Am I crazy for wanting to lease a top-of-the-line 3-series out of college?

[tj100]

Originally Posted by GreenFrog

find me a non-luxury, rwd car that handles as well as the 335is coupe (and i repeat, HANDLES AS WELL). there are none!

Easy:

Porsche 911.

Nissan GTR.

I went from a 3 series (E46 M3) to a 911, and there's no going back. At least not until I have kids and need a functioning back seat.

 

[GreenFrog]

Originally Posted by tj100

Easy:

Porsche 911.

Nissan GTR.

I went from a 3 series (E46 M3) to a 911, and there's no going back. At least not until I have kids and need a functioning back seat.

porsche is luxury.

gtr is awd, and, arguably, luxury.

 

[gomestar]

so why not a GT3?

 

[ezlau]

Frog, I dont know if anyone has suggested this yet, but have you considered an e36 m3? I have one that I inherited from my brother, and I absolutely love the feeling of driving it (you will feel a lot of connection between your car and the road, if that makes sense at all). So far having it for a year, ive spent 2k+ on maintenance stuffs (cooling system (very vital), and misc stuff like battery & alternator. IMO if you are pretty handy at DIY on your car you would be spending much less.

Consider getting a sedan e36 m3 (1997-1999 i think), good condition for around $10-12k. Gas mileage is about city 15mpg /highway 25 mpg.

Also, the looks of an e36 m3 does not look too flashy, but rather timeless and masculine imo. See sig

EDIT: Just to add on, remember that 5k-7k e36 m3 are available too, but you get what you paid for. Expect to shell out the extra couple thousands you thought you 'saved' to get it back in good shape.

 

[tj100]

Originally Posted by GreenFrog

porsche is luxury.

gtr is awd, and, arguably, luxury.

Porsche is luxury (and Nissan is arguably) but BMW isn't? You're wearing blinders.

 

[RSS]

Few auto makes/models qualify as luxury. Of course, one can always pretend ... and advertising will never stop trying to convince.

 

[A Y]

Originally Posted by BrianVarick

Buy an older M3 for $20k or so. Your monthly payment should be reasonable, and you will still have money for the more repairs. I think it's worth it to get a used nicer car as long as you leave yourself room for repairs.

I was just looking at a 2005 328ci and it was around $7,000!

This is good advice. An E36 M3 will be more fun and far cheaper (much less than $20K) than a new E92.

Originally Posted by GreenFrog

find me a non-luxury, rwd car that handles as well as the 335is coupe (and i repeat, HANDLES AS WELL). there are none!

A Miata or Nissan 350/370 will handle as well, or better.

--Andre

 

[origenesprit]

Originally Posted by RSS

Few auto makes/models qualify as luxury. Of course, one can always pretend ... and advertising will never stop trying to convince.

This is a good post.

 

[bigbjorn]

Yeah, you should lease a GTI for $375 a month. That's the rational thing to do. Thank god you didn't go do something stupid.

 

[Douglas]

yeah i mean ultimately all this "driving enthusiast" stuff is BS if you really think that a 335 coupe is the best handling car in the world. I was going to mention the Miata but AY has now mentioned it, E36 M3s are more fun and more cost effective to own. Hell, you can get a used Elise for half the price of a 335.

That's not to knock the 335, which is a great car, but it's just more than you can responsibly afford. Think about what you have to spend on the car per month:

$600/month on the lease
$150-200/month on insurance at your age on a car like that, maybe even more in Boston.
$100 on gas? That's with not much driving (1.5-2 fillups/month)
In 27 months you'll go through at least one set of tires, add another $1200. $45/month.
$????/month to garage it, which you can eschew if you can take public transit.

That's some $900-1000 a month. Do you enjoy driving that much? And even if you do, can you responsibly afford it? Some people might enjoy it that much, but are you really willing to live in a smaller place, drink cheaper beer, and buy cheaper clothes to make your budget work?

And that $900-1000 a month has no residual value at the end of the lease, and doesn't count in the obviously sizeable down payment you're taking on.

Even with killer maintenance bills, an E36 M3, which will be as fun (more fun) to drive handling-wise, will have a lower total cost of ownership, and will be worth something at the end of 27 months. Even if it's so trashed that nobody would buy it at any price, you'd still have a car to get around in. Unlike the lease.

I applaud you on coming around to the right side of things here - this would be a reckless and irresponsible and frankly foolish (if you really are the driving enthusiast you insist you are) decision.

I'm done in this thread.

 

[mr.orange]

Originally Posted by Douglas

I drive a formerly leased, now-owned BMW 3-series. I also love Bimmers, so understand where this advice comes from.

A few days ago, you were stressing that you didn't have a job. You needed the advice of the forum to figure out how to negotiate offers and buy time while you heard from someone else. You were indecisive and obviously very inexperienced. You're a kid. Your demeanor and naivete reinforce this. There's nothing wrong with that - you are a kid. But your financial future is far from secure. This is your first job out of college. The economy sucks and there are few guarantees of anything for anyone right now.

Do yourself a favor. Buy a cheaper car, bank the difference. It's the right thing to do.

great advice. If you've got the cake to lease something like 335 then you can mos def afford a certified used vehicle. Doug's right, heed his advice. Buy a cheaper and bank the difference.

 

[Ambulance Chaser]

Originally Posted by GreenFrog

I think another huge reason as to why I decided to forego the new bimmer is because I'd be commuting to work every single day via public transportation. Driving to and from work is just not part of the equation, so I really wouldn't 'need' a car. It would be purely pleasure.

Driving in downtown Boston is probably the worst thing ever, and parking there is at least $40 a day --> $800 a month alone in parking!!!
Boston is a compact city with a good public transportation system. Think about forgoing the car entirely unless you are planning on visiting Cape Cod or the track every weekend. As Esquire magazine put it, "You are in your car an hour each day. You are in your clothes from morning till night. Spend accordingly."

 

[Joffrey]

edit.

 

[username79]

Originally Posted by Dashaansafin

I love cars too. That doesnt mean im going to blow most of my salary on a used ferrari. I work an an analyst at an ibank. Im sure some of my fellow analysts love cars too. Everyone lives inside the city and has literally no need for a car. I remember one kid bought a 3 series and the MDs laughed thier asses off. But w/e its your own money. Im far too lazy to break down what 75k looks like after taxes and the cost of living.
You realize that not everyone lives or would even contemplate living a life like yours? In your world, everyone lives inside the city and has no need for a car. In fact, since they work all day and most of the night, they wouldn't have time to go anywhere anyway. Do the MDs laugh at the guys who go out every night and spend more than a 3 series car payment on bottle service? Some of us live in beautiful places with wide open, twisting, curving roads. Some of us don't work all day long in the middle of a city and have hours to go out for a ride, explore new places, or take the day to go to the track. People that sit inside an office building for 100hrs a week should not be giving life advice. What are you working for? What is the purpose of money or making it if you don't pursue what makes you happy? Is your goal in life really to save a lot of money? Become a VP? Work even harder? Buy a house so you can sleep for five to six hours just like you do at your apartment? Those of you that don't care about cars will never understand what it is like to drive a fast car. Driving a "reasonable used car" like a Honda Accord or Corolla is like sex in the dark with a *********. All you care about is getting there; rolling over or even better, getting out and leaving. Now go get into an M3 or a 911 or some other fantastic piece of machinery, roll down the windows on a beautiful day, down shift to 2nd, shift at 8400rpm into 3rd, and try to wipe the **** eating grin off your face. Life is too short. Do what you want. That means for people that love cars: get the car that makes you happy. While some dumb ass is riding a desk so he can take his parent's outdated financial advice and "buy a 'starter home' and a used car", you can rent a much nicer place and drive a new sports car; while saving and investing *more* money.

 

[origenesprit]

Originally Posted by username79

While some dumb ass is riding a desk so he can take his parent's outdated financial advice and "buy a 'starter home' and a used car", you can rent a much nicer place and drive a new sports car; while saving and investing *more* money.

What?