# Did you Buy or Lease your 335d?



## Engine66 (Feb 2, 2010)

I will be taking delivery of a 335d any day now as it has been at the preparation center waiting for transport to my dealer. I know there are many threads on the lease vs buy and one can make a compelling argument for one or the other. However, it seems the 335d is a unique vehicle in that there is a BMW $4500 eco credit and an IRS $900 tax credit ($900 credit to buyers only) available...both of which may eventually disappear. There is also limited availability of this model brand-new and there are only 23 used 335ds on autotrader nationwide for dealer/private seller for the couple years they've been around. I don't know how accurate this is, but I've heard approx. 80% of 335d's are purchased and that this should keep their values higher than other models. Leases on this vehicle at this time are 57% RV and MF of 250 for returning BMW leasees and 265 for others...and MSDs can bring this down a max. of .49. 

So, did your decision to lease or buy on this particular vehicle differ from your normal routine or did you just repeat what you normally do? I'm leaning towards a buy on this one after 3 other BMW leases with these factors in consideration. I am thinking optimisticly that the RV will hold up...and if the eco credit disappears as well as the $900 tax credit, a buy might prove to be smart. If for some reason I need to trade in or sell outright, it may not be that bad. Any input? This would be my first new "buy" of a BMW. Anyone else scratch their heads over this one like I am?


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## Tedj101 (Nov 24, 2009)

Engine66 said:


> I will be taking delivery of a 335d any day now as it has been at the preparation center waiting for transport to my dealer. I know there are many threads on the lease vs buy and one can make a compelling argument for one or the other. However, it seems the 335d is a unique vehicle in that there is a BMW $4500 eco credit and an IRS $900 tax credit ($900 credit to buyers only) available...both of which may eventually disappear. There is also limited availability of this model brand-new and there are only 23 used 335ds on autotrader nationwide for dealer/private seller for the couple years they've been around. I don't know how accurate this is, but I've heard approx. 80% of 335d's are purchased and that this should keep their values higher than other models. Leases on this vehicle at this time are 57% RV and MF of 250 for returning BMW leasees and 265 for others...and MSDs can bring this down a max. of .49.
> 
> So, did your decision to lease or buy on this particular vehicle differ from your normal routine or did you just repeat what you normally do? I'm leaning towards a buy on this one after 3 other BMW leases with these factors in consideration. I am thinking optimisticly that the RV will hold up...and if the eco credit disappears as well as the $900 tax credit, a buy might prove to be smart. If for some reason I need to trade in or sell outright, it may not be that bad. Any input? This would be my first new "buy" of a BMW. Anyone else scratch their heads over this one like I am?


The decision depends heavily on your personal situation. Leasing is a form of financing. If you are going to finance the car anyway, then leasing should be considered as one option. Leasing (depending on the type of lease) also has some tax reporting advantages since it is a definite payment made every month which is easily quantifiable and provable. That, of course, doesn't mean diddly if you aren't in a position where you are using your car in your business and are entitled to a deduction for the cost of using it in your business.

On the other hand, if you wouldn't finance the car if you bought it, why would you lease a car which simply adds the expense of interest to the cost of the car?

Oh, yeah, the original question, I bought....


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## DC335i (Nov 2, 2006)

We leased our 335i in 07, then bought the 335d when we turned in the 335i at the end of its lease in December. Several factors drove our decision. First and foremost was that the MF was much better when we leased in 07, while finance rates were rather high at the time. This time around, the MF was less favorable, but the finance rates were much lower. Residuals were also much better when we leased the 335i. Also driving our decision were the eco credit (4500), clean diesel tax credit (900) and the ability to deduct the sales tax (amounted to almost 1000 back on our taxes, but I don't believe it has been extended by the Feds for this year). Finally, we figured the diesel would have a better resale value than the gas model (speculation, I know), and I firmly believe there will be some inflation and price increases between now and three years down the road when a lease on a new 335d would have expired. We wanted the choice of whether to trade the car in 3 to 4 years or keep it. In the end, it was both a financial decision (compare the cost of financing versus the cost of leasing) and personal. We ultimately put 50% down and took out a 48 mo. loan on the balance, but we are making extra payments so the car will be paid off in 3 yrs. Interest rates were the same for 36 and 48 mos., so we took the 48 mo. option to give us some flexibility. We could have paid cash, but we were willing to pay what turned out to be a very low interest rate in order to keep more cash available should we need it down the road (if interest rates were substantially higher, we would have just paid for the car).


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## Engine66 (Feb 2, 2010)

DC335i said:


> We leased our 335i in 07, then bought the 335d when we turned in the 335i at the end of its lease in December. Several factors drove our decision. First and foremost was that the MF was much better when we leased in 07, while finance rates were rather high at the time. This time around, the MF was less favorable, but the finance rates were much lower. Residuals were also much better when we leased the 335i. Also driving our decision were the eco credit (4500), clean diesel tax credit (900) and the ability to deduct the sales tax (amounted to almost 1000 back on our taxes, but I don't believe it has been extended by the Feds for this year). Finally, we figured the diesel would have a better resale value than the gas model (speculation, I know), and I firmly believe there will be some inflation and price increases between now and three years down the road when a lease on a new 335d would have expired. We wanted the choice of whether to trade the car in 3 to 4 years or keep it. In the end, it was both a financial decision (compare the cost of financing versus the cost of leasing) and personal. We ultimately put 50% down and took out a 48 mo. loan on the balance, but we are making extra payments so the car will be paid off in 3 yrs. Interest rates were the same for 36 and 48 mos., so we took the 48 mo. option to give us some flexibility. We could have paid cash, but we were willing to pay what turned out to be a very low interest rate in order to keep more cash available should we need it down the road (if interest rates were substantially higher, we would have just paid for the car).


Good info...you obviously put a lot of thought into your deal...that's the same with me as I previously leased other BMWs, but will most likely buy for the same reasons as you...except I don't get the sales tax write off!:tsk: Since you have experience with both 335 models, how do they compare?


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## Stugots (Jan 1, 2010)

I purchased. Picked mine up on December 12th, and it has just over 9k miles on it...you can see why it made more sense for me.


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## Chrisdridley (Jun 29, 2009)

We purchased both our 335d's
The math works better with our driving styles.


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## Flyingman (Sep 13, 2009)

Bought, just under $50k with TTL. Loan with B of A at 3.99%, 60 months.

Ordered Sept 3 and received Dec 3. 3 months waiting/cooling off period!

Loving it but can't get enough time to drive it, only 4,800 miles in 4 1/2 months.


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## ghughes20 (Feb 27, 2010)

I purchased mine. I average 18k miles per year, so leasing wasn't really an option.


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## Neutrinolad (Jun 23, 2009)

Engine66 said:


> I will be taking delivery of a 335d any day now as it has been at the preparation center waiting for transport to my dealer. I know there are many threads on the lease vs buy and one can make a compelling argument for one or the other. However, it seems the 335d is a unique vehicle in that there is a BMW $4500 eco credit and an IRS $900 tax credit ($900 credit to buyers only) available...both of which may eventually disappear. There is also limited availability of this model brand-new and there are only 23 used 335ds on autotrader nationwide for dealer/private seller for the couple years they've been around. I don't know how accurate this is, but I've heard approx. 80% of 335d's are purchased and that this should keep their values higher than other models. Leases on this vehicle at this time are 57% RV and MF of 250 for returning BMW leasees and 265 for others...and MSDs can bring this down a max. of .49.
> 
> So, did your decision to lease or buy on this particular vehicle differ from your normal routine or did you just repeat what you normally do? I'm leaning towards a buy on this one after 3 other BMW leases with these factors in consideration. I am thinking optimisticly that the RV will hold up...and if the eco credit disappears as well as the $900 tax credit, a buy might prove to be smart. If for some reason I need to trade in or sell outright, it may not be that bad. Any input? This would be my first new "buy" of a BMW. Anyone else scratch their heads over this one like I am?


I always buy and never lease. For me it came down to 335d vs. 335i. Diesel vs. manual transmission, basically. The hpfp issue for the 335i was a big concern and the eco credit and tax deduction tipped the scales in favor of the 335d. I haven't missed the manual transmission for a second!


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## DC335i (Nov 2, 2006)

Engine66 said:


> Good info...you obviously put a lot of thought into your deal...that's the same with me as I previously leased other BMWs, but will most likely buy for the same reasons as you...except I don't get the sales tax write off!:tsk: Since you have experience with both 335 models, how do they compare?


One more part of the equation for us was that the first time around we saved on state tax because here on leases you only pay tax on the monthly payment. With the 335d, the tax was less of an issue because of the federal deduction.

As for the 335i vs. the 335d, we have really enjoyed both cars. We miss the MT that we had in the 335i, but with the paddle shifters we can still have fun with the 335d. The 335i felt faster overall (in part becuase it was, but also because you are more engaged with the MT), but the torque of the 335d makes passing really fun. We have noticed that with all the torque and the AT, the 335d is harder to control from a standing start in snow. We love the MPG and range of the 335d. In sum, having owned both cars, we enjoyed each of them for slightly different reasons. If we were doing it again, we would definately go with the 335d, particularly with the eco and tax credits. Drive them both, do the numbers, and ultimately do what feels right for you - they are both great cars and you really can't go wrong either way.


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## beemer01 (Aug 12, 2010)

Are people still buying instead of leasing the 335d lately? I contemplating about this now. The $4500 eco-credit and $900 tax credit are an incentive to buy. No sales tax write off this year. Interest rates are still low (although not as good as the 0.9% of gas models). I'm leaning toward the buy side, because there are 256 d's for sale on Autotrader, and the price for a used 2010 are almost the same as a new 2011!

This will be my first BMW, and I have heard about the stories where BMWs tend to have expensive repairs after the warranty has expired. The 335d is a relatively new car, so there isn't much repair history out there, but from what I read there hasn't been too many major issues except for DEF running out early. The engine is probably very reliable, but I'm worried about the other components for diesel.


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## Hu99 (Aug 29, 2010)

I'm currently leasing a 328i and ordered a 335d to arrive some time in December. I decided to buy this time based on my personal feeling of discomfort during the lease because the vehicle wasn't really mine. Also I didn't like the idea of having nothing at lease end. Sure, I haven't even considered the financial ramifications because for me it's just a case of having peace of mind. I purposely drove the 328i less than I would have liked because of the mileage limitations of a lease even going so far as renting a car for road trips, which adds to feeling that the car just doesn't belong to me.


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## Twilght1 (Jul 24, 2009)

I bought mine with 70 miles on it for 34.5K plus taxes.


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## DnA Diesel (Jul 31, 2010)

I leased for a number of reasons: 1) potential change in employment favouring expensing and leases, 2) far better MF than finance rate (cheaper to lease then buy out balance than finance), 3) I may end up trading up to a 530d when it comes over in a year or two, and 4) nice to have the ultimate 'Lemon Law' in your back pocket if the car isn't what it was touted to be.


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## railroader (Apr 12, 2010)

Bought, in March 2010. I'm hoping there still might be a way to write off the sales tax; maybe those rules vary between states; that is unless its a federal thing. Oh well, let the tax lady work out the details..

I've never been a lease customer-- I know there are several advantages to it, but like another poster I did not want to come to the "end" and have nothing to show for it (well, except for using the car all those months.) Plan to keep this "d" car for a fairly long time; may opt for the Extended Warranty if I can find one at a reasonable deal. With these slow revving engines-- they just have to be capable of a long life -- way up into the 6 figures of miles. I like the color/ergos/handling/everything about my car; figure it'll just get old with me. I don't want to "eat the depreciation" again like I did with my previous BMW. I don't want to even _think_ about that loss of funds.:tsk: But- I'm very happy with the present car.


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## dunderhi (Dec 10, 2006)

I evaluate lease vs. buy with every car purchase. I generally use my own 3 vs. 5 formula to determine a cost advantage. I compare the monthly payment for a 3 year lease versus the monthly payment for a 5 year loan. Three years should be the break-even point on a 5 year loan. After I determine the cost advantage, I look at long term planning to see if the cheaper option is the best way to go. 

Calculations aside, I traded in my MB SL550 to buy the 335d, which I plan to pay-off before I obtain "my car" next year. Technically the 335d is my wife's car, but I'm driving it every day since the SUV is her car too. As the future secondary car in our household, we will probably keep the 335d a bit longer than usual 3-4 years, so buying was a logical choice. The MB GL450's lease is up next year, so the timing will work out nicely that we will have only one car payment.


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## F32Fleet (Jul 14, 2010)

Purchased. I was tired of leasing as I like to drive and I hate having to worry about miles. I currently have 10,300 miles on my d over 9 months of ownership.


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## KarlB (Nov 21, 2004)

we purchased this veh and our decsion differed in that normally we buy CPOs and let others take that initial depreciation hit. with the current pricing on CPO 335ds combined with the 4500 credit from BMW and the 900 tax credit it wasnt much of a difference between buying CPO and buying new. We also intend to keep the 335d for a much longer time than opast cars purchased. (unless BMW would bring an X3 35d to the states) then I might have to rethink that last bit)


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## bimmerdiesel (Jul 9, 2010)

Initially I was more inclined towards leasing because thats only way I could afford >$50k car. Also leaving me option of buying it at end of lease term if BMW diesels follow the same track of general long living and bulletproof diesel engines. But I got lucky and found my car with 3k miles on it and first owner had to leave country. So he took first yr depreciation and made affordable to me. For future purchases I have decided to start looking for 6 months in advance for cars whose owners just bought and want to let it go for their personal or professional reasons. I have seen lot of such people on these forums. But if my holiday plans coincide with car buying then I will definitely go for ED.


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## TXPearl (Apr 16, 2010)

I leased (24 months). The eco credit makes a big dent in the lease payment (roughly $200/month on a short term lease). 

I really didn't know I'd like the car so much. Now I can see myself keeping this longer than 2 years. But there will be a 2013 335d tempting me in a few years.


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