Chevrolet Cobalt Lease Questions

CarMan@Edmunds

Hi everyone. Please use the following discussion to post any questions that you have about leasing a Chevrolet Cobalt. Thanks.

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tgp1810

Car_man, could you please post information for leasing a Cobalt this month for 36 months and both 12K and 15K miles. This would be in the state of Michigan.

Thank you.

CarMan@Edmunds

Here you go, tgp1810. If you were to lease a 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt through GMAC right now for 36 months with 15,000 miles per year, its base lease rate and residual value should be 6.0% and 52%, respectively. The lease rate for a lease of this car with only 12,000 miles per year would be the same, but the residual value would be 3% higher.

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pookie45324

I have leased a Chevy Cobalt a year ago July 1st. Previously, I had a Pontiac Sunbird and hated it a month after getting it. Had many recalls, electrical difficulties, etc. I traded it for the Cobalt with more than a year to go on the lease. I'm paying $293 with 4 years and 15,000 per year. Unfortunately, I was forced to accept a job driving 80 miles per day and now with only a year on the current lease, I have 24,000 miles. I have accepted a new job 12.8 miles away. My questions are: Can I recover the value? Should I keep it to the end of the lease? Is there a good way to get out of this situation? Am I paying too much because of the early lease termination on the Pontiac?

I'm 60 years old and will be retiring at 66. How should I handle my car situation?

asa805

I am in the market to lease a new car. Im looking at the Chevy Cobalt and the Nissan Sentra. I have a couple questions first on leasing. I was told today by the dealer that the residual price is based off the MSRP. I thought it was based off the negotiation price (cap cost). Who is right?

He gave me .55 residual & 6% money factor apr. With an 800 rebate and MSRP at 14,500 (approx) and 13,750 for selling price (100 above invoice). He said the lowest payments he could give me with no money down (cept first payment and DMV fees of about 50 bucks) for 36 month lease (12k miles) is $241. I think thats a bit high. I ran it through some calculators and im getting a much lower price of between 190-205. Is the calculators way off or is this guy giving me bull?

oh this is for a LS with automatic and door locks/remote keyless entry.

Thanks
Stressed out in NY!

CarMan@Edmunds

Hi pookie45324. I am sorry to say that it is very expensive to get out of leases well before their scheduled end dates. You probably will be better off waiting until the scheduled end of your lease to get something new. The only way that you will be able to avoid paying an excess mileage charge at lease-end is to purchase your Cobalt.

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CarMan@Edmunds

Greetings asa805. Yes, vehicle's residual values are based upon a percentage of their full MSRPs, including the destination charge. This is a good thing. The higher a vehicle's residual value is, the lower its monthly payment will be. If your vehicle's residual was based upon a percentage of its negotiated selling price, it would cause you to pay for more depreciation and your monthly payment would be higher. The 6% lease rate that you were quoted is right in line with GMAC's base lease rate for this car. This is a good thing because it means your dealer is being straightforward with you. $100 over dealer invoice is a great selling price, as long as it is before the deduction of the $800 lease cash. Let's work up a lease payment on this car to compare to the one this dealer quoted. According to my calculations, if you were to lease a 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt LS with an MSRP of $14,500 and a selling price of $13,750 through GMAC right now for 36 months with 12,000 miles per year, its zero down, pre-tax monthly payment should be around $215. As I mentioned though, this is before tax and does not include GMAC's $595 acquisition fee. You will either have to pay this fee at lease signing or roll it into your car's capitalized cost. Adding it to the cap cost of the aforementioned lease would increase the monthly payment to around $233. Once tax is added in, this car's payment is probably pretty close to the one that you were quoted.

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debbiel

I thought I would share my experience. I have had my Cobalt 4 days now, and so far I love it. This is my first experience with a new car, the first time I have had a cr in my name, (I am 53!), and my first experience with leasing. Phew! A lot of firsts!! I got the basic LS sedan, with a 5 speed through the "sign & drive" deal. I have a 39 month lease, 15,000 miles for $216.00 a month. i paid the tax upfront. I am pleased with the payment and should be able to swing it easily. I am hoping I like the lease program. I certainly am enjoying driving a car that has less than 100,000 miles on it, no rust,and air that works!!

CarMan@Edmunds

Congratulations on your first new car, debbiel! The Cobalt is an excellent vehicle for $216 a month sign and drive. Enjoy .

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webbe

Hello,
New hear and have some questions. I am considering buying a 2007 Cobalt but I am interested in a lease option also. I would like to know how to go about getting some lease figures. I was told by one of the Chevy dealers that
he believed they would soon (this week) be starting new lease offer on a Cobalt. Don't want to contact that dealer again at least yet-how can I find out if there is one? I read where the bank's and other places do car leases also, are these any good? Just want to know how to go about getting the figures on one. Did check the chevy website and saw nothing about it.

Webbee

poncho167

I saw something about leases on the chevy.com website when I was looking for Cobalt rebate info. I not sure it was specific. Just remember that you want to make an offer for the car lower than the MSRP, that will help lower the lease amount that you pay.

fourdoors

I was wondering if anybody knew what the credit requirements are like at the end of the Smart Buy lease when the balloon payment is due. Would I have to excellent credit to refinance the balloon payment? Is returning the vehicle a tough task? Thanks.

poncho167

I don't believe there are leases available for this car but I may be wrong. Most compacts or smaller don't offer leases

autoboy19

Carman,

Is GM providing lease support for the Cobalt SS? If so, do you have the lease rates and CCR for the Cobalt SS for 36 months and 12k miles per year?

Thanks.

CarMan@Edmunds

I'd be happy to help you out, autoboy19. GMAC's May lease rate and residual value for a 36 month lease of a 2010 Chevrolet Cobalt SS with 12,000 miles per year are 0.65% and 40%, respectively.

When negotiating your deal on this car, make sure to take advantage of the $1,500 cash incentive that is currently available on leases of it through GMAC.

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