[twentythreemx]

You may have just saw in my other post, but if not, I'm currently driving a 2015 corvette, looking to get rid of it and get into something on another level.. 90% certain that is going to be an i8.

I'm looking for some guidance from some people who have been there / done that, or just simply have much more knowledge than I. I'm only 29, but have bought a few new vehicles and have also leased.

I told myself I'd never lease again because the last one I wanted out of, and it was just a pain to deal with. However after I did all the math on what I had into it, I really didn't lose out. I bought it out myself and resold it a few thousand higher than my residual, and it was very close to matching what I would have paid if I would have just bought it. The only added bonus was the low payment during the lease.

So my current plan was to find a 2014 for as cheap as possible w/ low miles, seem to be no problem to find around 100k. Put as close to half down as possible, with long finance terms, and have a payment around 700. With my credit score (over 800) that should be pretty realistic.

However during discussion, someone brought up a lease. I was initially against it, but after looking at what some people are paying, its making me question if I should go that route.

I would be in the car for 2 years for sure. Do you think I'm better off leasing for 2 years, and losing all that $ as I look at lease like a rental... but I would have a bunch of $ still available to put to work elsewhere... at the end of the lease buy it out, resell it myself? Not sure what residuals are.

Or would I come out better sticking with my plan of buying used, 40k off msrp of a new one, and financing it, and selling it for the best i can in 2 years.

At the end of the 2 years, how am I looking with deprecation and such? Thats one thing I'm nervous about with this car, depreciation seems pretty bad.


Sorry to get long winded, just struggling to wrap my head around this one. Wasn't a big deal when it was a 30k subaru I had this situation with, the risk was a lot smaller if things didnt pan out. Im OK with putting lots of $ down up front to get my payment where I want it, I just want to know whats the smartest way to do this, so that I dont get burned 2 years from now when I'm ready to move on.

Thanks for any advice / #'s you can throw out for me, I appreciate the feedback.

[zagaboo]

Not sure about the US, but in the UK the current offer on a new car (£15K deposit contribution and 0% finance over 2 yrs) is such that you are better buying new than used. Any new sports car around £100K/$150K is going to lose about half its value over 3 years. If you can't stand that, probably not for you. Problem with the i8 is the you can't really wait until the depr curve settles and get a 2/3 year old one, as proven/unproven age related battery worries, new tech, etc will definitely put some people off and mean the curve never really settles. Buy new, lose money but enjoy one of the best, most cutting edge sports cars on the planet or play it safe get a used R8 - a great car and safer bet, but not really comparable to the i8 ownership experience. You pays your money........

[363ny]

Its a bit tricky to discuss without any numbers or even how many miles you plan to drive the car a year but here a few general thoughts.

BMW FS currently leases the i8 for 3 years / 10K miles per year using a 65% residual. Lets say you find a 2014 with an MSRP of $140K that you can buy for $100K. You drive it for two years - you now have a car that is 5 years old and lets just assume it has 30K miles on it - my guess estimate is it would be worth about 50% of the MSRP - so $70K which is cost of $30K for the two years. Plus you have locked up $100K for two years - so there is additional cost of lost earnings on that $100K.

I believe that you could probably do better via a lease + you would have a new car.

But two other points to consider about going the lease route is:
1. If you have serious accident with the car - the value of the car will be significantly impaired while it will not have any impact via the lease.
2. Lots of talk of a mid cycle refresh coming towards the end of 2017 which could also depress prices for the current model.

I hope this helpful. Let us know which route you go.

[stressdoc]

Interesting Q I am in reverse boat. I've always been a cash buyer but considering a lease. I worry a bit about mileage as this would be my sole means of transport.
Rough figures seem around -$20k for new 2016. Base MSRP 140k - 20 = 120k. Used 2015 around 105k, used 2014 around 95k. I would guess continued depreciation at 10%/year.

A big part of the picture for me is what return you can get on investments. If stock market returns 10% then lease makes most sense.

How does personal property tax and sales tax work on leases?

[Taxdr1965]

Lease, you will get killed on resale. Using msd and the residual BMW is using it's a no brainer.

[stressdoc]

If you buy used then depreciation not so bad, 10% per year or less. There are nice 2015s around 100k. That said, the $1050/mo deal on a 2016 looks attractive. It would be a new car, cash stays invested, open to new model in a few years, etc.