Financial report context:
note 9 . commitments and contingencies operating leases we are obligated under noncancelable operating leases for corporate office space , warehouse and distribution facilities , trucks and certain equipment . the future minimum lease commitments under these leases at december 31 , 2009 are as follows ( in thousands ) : years ending december 31: .

Financial table:
2010: 2011; $ 55178: 45275
2010: 2012; $ 55178: 36841
2010: 2013; $ 55178: 30789
2010: 2014; $ 55178: 22094
2010: thereafter; $ 55178: 59263
2010: future minimum lease payments; $ 55178: $ 249440

Additional report context:
rental expense for operating leases was approximately $ 57.2 million , $ 49.0 million and $ 26.6 million during the years ended december 31 , 2009 , 2008 and 2007 , respectively . we guarantee the residual values of the majority of our truck and equipment operating leases . the residual values decline over the lease terms to a defined percentage of original cost . in the event the lessor does not realize the residual value when a piece of equipment is sold , we would be responsible for a portion of the shortfall . similarly , if the lessor realizes more than the residual value when a piece of equipment is sold , we would be paid the amount realized over the residual value . had we terminated all of our operating leases subject to these guarantees at december 31 , 2009 , the guaranteed residual value would have totaled approximately $ 27.8 million . litigation and related contingencies in december 2005 and may 2008 , ford global technologies , llc filed complaints with the international trade commission against us and others alleging that certain aftermarket parts imported into the u.s . infringed on ford design patents . the parties settled these matters in april 2009 pursuant to a settlement arrangement that expires in september 2011 . pursuant to the settlement , we ( and our designees ) became the sole distributor in the united states of aftermarket automotive parts that correspond to ford collision parts that are covered by a united states design patent . we have paid ford an upfront fee for these rights and will pay a royalty for each such part we sell . the amortization of the upfront fee and the royalty expenses are reflected in cost of goods sold on the accompanying consolidated statements of income . we also have certain other contingencies resulting from litigation , claims and other commitments and are subject to a variety of environmental and pollution control laws and regulations incident to the ordinary course of business . we currently expect that the resolution of such contingencies will not materially affect our financial position , results of operations or cash flows . note 10 . business combinations on october 1 , 2009 , we acquired greenleaf auto recyclers , llc ( 201cgreenleaf 201d ) from ssi for $ 38.8 million , net of cash acquired . greenleaf is the entity through which ssi operated its late model automotive parts recycling business . we recorded a gain on bargain purchase for the greenleaf acquisition totaling $ 4.3 million , which is .

Question: what was the percentage change in rental expense for operating leases from 2008 to 2009?
Answer: 17%