[AiredaleDad]

IMHO, if you are buying ANY car as an investment you will lose money every time. The whole world knows Luxury cars take the worst bite in the first 3 years. That's why you have so many people buying used BMW's, Land Rovers, or any other luxury car. They can't afford the initial capital loss of a new one, (Or don't want to).

People who BUY a new BMW want it because of the technological innovation and driving experience. And they want to own one of the premier luxury/Sport vehicles in the world. They want it new, and untarnished by a previous owner/lessee. And they don't want to worry how the previous owner treated the batteries/Broke in the engine etc.

You can see so many lessees here saying they don't care, and are not going to bother with proper battery conditioning or proper break-in of their ICE engine. I can't even tell you how many times I have heard here on this forum, where current Lessees talk about their (ICE, PHEV, BEV) cars and say "Oh well it's ONLY a lease so I don't care about any of that stuff. That's a problem for the second owner". You are part of the problem, and the reason the cost of ownership goes up so much for second-hand cars. That's why the difference between "CPO" and just "Used" is so much. An abused car will fail more than a properly cared for one. So many second hand buyers just want to experience what we do when we buy it new. They just have to wait until it's more affordable to them.

So, if you are worried about initial depreciation, then buy a 2-3 year "CPO" lease return, or lease a new car. The depreciation has nothing to do with the overall quality of the vehicle. It has more to do with extended cost of ownership, (what second hand owners who are going to have to pay in maintenance, repairs, and upkeep over the second 5-10 years of the car after the initial 3 years). If the initial cost of the second-hand car is lower, it increases the market segment.

There is probably a larger demand for second hand BMW's than new ones. That's why BMW Lease terms are so good. They KNOW they will be able to sell it. Whereas people purchasing a new one is a MUCH smaller market. So they make it more affordable for Lessees in order to move the cars and not have them sitting on the lot unsold.