The power of ownership

I bought a 2008 BMW 328i Saturday after I spent the last three years leasing a BMW 330i.

Since my 7th grade algebra teacher told me that I would spend more money leasing than buying a car, I've never been a fan of leasing vehicles. And the 330i was the first car I ever leased.

For the last five years, I'd been dreaming of driving a BMW. I've admired their sleekness, the performance and, I admit, the looks I'd get stepping out of such an expensive car.

Before the lease in July 2006, I had been driving a 1999 Mitsubishi Mirage. It was a piece of crap that I drove for six years. My only consolation was that it was paid for, but it was such an embarrassment. The driver's side mirror was missing. The passenger door wouldn't open, so anytime someone rode with me, they either sat in the back, which made my look like "Driving Miss Daisy," or they crawled over the driver's seat. And you would hear me coming before I arrived.

I hated that car!

I knew my next car would be a BMW. I started saving for one in 2005 and was praying the Mirage would last until 2007. But the MitsuBITCHI, which is what I nicknamed it, had other plans. In July 2006, I was headed to an assignment for work and the engine fell out of the car! I was on Interstate 287 flying - ok, I was going about 65 mph, which is as fast as the car would go without having a vehicle seizure - and the engine hit the pavement! I can laugh about it now, but then, I didn't know what I was going to do for a ride.

I was nervous, because I ended up in the Mirage after I totalled my Chevrolet Cavalier, my first car. I hit a drunk driver after he ran a red light. I was in no mood to purchase a car and had no idea what I wanted. Somehow, I ended up in the Mirage.

So, there I was, faced with getting another car when I wasn't ready. The only thing I knew was I didn't want to end up in car that I would hate as soon as I drove it off of the lot.

BMWs are expensive and my salesman told me that most people who are driving them are leasing them. I didn't want to lease the 330i, but I wanted a car I'd be happy with and my mind had been wrapped around a BMW for at least two years. So, I broke down and signed the lease. Three years and $18,720 later, I gave back the car. What a waste of money!

So, when I picked up my new BMW Saturday, I walked in with a substantial down payment - I started saving the day I signed the lease for the first BMW because I knew I was never going to lease another car again.

In five years, it will truly be mine!