I applied for my BMW 430i online and within an hour got a call from my local dealership asking if I was ready to stop in and test drive. Once I arrived there, I was told that my approval was their "super elite" level or first tier. My scores were all well over 700 at the time, so I sort of expected that to be the case.
You can either apply online or you can wait and apply at the dealership. For me, I would have just applied at the dealer because my dealer ended up submitting another app on my behalf and therefore I had two hard inquiries. Not sure what their rationale was for this, but that was my experience.
The dealership is likely to push hard for a down payment and for you to pay all your taxes and fees that day. For me, I did not want to put cash down on a lease, because if I ever get into an accident, that cash is never coming back to me.
Your biggest hurdle is going to be the 3 late payments. That may hurt your chances of top tier leasing.
