Lease Questions - Ask Here

CarMan@Edmunds · August 2004

Welcome aboard, John. The first thing that I noticed about the deal that you posted is you did not mention this car's selling price. Remember that the selling prices of leased vehicles can be negotiated, just as if you were paying cash for them. It is important for you as a consumer to know this car's selling price for two reasons. The first is that you don't know what sort of deal you are getting, price-wise without it. The second is that one can not calculate a lease payment on this car without this number. Find out what this vehicle's selling price is and if you let me know, I can work up a sample lease payment for you to make sure that everything adds up.

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CarMan@Edmunds · August 2004

Hi gerrythegreat. You don't need to contact the salesperson that you leased your car from in order to find out its end of lease purchase price. In fact, he or she has absolutely nothing to do with this number. You need to place a call to the bank that you are leasing through to find out exactly how much money it will cost you to purchase your leased car. There is a good chance that you are leasing your Sentra through Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp. You should be able to find its number on your lease contract or on its Web site.

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CarMan@Edmunds · August 2004

Hi xumuskie. To the best of my knowledge, Infiniti is still not providing any sort of lease support on G35 Coupes. It's money factors have been fairly high on it ever since it was introduced. The last that I heard, if you were to lease a 2004 G35 Coupe through IFS this month, its base standard lease money factor should be .00215 for any length lease. In order for me to give you an idea of what this car's residual values are like right now, I need to know how long you want to lease it for and how many miles per year you need to be able to drive it. Some banks deduct from their residual values for certain options, like navigation systems, but not IFS. You should be able to residualize any factory-installed options that come on this car.

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CarMan@Edmunds · August 2004

You're very welcome, John. If you were to lease a 2005 Nissan Altima 2.5 SL through Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp. on or before September 7th for 39 months with 12,000 miles per year, its base lease money factor and residual value should be .00191 and 56%, respectively. It is difficult to say what manufacturers will do with their future incentives programs with 100% accuracy, but if I had to make an educated guess I would say that you do not have a whole lot to lose by waiting to lease until after the current programs expires. Nissan will probably at least continue, if not enhance its August lease program on the '05 Altima for the month of September. So there really isn't a need to rush if you are not ready to get your new car yet.

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CarMan@Edmunds · August 2004

Hello fitman33. Audi's current lease program on this car is scheduled to run through September 7th. I would be more than happy to evaluate the payment that you were quoted on it for you, but in order for me to do so, I need some additional information from you first, including the number of miles per year that you are allowed to drive under this lease, the state that you are in, its full MSRP, and its selling price. Once I have this additional info I will let you know what I think.

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ianbat · August 2004

I just took possession of a Pilot-EXL on a 36 mos lease with a money factor of .00218 from a dealer in NJ. I had two dealers competing in $10 monthly increments. I got at invoice w/60%residual. Very meetable monthlies.

Hope this helps, I wish I had found this forum before I purchased my previous car. :

stargazer0791 · August 2004

Hi CarMan,

Thanks for all your help in the past! Can you please provide the lease numbers for:

2004 Audi A4 1.8T

39 Months
10k resid/12k resid
MF

Thanks again,
Jerry

cpaman · August 2004

Car Man,

Thank you very much for the info on the chrysler. I have one other question, I currently have the 2002 acura rl lease ending tomorrow and i am considering either the chrysler 2005 c or the acura 2005 rl, do you have any info on the 2005 rl (Price, MF, Residuals)? Again, any info you can provide will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

johnnh · August 2004

In reply to post #12870

Thank u Carman for the offer! i really apreciate it. Below i have put together all the numbers from edmunds.com and the dealers price. Since i had insisted for ABS & side airbags option for the car, the dealer offered me 2 options, either to go with a 2.5 SL that he has in his inventory or he can get me one with ABS & sideairbags from a nearby dealer (75 miles) in michigan.

Offer #1 -
2.5 SL
Options (floor mats ($150)& power moonroof ($850).
Edmunds - MSRP=25,080
          Invoice=23,286
          TMV=23,850 (all the above are before 1000 customer cash rebate)

Dealer - MSRP=25,080
         345/month (incl tax)
         500 down pay (incl 1st month pay & fees)
         39 months/12,000 miles/yr

Offer #2- For the car in MI
2.5 SL
Options (asked for only the ABS & side airbags=800), but will have to go also with power moonroof=850, side sills&splash guards=320, fog lights=290, floor mats=150

Edmunds.com - MSRP=26,370
              Invoice=24,377
              TMV=25,006 (before customer cash rebate of 1000)

Dealer - MSRP=26,370
         356/month (Incl Tax)
         39 month/12,000 miles/yr
         1000 down payment (incl 1st month pay & fees) which i DO NOT want to pay

Please advice. By the way, my first choice was black which the dealer did not have.Now, could i negotiate for a better deal on the car in his inventory (w/o ABS & side airbags).

Thanks again carman.
John

keitarou · August 2004

Does anyone know if the 2005 A4's will have the special lease MF's on them as well?

CarMan@Edmunds · August 2004

Hi mrbentley. The fees that you mentioned in your post can not be added to your vehicle's MSRP when calculating its lease payment. When calculating a lease, use the vehicle's MSRP + destination charge + the MSRPs of any options that are allowed to be residualized. These fees should be added to your vehicle's capitalized cost, if you don't want to pay them at lease signing.

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ranajo · August 2004

Carman, I am looking at leasing a 2004 G35 AWD.

The MSRP is $38320 and the invoice shows to be $35040.

What would be an appropriate capitalized cost for this car and could you provide me with the money factor and residual based on:

39 months/12K miles per year
39 months/10K miles per year

I am assuming that 39 months is currently the optimal program that Infiniti is offering in relation to the residuals, etc.

Thanks for your assistance

phaworth · August 2004

I cannot take advantage of this offer but maybe you can.

2005 Volvo XC90 2.5T AWD

Premium, Climate and Versatility packages
cargo net
18" Alloy wheels
0 due at lease inception- 0 drive off
$473 per mo + tax & license
48 month lease 12k miles per year
Bad News-Expires tomorrow 8-31-04
Royal Motor Sales -San Francisco

Sounds like a great deal.

CarMan@Edmunds · August 2004

Hi trneal276. I have not heard that Ford is switching from using its dealers to make lease-end inspections to using an independent company to do so, but it would not surprise me if that was the case. This switch by itself is not all that alarming. Many banks use independent companies to inspect leased vehicles for excess wear and tear. In fact, one of the most lenient companies that I have seen in terms of assessing penalties for excess wear and tear, American Honda Finance Corp., uses an independent inspector. What probably happened with Ford is that dealers were being unreasonably lenient on vehicles and not enforcing Ford Credit's wear and tear policy in an effort to generate goodwill and create more sales. Ford Credit has not changed its criteria for determining excess wear on leases. You can see how it evaluates vehicles at lease-end by clicking on the "7 Point Vehicle Inspection" and "Vehicle Condition Report" links that are available on the following page: Ford Credit - Lease End Process.

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CarMan@Edmunds · August 2004

Hey mazdax605. As long as a vehicle has never been titled it can have a significant number of miles on it and still technically be considered "new." Having said this, the problem that I personally have with demos is that most dealers don't seem willing to provide enough of a discount on them for me to justify purchasing what is essentially a low mileage used vehicle over a brand new one. If you can purchase the demo that you are considering for significantly less than an equivalent brand new Forester, then this is something that you may want to consider doing. If not, then I would just go with a new one if I was in your shoes. I bet that you could easily get a brand new '04 Forester for $1,000 over invoice. There's no way that I would buy a demo with over 4,000 miles on it for anywhere near that price.

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CarMan@Edmunds · August 2004

Thanks for taking the time to come here and share with everyone, ianbat. Enjoy your new truck!

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CarMan@Edmunds · August 2004

You're very welcome, Jerry. Audi's lease program varies depending upon which one of its regions you are in. I see in your profile that you are in New York. Let me know if this is not the case. If you were to lease a 2004 Audi A4 1.8T sedan with quattro through Audi Financial Services in New York this month for 39 months with 12,000 miles per year, its base lease money factor and residual value should be .00055 and 50%, respectively. The money factor would be exactly the same for a lease with only 10,000 miles per year, but the residual value would increase to 51%.

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CarMan@Edmunds · August 2004

No problem, cpaman. The redesigned 2005 Acura RL looks like it will be a really nice car. I have not seen any sort of lease program for it yet, but I can assure you that Acura will not initially provide any sort of lease support on it. If this is indeed the case and you were to lease one through American Honda Finance Corp., you would have to use its standard lease money factors. Its current base money factor is .00260 for 3 years and .00220 for 4 years for residents of every state but New York.

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CarMan@Edmunds · August 2004

You're very welcome, John. Let's work up some sample lease payments on the cars that you are interested in for you and see what we come up with. According to my calculations, if you were to lease a 2005 Nissan Altima 2.5 SL with an MSRP of $25,080 and a capitalized cost of $23,850 (Nissan is not providing any cash incentives on leases of this model so we will just use TMV) through Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp. this month for 39 months with 12,000 miles per year, your zero down, pre-tax monthly payment should be right around $324. If you were to do an otherwise identical lease of a vehicle with an MSRP of $26,370 and a selling price of $25,006 the payment should be around $339. With both of the above leases, you would be required to pay your first month's payment, a security deposit of around $350, and NMAC's acquisition fee of $550 at lease signing.

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CarMan@Edmunds · August 2004

Yes, keitarou, Audi is providing support on leases of 2005 Audi A4 models. If you let me know what model you are interested in, how long you want to lease it for, and how many miles per year you need to be able to drive it, I would be more than happy to try to give you an idea of what its lease program is currently like.

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CarMan@Edmunds · August 2004

Hi ranajo. I am not intimately familiar with what the market is like for this car right now, but if I had to make an educated guess, I would say that you should be able to get one for at least as low as $1,000 over invoice if there is a decent amount of competition for your business and there is a decent supply of this model in your area. For more information on what sort of selling price you can expect on this car, you should look up its Edmunds.com True Market Value in the New Vehicle Pricing section of this site and stop by the "Infiniti G35: Prices Paid & Buying Experience" discussion that appears here in the Town Hall. As far as this car's lease program goes, if you were to lease one through Infiniti Financial Services this month for 39 months with 12,000 miles per year, its base lease money factor and residual value should be .00171 and 58%. The factor for an otherwise identical lease with only 10,000 miles per year would be the same, but the residual value would increase to 59%.

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mk2 · August 2004

Hi Car Man,

I'm looking to lease an Acura MDX. Keeping in mind that residual value of 2004 vehicles keeps going down, is it better to lease an '04 vehicle or wait till '05 start to come out. Also, could you let me know the current money factor and residual % for August and September, and what kind of incentives dealers have right now.

Thanks for you help,

mk2

mfenton · August 2004

I am here in So Cal and my Vista Lincoln-Mercury dealership is offering me an '04 4x2 Aviator Luxury Trim with the added rear dvd entertainment system and the audiophile 6 CD changer sound system. Lease is 39 months 2000 down and 519/month. We have had 2 mountaineers from this dealership and have been very happy. What do you think? Good deal or not?

CarMan@Edmunds · August 2004

Greetings mk2. All things being equal, meaning price, length of lease, and mileage allowance, it would actually be less expensive to lease a 2005 Acura MDX than it would be to lease a 2004 model when the '05 is introduced. This is because Acura is not providing any sort of support on either of them and the '05 will have higher residual values. The only way that an '04 MDX would be less expensive to lease right now is if there is enough of a difference in the price that you are able to negotiate to offset the difference in these trucks' residual values.

As I mentioned earlier, Acura is not currently providing any sort of incentives, cash or lease support, on the 2004 MDX. So if you were to lease one through American Honda Finance Corp., you would have to use its standard lease program. I believe that it's August lease program for this model is only scheduled to run through today, August 31st. I would be more than happy to try to give you an idea of what its new September lease program is like when I have an opportunity to take a look at it, but that might not be until after Labor Day. Check back with me then, mentioning how long you want to lease this model for, how you want it equipped, and how many miles per year you need to be able to drive it, if you still need this info.

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CarMan@Edmunds · August 2004

Hi mfenton. It is difficult for me to analyze the deal that you were quoted without knowing the full MSRP and selling price of this truck. These are important numbers for you as a consumer to know anyhow because without them, it is tough to tell how much of a discount the dealer that you are working with is giving you on this model. Remember that the selling prices of leased vehicles are negotiable, just as if you were paying cash. If you find these two numbers out and let me know, I would be more than happy to work up a sample lease payment on this model for you to give you an idea of how much it should cost to lease right now.

Another thing that I noticed about the deal that you were quoted is that it requires a $2,000 down payment. This is OK if it means $2,000 due at lease signing, including your vehicle's first month's payment, security deposit, and lease acquisition fee. It is not a good idea to pay this money if it is strictly a capitalized cost reduction. Consumers can and should always lease whatever vehicle they are interested in without making any sort of cap cost reduction. I say this for two main reasons. The first is if your leased vehicle is totaled in an accident or stolen and not recovered, your insurance company pays off the bank that you were leasing it through and your down payment essentially disappears. The second reason is that down payments on leased vehicles do nothing to reduce their lease-end purchase prices. So this truck's end of term purchase option price would be exactly the same, regardless of whether you had put $2,000 down or had made absolutely no down payment at all.

Anyways, let me know the prices and I will tell you what I think. Talk to you soon.

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mfenton · August 2004

The MSRP of the Aviator is 43,400 I have been asked to pay a total of 2519.00. This is the down payment and the 1st month payment. after that our cast will be 519.00/ moth for 38 more months

429 · August 2004

Car_man - can you verify the MF on the current lease deal (expires 09/07/04) Honda is offering?

My dealer is giving me .00099 - is this correct?

Thanks!
429

robco62 · August 2004

Dear car man,
I have a lease on a 2002 Jetta 1.8T with 32,500 miles. My question is whether I should buy the car out or not. The facts:
If I terminate, I will owe $250 term. fee, about $350 for miles (10k/yr.), and , because of the poor rear bumper design on this VW, I am expecting to have to repair all the dings, perhaps $500? So I might be looking at about 1,000-1,200 to give them the car back. OUCH! I could then buy another car. Advantage, I paying down a new car, disadvantage, I will spend maybe 5K more than buying car out.
Or, I can buy the Jetta- The residual with tax/title-1,000 rebate is $14,612, which is I beleive less than blue book.
I like the car, don't love it. Advantage- less money, discdavantage, I'm paying down a car that will be 7 years old by time I finish payments. Your sage counsel would be welcomed.

nycadguy · August 2004

Hi carman, looking for yet another car...

would you have lease rates for an 05 Acura RSX, automatic, no leather, 24 month lease, 15K miles a year. its for a temporary posting in socal.

thanks in advance

erodz247 · August 2004

Should I lease or buy my next vehicle?

Is it any better leasing than buying?

wibble · August 2004

There's all sorts of useful information here;

http://www.edmunds.com/advice/leasing/articles/index.html?tid=edm- unds.g...3.1.*

ranajo · August 2004

Car_man, thanks for the prompt response.

Interesting that one of the Infiniti dealers that I have been working with insists that the residual on the 39 mo/10K is 58%.

CarMan@Edmunds · September 2004

Thanks for the info on the MSRP, mfenton. How about the selling price? Have you been able to find out what that number is?

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CarMan@Edmunds · September 2004

I sure can, 429. American Honda FInance Corp.'s base lease money factor for a 2 year lease of an '04 Honda Odyssey prior to September 7th is .00089. This factor would increase to .00099 if you were to have AHFC waive its security deposit requirement.

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CarMan@Edmunds · September 2004

Hi robco62. I think that this is more a matter of personal preference than a situation that has a right and a wrong answer. If you were significantly over your mileage allowance I would be more inclined to recommend that you purchase this car. However, having to pay your normal disposition fee, $350 in excess mileage charges, and perhaps a few buck for some scratches on the bumper really is not that bad. If you have enjoyed driving this car, have not had any major mechanical problems with it, have not been in an accident, and feel as though it would cost you less to exercise your lease-end purchase option than it would to purchase an equivalent car on the open market then you may want to consider buying it. If you've had problems with this car, played bumper cars with it, or if you feel as though it's price is a little on the high side, then you should just walk away from it.

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CarMan@Edmunds · September 2004

Hey nycadguy. I haven't seen Acura's lease program for the 2005 RSX yet, but I suspect that I will have an opportunity to take a look at it after it publishes its new September lease program on the 8th. Please feel free to check back with me a few days after that and I will be more than happy to fill you in on what I have been able to find out.

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CarMan@Edmunds · September 2004

That's a pretty general question, erodz247

. The answer to whether is is better to purchase or lease is, it depends. If you drive around or less than 15,000 miles per year, enjoy getting a new vehicle every three years or so, and there is an attractive lease program available on the model that you are interested in, then leasing can be a good deal. If some of the aforementioned things are not true then you may be better off buying. If you tell us a little more about your situation and about the vehicle or vehicles that you are considering we may be able to help you out more.

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CarMan@Edmunds · September 2004

You're very welcome, ranajo. The 12K residual value for that term is 58%, but the 10K residual is 59%. I suspect that the salesperson that you are working with made an honest mistake because dealers really do not have any authority to alter banks' published residual values.

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429 · September 2004

Many thanks for the money factor info, Car_man.

I've been getting quotes from dealers alternating between .00089 and .00099 money factors... (potentially explained by security deposit issue or attempts at padding the MF, I suppose?)

Now, can you help explain why my quotes for the residual also vary? I've gotten various combos of the 89 and 99 money factors with 68% and 70% residuals... what is the true residual being offered by Honda? Can the dealer alter this?

Also - and I hope I'm prevailing on your logical rather than predictive powers here - with the new '05's due out soon, will the residuals go down on the next program (post 09/07/04)?

Would we therefore be better off to negotiate a lease now or closer to the release of the '05's?

Thanks!
429

ranajo · September 2004

Car_man, thanks for confirming the residual on the 39 mo/10K lease.

Do you know if there have been any changes on the money factor and other incentives for the month of September on the G35 AWD?

coness · September 2004

Do you really get screwed buying a car after your lease is up? Maybe I am just dense, but it would appear the cost works out to be the same (with the exception of an initial down payment). Am I missing something?

TIA

dkman · September 2004

Hi! Saw the heavy promos on the A6 2.7T S-Lines being offered now & am heading to the dealer to investigate...it looks from your previous posts like the cash to dealer incentives vary by region. Any idea what it is currently in Texas? I'm guessing MF is same as other regions (.0010), residual for 36months 15k miles is about 47%?

Dealer is claiming in emails that the promo is over, but ad clearly states it continues through Sept. 7, so I'll beat him up a bit...

Thanks!!

stacey_burke · September 2004

3 years ago when I leased my car, it would cost me about $2200 more to lease and then buy the car for 3 years (total of 6) instead of just paying for 6 years. I decided to lease and was very pleased with it. I did not want to have the same car for 6 years or not be able to trade because I was upside down on the car after 3 years. I was able to turn the car in and then lease or buy after the 3 years.

cpaman · September 2004

thanks for the info, you have been a great help.

aezelig · September 2004

Someone decided today was a great day to rear-end me and total my car.

Any ideas on the best current lease deals available for about $200-225 month?

ctorrey · September 2004

dkman -

Keep us posted on your S Line deal! I am in the market, but won't have a chance to get out there until after the 7th. I'm sure there will be deals to be had beyond the 7th. And if there aren't, I know BMW will.

By the way, I got some info from car_man a couple of weeks ago. Expect a MF of .0001 and a residual of 49% assuming a 36/36k lease. Also, there is a $1k loyalty bonus for returning customers and at least $1500 in incentive cash. Couple that with near invoice deals and you should be in for well under invoice.

Good luck!

ddelise · September 2004

Hi -

What is the current 36 month, 12k miles/yr lease rate and residual on the Town and Country Touring and Limited?

Also, what are the current incentives?

Thanks!

Damon (still trying to decide what minivan to get!)

carmen1022 · September 2004

I am so confused. My lease is up in October for my 2001 Miata. I called Mazda and was told I owe $11K. I have 17K miles on the car.

I have done a quick search and it seems that the lowest price for a 2001 is about 14K.

Would I be wise to buy the car at the end of my lease? I don't want to keep the car, but it looks like if I keep it, I might be able to sell it at a small profit. Then I would hopefully have a small down payment for a new car.

Is this smart or am I missing something?

marshallcpa · September 2004

Car_man:

Do you know the Mercedes C230 Money factors for September? As I understand it, the residuals will be the same as last month, as Mercedes only adjusts quarterly. From the negotiating I've tried to do with two dealers, it appears that Mercedes dealers like to mark up teh money to pad their profits an extra 1 to 1.5k. (Both tried to mark up from .0022 to .0027 last month.)

Thanks.
Brian

proveg · September 2004

Car man:

My information shows me that 2005 BMW 3 series is out
I am wondering what are the lease rates for these new vehicles.
I am looking for money factor and residual for 36 month with 12K on 325i and 330i

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