2017 BMW i3 REX first time leasing; how to do better?

Ask the Hackrs
1

I’ve never leased a car before; always bought and drove for years so I have very little idea about what is realistic to expect. I would appreciate any direction and thank everyone in advance for helping.

I’m in SoCal, have first tier credit, my employer does not offer any BMW discounts and I do not qualify for a loyalty discount.

I found a 2017 BMW i3 REX on a lot nearby. It’s new & not a service loaner. Here are the numbers I have so far w/the dealer:

MSRP: $55,745
Sales price: $51,595
Money Factor .00192
Document: $80
Acquisition: $925
24/10K
Dealer Incentive: $6720
BMW lease credit: $9500
Residual: 61% (I think but am not sure)
Registration & Fees $672
Sale Tax: 7.75

Is the MF high or is this about right? Dealer has not checked my credit yet; should I expect that the MF will go down because my credit is top notch or are these 2 variables not related?

I’ve worked out the numbers tentatively and I ended up with:
$251/month after tax
Drive off $1,011
or
$205/month if I pay the acquisition fee upfront.

It’s entirely possible that I completely omitted some tax somewhere & my math is totally off, but the intricacies seem beyond me at this point.

I also don’t know how to negotiate the price via email without violating some unspoken lease/dealership decorum. Just email the sales guy and say I want to lease the car @ 48K (or whatever) & let him offer 50K or is that perceived as a jerk move & ignored? Basically I just want to lease the car and would like not to get hosed.

If anyone has any feedback about whether this is OK, terrible or meh or how to improve it, I would appreciate it. Thanks!

2

Read the many existing i3 threads for more info. That MF is marked up as the buyrate is .00152.

What is that dealer incentive of $6720? Is that supposed to be their discount? It doesn’t match up with the MSRP and sales price.

3

MF is marked.
You need a better sells price.

30/10k is 61%

Your math is way off. Your payments should be more than $400….

4

Either the term or the residual are incorrect. You say 24 months but provide a 30 month residual. If you qualify for the CVRP a 30 month term is the sweet spot.

5

Hi Jon,

Yes. What I was referring to as a dealer incentive ($6720) is a discount the dealer has on the price. So the total price of the car (after all the incentives) is $35375.

6

Hi Whippit,

I do qualify for the CVRP and I went back & forth on the length of the lease but --until you mentioned it-- I had forgotten that the CVRP doesn’t apply to lease terms of 24 months…
Thanks for reminding me!