[sfheat]

Hi All,
What's the general approach to upgrading a lease? Remove all modifications at the end of the term? Can you tint a lease?

thank you.

[basiluf]

Originally Posted by sfheat

Hi All,
What's the general approach to upgrading a lease? Remove all modifications at the end of the term? Can you tint a lease?

thank you.

Yes and Yes. I've turned in two leased BMWs with tint still attached with no problems. BMW is very lenient on lease turn ins compared to someone like Toyota who will try to rape you.

[BEM-S4]

I've also turned in cars with blacked out emblems, etc. As long as it's nothing crazy they are pretty easy on that stuff. Just make sure if you replace the tires during the lease they are within OEM specs or you could get screwed there. In other words, if you have a month left on your lease and the tires won't pass inspection don't put something cheap on thinking you'll get away with one.

[lichenlt]

Originally Posted by basiluf

Yes and Yes. I've turned in two leased BMWs with tint still attached with no problems. BMW is very lenient on lease turn ins compared to someone like Toyota who will try to rape you.

how much tinting do you usually do? does it impair visibility at night?

[Namtab]

^ I agree with basiluf. You need to remove the mods which technically includes the gangsta tints. But they'll probably let the tint slide. BMW is very lease friendly compared to other car companies. BMW is actually the only manufacturer that I would consider leasing from.

[basiluf]

Originally Posted by lichenlt

how much tinting do you usually do? does it impair visibility at night?

I do 20% all around. To me I'm used to it since I've had it all my life. In Florida you need it or you can get sun burnt pretty easily just sitting in traffic.

[basiluf]

Originally Posted by Namtab

^ I agree with basiluf. You need to remove the mods which technically includes the gangsta tints. But they'll probably let the tint slide. BMW is very lease friendly compared to other car companies. BMW is actually the only manufacturer that I would consider leasing from.

BMW has never charged me a cent.

Here is my example of Toyota at work on my Camry lease. That spare tire cover is a piece of cardboard.

[five3three]

Originally Posted by basiluf

BMW has never charged me a cent.

Here is my example of Toyota at work on my Camry lease. That spare tire cover is a piece of cardboard.

That's just ridiculous especially the chipped windshield. Did you actually pay all of that in the end?

[Delnari]

If you do have to replace something like tires, windscreen, etc. Make sure you use the OEM acceptable replacement. I found out that even Tire Rack can sell you tires that are marked with a specific manufacturer code on the side of the tire showing it is original spec tire. Look at your OEM tires on there now and you will see an oval with a letter and/or number code in it.

As far as upgraded parts, you will need to get them off before turn in unless they are parts sold by BMW thus carry implied warranty.

[basiluf]

Originally Posted by Delnari

If you do have to replace something like tires, windscreen, etc. Make sure you use the OEM acceptable replacement. I found out that even Tire Rack can sell you tires that are marked with a specific manufacturer code on the side of the tire showing it is original spec tire. Look at your OEM tires on there now and you will see an oval with a letter and/or number code in it.

As far as upgraded parts, you will need to get them off before turn in unless they are parts sold by BMW thus carry implied warranty.

Tires just need to have the same speed rating. I replaced the tires on my M3 a few months ago with the cheapest tires with the same speed rating as the OEM Michelins. The Bridgestone Potenza S4 were almost 50% less than the OEM Michelin PS2s.

[basiluf]

Originally Posted by five3three

That's just ridiculous especially the chipped windshield. Did you actually pay all of that in the end?

I just received this estimate last week and I have until mid May to fix as that is turn in date. I already purchased two tires at $75/piece, found the cardboard online for $100 all in, and am waiting to call my insurance and tell them to fix my windshield the week prior to turning it in because I'm worried I might get another chip in it after I fix it.

[ORIGIN M.]

I'd never buy a BMW lease return considering how many people modify their leased BMW.

Not a chance !

[Namtab]

Originally Posted by red-sauerkraut

I'd never buy a BMW lease return considering how many people modify their leased BMW.

Not a chance !

You really shouldn't buy a used luxury car period unless you like money bleeding out of your pocket. The aftermarket for luxury car parts barely exists which means you're going to pay for OEM parts. And luxury marques just overcharge for parts.

[BEM-S4]

Originally Posted by Namtab

You really shouldn't buy a used luxury car period unless you like money bleeding out of your pocket. The aftermarket for luxury car parts barely exists which means you're going to pay for OEM parts. And luxury marques just overcharge for parts.

That's not entirely true. If you get an off lease BMW, 36 months old with under 30K, CPO you get free maint and service all the way out to year 6. So you could enjoy a full three years of no risk driving. That said if you want to keep it past 3 years, good luck and god bless.

Residual on my m235, for example, is right around $30K. Figure they mark it up and you negotiate down to settle around $35K. Drive it for three years, cannot possibly be worth less than $20K when you're looking to get out of it. So you're looking at $400 per month in hassle free / worry free driving assuming you get out before the warranty runs out.

[sfheat]

You recommend buying?

[ORIGIN M.]

Originally Posted by sfheat

You recommend buying?

Not unless you want almost double the payment

[BEM-S4]

Originally Posted by sfheat

You recommend buying?

That's an entirely different and much broader conversation, check the forum it has been discussed to death. Short answer, if you want a new car every 3 years and can keep your miles in check it can make better $-sense to lease versus buy. If you drive a ton of miles, keep cars for a long time, or want to heavily mod the car then buying may be better for you personally. Keep in mind you'll get pennies on the dollar when selling for anything you put into the car. That said, if you are sticking with little stuff like your original question, tints, black grilles, etc. that should not drive your decision because it literally doesn't matter.

[Namtab]

Originally Posted by sfheat

You recommend buying?

You really shouldn't lease unless its a tax write-off. People lease b/c it gets them into a car they couldn't otherwise afford since you're paying for a portion of the total price and your monthly payments are lower. But if you lease and finance over the same time period, you end up paying more with leasing. And this is where the true downside to leasing is revealed.

You can actually run the numbers yourself and do the math. Calculate how much you would pay total on the lease and compare that to how much you would pay financing the total price (over the same time period) minus what the car would be worth on resale which is equity you get back. You get none on a lease.

The downside is that your monthly finance payments will be about double what your monthly lease payments would be b/c you're paying for the total price as opposed to a portion of the price. In other words, if you can actually afford the total price of the car you would save more money financing it rather than leasing it. But if you can't afford the total price of the car you and you really want it then you should lease it b/c you're only paying a portion of the car (though you are paying more for that portion).

[BEM-S4]

Originally Posted by Namtab

You really shouldn't lease unless its a tax write-off. People lease b/c it gets them into a car they couldn't otherwise afford since you're paying for a portion of the total price and your monthly payments are lower. But if you lease and finance over the same time period, you end up paying more with leasing. And this is where the true downside to leasing is revealed.

You can actually run the numbers yourself and do the math. Calculate how much you would pay total on the lease and compare that to how much you would pay financing the total price (over the same time period) minus what the car would be worth on resale which is equity you get back. You get none on a lease.

The downside is that your monthly finance payments will be about double what your monthly lease payments would be b/c you're paying for the total price as opposed to a portion of the price. In other words, if you can actually afford the total price of the car you would save more money financing it rather than leasing it. But if you can't afford the total price of the car you and you really want it then you should lease it b/c you're only paying a portion of the car (though you are paying more for that portion).

That's mildly misleading. If you sell in three years, to compare it to a lease, you are not getting equity back. You still need to pay off your note which may or may not be upside down at the time. If you finance for 36 months which is I think what you're saying, you still have to factor in all the depreciation so it's not like you are building equity in a home or something. Regardless, buy for $50 sell for $30 you're still losing $20. Buying starts to make more sense the longer you want to hold the car as the big depreciation hits are in years one and two, but if he's waiting for an M2 and wants to get out in 24 or 36 months the buying advantage is minimal at best, aside from tying up a ton of capital.

[BEM-S4]

Regardless, if you are thinking about buying vs leasing because you are worried about getting a slap on the wrist for your windows being tinted, that's not the reason to choose one versus the other.

[Namtab]

Originally Posted by BEM-S4

That's mildly misleading. If you sell in three years, to compare it to a lease, you are not getting equity back. You still need to pay off your note which may or may not be upside down at the time. If you finance for 36 months which is I think what you're saying, you still have to factor in all the depreciation so it's not like you are building equity in a home or something. Regardless, buy for $50 sell for $30 you're still losing $20. Buying starts to make more sense the longer you want to hold the car as the big depreciation hits are in years one and two, but if he's waiting for an M2 and wants to get out in 24 or 36 months the buying advantage is minimal at best, aside from tying up a ton of capital.

One can do the math themselves and see the difference. The key variable is the same time period. If you finance versus lease over the same time period and after this you resell the car (the remaining equity after depreciation) you will save thousands of dollars. I used to work for a car dealership and we pushed leases all the time b/c its a win-win for the dealer - the customer pays more for the portion of the car they're leasing and we get a car for resale after 3 years that still had the factory warranty and low miles. A dealership and bank makes a lot of profit off of leased vehicles. Its why leasing even exists. No financial institution would use such an instrument unless it made money.

The problem is most people can't afford to finance a luxury car over 3 years, the payments would be sky high. So the vast majority of these people who can't afford luxury cars lease b/c it gets them into a car they couldn't normally afford to finance over the same time period.

[Scotlac]

Originally Posted by Namtab

One can do the math themselves and see the difference. The key variable is the same time period. If you finance versus lease over the same time period and after this you resell the car (the remaining equity after depreciation) you will save thousands of dollars. I used to work for a car dealership and we pushed leases all the time b/c its a win-win for the dealer - the customer pays more for the portion of the car they're leasing and we get a car for resale after 3 years that still had the factory warranty and low miles. A dealership and bank makes a lot of profit off of leased vehicles. Its why leasing even exists. No financial institution would use such an instrument unless it made money.

The problem is most people can't afford to finance a luxury car over 3 years, the payments would be sky high. So the vast majority of these people who can't afford luxury cars lease b/c it gets them into a car they couldn't normally afford to finance over the same time period.

Obviously, this would be the case if the person was able to finance the car over three years but what would those numbers look like if the person is financing the car over 5-6 years?

I'm sincerely interested in hearing your opinion on this since you've worked in the industry. It's my understanding that if you do a 5-6 year finance and then trade the car in after 3-4 years then you actually lose less money with a lease.