Since I might be going New (see my other post today, Limited Slip Worth it?); I need to reconsider how to pay $32K. Cash is not an option so traditional finance verses lease, verses Mini Select, ie balloon payment. How did you do it? TIA, Michael

 

Indentured servitude?

 

I've only leased once, when I was still a naive teenager...it was not worth it if you calculated the total cost out of pocket after all payments made and $$ down. Leases only make sense if you really only keep your vehicles for 1-2 years max, keep them normally maintained, don't modify anything and stay well within the mileage limits (to avoid overage fees).

(The only thing good about my lease was the built in gap coverage which covered the payoff of the vehicle when it was totalled in 2003.)

If you choose to purchase your MINI I would say that the obvious frame of mind should include the following:

1) Put as much down as you reasonably can!

2) Don't finance more than you can afford via monthly payments (e.g. deciding whether or not you can afford food just to drive a MINI)

3) Seek the best APR possible! (For me this meant my credit union, but a venue such a E-loan can provide you with multiple APRs as banks such as Capital One are competing for your business). I've heard stories from NAM members who have gone to BMW Financing with a rather competitive rate they've received elsewhere and they've been fortunate enough to have BMW match it, owing to the fact that of course they want the business if they can get it.

And then when you're all said and done, if you have extra money each month pay it to the principal!

I don't know much about MINI select, so I can't comment on that.

All in all, there has been much debate about how well MINI resale values will hold after the launch of the 2007s, but I'm still optimistic as they are great vehicles. With that said, I'd made sense to finance my 2005 MC as I'm paying it off as fast as I can and if I do need to trade it or sell it private party, there will be no way I will be "upside-down" on my financing as the demand in Southern California is still high.

Good luck!

 

Mini Select financing isn't for everyone, but it seemed like the best option for my wife and I. We were saddled with significant credit card debt at the time of our Mini purchase, but I knew we would have the CC debt paid off within a year and a half of buying our MC, so I went with the Mini select with a term of 30 months, and put $3500 down on the car (from the sale of another car). We have very low monthly car payments which allow us to put more money towards our debt. Starting at the beginning of next year I'll start making payments of around $1000/month until the car is paid off, so by the end of the 30 months, we'll own it free and clear instead of needing to make a $13k balloon payment.

-Keith

 

What is the whole Mini Select program?

 

Basically it is a combination of a lease and traditional financing. You pick a term of the "loan" and get low payments like a lease, but you have a balloon payment at the end of the loan term instead of turning the car back in like a lease. At the end of the Mini select loan, you either trade it in, sell it yourself, or pay the balloon payment. I don't think many people use this option, I was only the first or second person to use this option at my dealership and no-one knew how it all worked. It just seemed to make sense for us at this point in time, but in the future with better financial stability, we'll stick with traditional financing.

-Keith

 

I would agree with others that try to put down as much as you can. The more you put down, the less you owe, the easier the payments.

My MINI is worth around $20k right now. The MINI i want to order with taxes and all is around $35k. Im hoping to save another $5k, and be able to put down around $25k on my car and finance only $10k. I also have pretty good credit for only being 20 (748 last I checked). But even for me, I cannot afford to pay more then $300-400 a month for the car, reason being why im going to the extend of paying off most of the car at first.

It all really comes down to how much you make a month. I dont work full time, because of classes so you might be able to pay more a month. Just remmeber, there is always insurance and life itself. Honestly, look at used MINI's, it might be the best thing for you. Also, your own Bank/Credit Union will alot of times give you the best deal, so go to them first, not MINI.

 

Michael, I did exactly what Suzannne described. Take the other banks offers to your MA 30 days before you pick up your MINI. See if they'll match the rate with BMW/MINI financing. BMW/MINI locks the rate for some period of time.

I did that and it worked out well for me.

Oh - and don't lease a MINI - you'll soon know how fun it is to motor around in and you'll use up all your alloted miles

 

That is so true.

I did the MINI - select/owner's choice or whatever it is called. When I first purchased my MINI I figured I would keep it two or three years and then trade in on a convertible. I don't like leases because they are hard to get out of but since I was figuring I wouldn't be keeping my MINI long enough to pay it off, I then figured a lower payment in the mean time was a decent idea. So that's why I did the select.

I made sure that I was doing it in a way such that my trade in value was always at or above my loan balance. Nice thing about the MINI is that doing so is quite easy.

Now I so love my MCS and I have heard so much about people with convertibles having roof wear problems and now they have discontinued my MINI's color (EB) I am begining to think I will keep it longer than I thought.

On the other hand, maybe I'll like the 07 or whatever year they call the restyled MINI.

 

I'm going to lease since the residuals are so good. The MINI definitely keeps it's value and leasing will actually HELP me keep a car longer than 3 years. If all goes well and I enjoy it, I will probably end up buying it at the end of the lease. . .my payments are going to be about $350/mo for 36mo. w/ about $2.5k down. . .For me, leasing is the best way to go. . .

 

I'm going to be leasing mine as well. Until we see what the gen 2 MCS looks like, it's too risky buying, IMHO. I figure a 24-month lease right now takes us well into a mostly-debugged gen-2 car. At that point, I can either decide to buy at the end of the lease, or switch to the gen 2 car (or something else altogether).

 

Hey Electric Shock... I should look you up and we can take a spin in each others cars to see what we're missing!!

As far as financing the purchase... I took an equity loan on the house and paid the MINI in full. Now I get to write off the interest from the loan and have many years to pay if I want. I plan on keeping my MCC for a LOOOONNNG time ... that's what my wife said anyways when I came home with it

 

I'm currently financing mine for 60 months. Normally I would go for 4 years but I'm hoping I'll be in a position to pay off the car in 4 years.

I shopped around for financing, AAA, Capital One etc. I was approved with AAA. I was always taught not to finance through the dealership b/c they get a piece of the action. But in my case, my dealer quoted me a lower APR than all the other providers. So I went with them. It also helped that my dealer arranged everything including dealing with my insurance company. All I had to do was give my MA my policy number and he took care of the rest.

 

Don't forget to buy "Gap" insurance. I don't know about it until my credit union explained it to me. I've bought several new cars and this was the first time I was told about it.

It covers that "gap" of when you drive your car off the lot and if something happens to it, crash/theft, they will pay for everything, not just what is owed on it. For only about $4.00 more per month, I thought it was worth the money.

I financed for 60 months because I had to... :(

 

The difference between a lease and mini select lease is a lease you have to pay in a car until your 2 or 3 year lease is up , on the mini select lease at many time you can turn the mini in for a new one. When you turn the mini in, the dealer takes it as a trade in checks they blue book value and if their is a differnce to the good or bad applies it to the new mini. I did the mini select lease on my first MC turned it in 4 months early for a MCS, lost $800. on the trade-in do to being rear ended (stupid carfax).

 

Is this some thing I can have with my insurance or is this some thing that comes from the finance company. In the past, with leasing, I had gap with the leasing company. But I never considered it with a purchase.

 

I asked my dad about going through the MINI select plan and he said don't do it. Sure, it sounds good...but it's still a balloon payment, which you don't want. I have no personal experience with this type of system, but I know I wouldn't like to know I have to come up with $13,000!

I am currently trying to find a MINI in which I can buy. Sure, I would love an 06', but I can't afford it. I'm in the same boat as you. I have $12k in cash right now...so I would use that as a down payment and finance the rest. I really would love to pay the car in cash, but I can't just wait any longer! It's already killing me, and I feel like I'm so far away...yet so close! The crappy thing is I'm only 16...so I cannot afford an $8,000 loan, so I am required to wait a little longer (hopefully August) until I can settle down that loan number a little bit.

I could get a brand new 06' now...but I wouldn't have enough money left over to afford insurence...so I couldn't drive it! lol!

-Cody

 

cashier's check

 

Yeah that is a downside to select if you plan on keeping the car longer than the payment term.

The other downside to select is that you are paying interest on a balance that is slowly decreasing rather than rapidly decreasing.

 

Bought it... Straight cash

 

Same here, I want to bring a suitcase with the entire $26,763 in it, but my dad wouldn't let me.

 

 

that would have been great walking into a fairly busy BMW/MINI showroom on a saturday with a big silver suitcase handcuffed to my wrist. Everyone would have been like who's that guy? Drug Dealer? CIA Agent? FBI? The President of Antarctica? Or no I bet he's the REAL transporter! Nope just some kid who watches way too many movies...

 

Lol. It would be fun to slam the briefcase down on the table, grab the keys and drive away

 

SLAM. Open it up only facing my MA... "Its all there. What do ya say? We have deal Jimmy?" Tosses me the keys opens the doors and I take off in my motorcade with six Crotch Rockets and two black H2s with BP Glass and gun turrets.