensive up front it might be a wash but it seems lots have an abundance of 30i's and limited numbers of m50's. Lastly, I try to put as little money as possible down on my leases but if financing is there a unwritten rule as a amount to put down. I have alsways either leased or purchased outright but due to some home remodeling coming up I don't want to tie up to much of my cash on a vehicle.

minus.spire wrote

The B58 will live on in new gens so it’s not like this is the last chance to get an I6 engine. That would certainly boost the residual. But that’s not the case. The X3 probably depreciates about the same across models.

Ideally you would put down enough to cover the “gap” after the drive off depreciation hit. Typically 20% or more, to stay above water on the loan.

toddwalton wrote

From my own experience, deals are hot right now in March and get worse and worse as the warm weather months approach. If you think about it, the average car owner gets go-fever in June or July, they want a new car when it's gorgeous out and not gloomy March. I'd say pre-Easter is one of the best times to lease here in the Northeast US. Lord knows what's going to happen with the economy or gas prices or component shipping or tariffs the rest of the year, so buying something now when prices are stable may also be a big advantage vs the fall.

No broker required. If you have an existing relationship with a BMW salesperson, send a text, explain your situation, ask if you can come in for a test drive and a talk. Go to the BMW configurator, build the X3 you want, and send him that build code.

I got my G45 quite unexpectedly in this exact manner. Took my X7 in for its service, got told of some expensive repairs in my near future. Texted my salesperson an X3 build code and he had 90% of the car I wanted on his lot. A little negotiating later and they took the X7 in trade and I was driving off in the new X3 the next day.

Artdnj wrote

Ok last question as I keep reading about the GAP and what difference does it make if you put say 10k down vs 2500 if you drive off and it's totalled. Don't you lose money either way assuming no GAP.

rmorin1249 wrote

How did you feel downsizing from an X7 to an X3? I'm a bit nervous downsizing from an X5. The test drive in the M50 sold me. Sure the X3 isn't as luxurious as the X5 but it handles as well as a M340. We don't need the room of an X5 so I'm stoked to take delivery of the X3.