Program valid through June 30, 2015.

BMW’s 3-series possesses an impressive range of abilities. Use it to improve your daily commute, run errands in the city, or take clients out. Or take one on a weekend trip, to the occasional track day, or up a twisty mountain road—all for around $300 per month (maintenance included).

How To Get This Deal

Note: All deals assume $0 down payment (as always) with only first month’s payment, security deposit, and government fees due at signing.

1. Find the 3-series you like with an MSRP ranging from $33,000 to $41,000. For our example, we’ve chosen a 320i with Sport Package and manual transmission (a.k.a. the 320i Jalopnik Edition) with an MSRP of $35,300. 

2. Attend a Drive for Team USA event, which are test-drive events held at BMW dealers this summer:

Sherman Oaks: May 30 - June 30, 2015
Thousand Oaks: June 25 - 26, 2015
Irvine: June 26 - 27, 2015
Valencia: June 27 - 28, 2015
Vista: July 2, 2015
Encinitas: July 17-18, 2015

If you cannot reserve a spot now, show up in person on the day the event is held and register your attendance. BMW will email you a $1,000 voucher, which can be used at any of their U.S. dealerships.

3. Our sample deal assumes use of the $1,000 College Graduate Program incentive. If you don’t qualify, add $1,000 to the capitalized cost—which increases the monthly lease payment by about $28.

4. Aim for a sales price (before incentives) of at least 7% off MSRP. There are a great number of dealers in Southern California willing to do this. For our example, we’ve found a dealer that will sell a 320i ($35,300 MSRP) for $33,110. After the $1,000 Innovation Credit (available to all consumers), $1,000 Dream for Team USA incentive, and $1,000 College Graduate incentive, plus a $795 acquisition fee, the capitalized cost is $30,905.

5. Our sample 320i has a residual value of $22,945 (65% of MSRP) after 36 months of use at 10,000 miles per year. Subtract 1% for 12,000 miles per year, and subtract 3% for 15,000 miles per year. 

6. Utilize multiple security deposits to lower the money factor (MF) rate. BMW Financial Services has a base MF of .00128 (3.1% APR), but with 7 security deposits (the maximum number allowed), the MF drops to .00079 (1.9% APR). Unlike a down payment, you get your security deposit back at the end of the lease.For our 320i example, utilizing multiple security deposits saves $26 per month.

Sample Deals

BMW 320i (2015)
MSRP: $35,300
Target Capitalized Cost: $30,905*
36-Month Residual: $22,945 (65% of MSRP)**
Money Factor: .00079*** 
Leasehackr Estimate: $264 per month
Leasehackr Score: 11.1 years

BMW 328i (2015)
MSRP: $40,950
Target Capitalized Cost: $36,098*
36-Month Residual: $27,027 (66% of MSRP)**
Money Factor: .00079*** 
Leasehackr Estimate: $302 per month
Leasehackr Score: 11.3 years