Lease Questions - Ask Here

lanks · December 2004

quick question about ur estimate Car Man, is it a true sign and drive or is does it include inception fees due at signing, cuz thats wut the dealers always ask me when i give them my previous quotes. thanks again

CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

Thanks for the additional information, Matt. As part of its Red Tag sale, General Motors introduced a $1,500 bonus on 2005 Pontiac Grand Prix models that are financed or leased through GMAC in its North Central region (Ohio falls in this area).

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

I am sorry to hear that you are so far over your vehicle's mileage allowance, halebop. In order to find out how much money it will cost you to purchase the car that you are leasing, you will have to place a call to the bank that you are leasing it through a month or two prior to the scheduled end of your lease. When you do so, see if they are willing to lower their initial price quote. If your initial contact is unwilling to work with you, you may get better results by working your way up the ladder to a manager. During your negotiations, make sure to give them the impression that you are right around your car's mileage allowance. If you tell them that you are way under, your car is more desirable and they may want it back and if you tell them that you are way over they are going to want the excess mileage penalty that you will have to pay them. There certainly is no guarantee that they will be willing to work with you, in fact more often than not banks won't. You don't have anything to lose by asking though, especially if you have to purchase your leased vehicle.

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

You're welcome, st7. Lexus' lease program on the 2005 SC 430 is much more attractive than Mercedes-Benz's program on the 2005 SLK350 right now. This is the case for two reasons. First is that Lexus is running its "December to Remember" sales event right now. The SC 430 is a car that normally does not have any lease support on it at all, but Lexus always seems to provide support on all of its models during December. Also the Mercedes-Benz SLK350 is a brand new model that is selling well without any sort of support at all.

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

No problem, mss1. If I was in your situation, I would figure out exactly how much I wanted to pay for this car and then comparison shop until I found a dealer that was willing to sell me one at the price that I want. Saabs are not selling very well at all right now. As a result, if there is any competition for your business in your area you should be able to lease one for a couple hundred dollars over invoice minus the $2,500 lease cash, putting this car's actual capitalized cost well below invoice. Just make sure that the dealer that you end up going with is using Saab's base lease money factor to calculate your lease payment. Using the numbers that I provided you with earlier and the formula that is outlined in the following article you should be able to figure out exactly what your payment should be like on this car: Calculate Your Own Lease Payment.

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

Hey mtgman. Here are the numbers for the 2005 version of the car that you are considering leasing. If you were to lease a 2005 Saab 9-5 Aero Sedan through Saab Financial Services Corp. right now for 3 years with 15,000 miles per, its base lease money factor and residual value should be .00050 and 45%, respectively. If you choose to go with the '05 model instead of the '04, keep in mind that Saab is providing $3,000 lease cash on '05 9-5's right now.

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

I see, cdb. I was confused by the "Yukon XL" that you wrote in the title of your post. GM's lease program for all of these trucks is pretty similar anyhow. If you were to lease a 2005 GMC Yukon through GMAC for 36 months with 12,000 miles per year, its base lease rate and residual value should be 5.5% and 56%, respectively. The numbers for an other wise identical lease of a 2005 GMC Yukon Denali would be the same. This truck's lease program varies slightly depending upon what part of the country one is in. The above program is the most common one, but if you tell me what state you are in I can be more specific for you.

I do not believe that GMAC offers 42 month leases. I have seen its lease program for 48 month leases of these trucks. This is too long to lease for my taste, but just in case you are interested, its base lease rate and residual value for a 48 month / 12k lease should be 5.5% and 50%.

GM is providing bonus cash on 2005 Yukon models that are financed or leased through GMAC in some areas this month. Again, if you let me know what state you are in I can tell you if there is any in your specific area.

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

You're welcome, Joel. Yes, Mazda is providing quite a bit of lease support on the 2004 RX-8. If you were to lease one right now, it would qualify for $3,500 dealer cash, and an additional $1,000 customer lease cash. In order for you to tell if this is a good deal or not, you need to know this car's full MSRP and selling price.

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

You're very welcome, gmeow. Now go get your sweet new car

!

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afreeman · December 2004

Hi- First time leaser- here are the details:

2005 A4 1.8T quattro Special Edition- manual

$330/month

42 months

$2,869 which includes $1,995 down payment, $575 acquisition fee, $299 1st month payment

12,00 miles

Please advise! thanks in advance

westtx · December 2004

Car_Man, while you are calculating numbers on the Camry that I asked about above, can you also provide an example lease payment on a 2005 Nissan Altima 2.5S, MSRP 22,880, selling price 19,633 (including 1500 rebate) for 36 and 48 months with 15k miles per year?

tom_c · December 2004

Hello Car_man

Thanks for being a tireless resource.

Can you please provide the money factor and residual for a 3 year, 15k mile lease on a 2005 Touareg V6 in chilly Southern California for the month of Dec? Also, could you calc. a sample lease payment for 0 dwn lease of the same terms. w/a MSRP of 40,100 and a selling price of 37,700.

Thanks.

darknight1 · December 2004

Hello, Car_Man. Thanks for the help on my previous question.

We're now considering a Cadillac SRX. Can you tell me what sort of lease options exist for this model in the St. Louis, MO area?

I'm not sure what the cars are going for yet, there isn't much activity in the SRX "Prices Paid" board and the dealer I contacted pulled the old "Come in and I'm sure we can make a good deal" schtick.

We're interested in AWD, please let me know if there's any difference between the V6 and V8 as far as lease terms go. Also, if there is any benefit to going with a remaining 2004 (vs. it's harder depreciation hit)

MSRP for the V6 base is $42880 and the V8 base is $47990.

Thanks again!

CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

You're welcome, Mathias. While GM did add GMAC cash on the 2005 Vibe in many parts of the country, unfortunately it did not add any where you are, in the North Central region. You sure are right about GMAC's residual values being way too high. They are on most models. GMAC's residual values are routinely waaaaay higher than ALG's residual values for equivalent models and ALG is a somewhat unbiased source.

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

Here is the info that you are looking for, michael10. If you were to lease a 2005 Lincoln Aviator 4WD through Ford Credit in your area right now for 3 years with 15,000 miles per, its base lease rate and residual value should be 1.25% and 46%, respectively. This lease rate is equivalent to a money factor of around .00052. Using this lease program, an MSRP of $52,605, and a selling price of $47,456, I estimate that this truck would have a zero down, pre-tax monthly payment of around $684.

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terl · December 2004

I have a 2001 Boxster S that Edmunds gives the trade in value as 34,200. I am looking to lease a BMW 545i for 36 months and I wanted to use the Boxster as a down payment and get a really low monthly payment. I have been to several dealers in the area and the best I have gotten is 28K for the Boxster 500 off the MSRP of 65,315 for the 545i and a monthly payment of 132.96 with 0 down. I am not sure what the money factor is but it is through BMW. I compared the numbers he quoted with the lease calculator on the BMW web site and it looks fishy. Can you help?

terl · December 2004

I forgot to add that the lease is for 15K miles per year and he said it was a 58% residual. Thanks!

st7 · December 2004

Thanks Car_Man... if the SC430 15k/year residual is 58%, do you by chance have the 12k/year residual ?

saaber1 · December 2004

thanks car_man. i assume you are giving me quotes for the 9-3, not the 9-5 as you stated. in my original post, i ask for info on the 9-3 model.

thanks again.

CSF · December 2004

Just wanted to thank you for the help you've given me over the last two weeks. We finally decided on the Accord v/6 with Navi over the TL since Acura isn't offering any incentives.

If everything goes okay, we will pick up the Accord on Saturday. They quoted us exactly the same payment you had computed for me with right at $700 total due at signing (NO cap reduction only 1st month's payment and taxes). Plus, they are paying my last two payments on my current lease. We opted to pay $13 more a month to upgrade to 15K miles/year.

Again, thanks so much for the help!

csf

toky · December 2004

Hi Car_man,

So basically $4500 total cash back for lease. Now can I also add the $1500 customer cash back that Mazda is offering or was that reduced to $1000 for leases?

In addition, since I am a recent college graduate, can I use the $500 grad cash back towards the lease?

The local dealer offered me this lease:

2004 RX-8 6spd

Grand Touring Pkg.

Navigation System

MSRP: $33,200

Sell price at Invoice: $30,591

Lease cash back: $4,500

Sell price after cash back: $26,091

Term: 30 years

Miles: 12,000/yr

Money down: $2,500

Payment: $299/mo (tax included)

Risidual Value: $20,000

Is this good, or can I do better?

Kind regards,

Joel

massjake · December 2004

Carman, Thanks for the help.

Massjake

cdb · December 2004

Thanks for the info Carman!

I am in Pa, do you know if the bonus cash offer is valid here and if so, how much?

markp2 · December 2004

Car_man:

My wife and I are looking at the base model XC 90. The MSRP is looking to be around $38k-$39k with options.

What would the money factor and residual value be on a 51 month lease? We would be looking at a 12,000/yr lease.

Thanks!

markp2

CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

Since you are interested, here you go lwhite. If you were to lease a 2005 Chevrolet Suburban through GMAC right now for 3 years with 12,000 miles per (I do not believe that it has a 10,000 miles per year option), its base lease rate and residual value should be 5.5% and 56%, respectively. As part of its Red Tag Event, GM recently added a $1,500 cash bonus for '05 Suburban models that are financed or leased through GMAC (I believe that this includes balloon notes as well) in your area. Make sure to take this money into account when negotiating this truck's selling price.

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

Hello again hpowders. Here is the latest info that you are looking for. If you were to lease a 2005 BMW 545i (you don't see too many of these on the road) through BMW FS right now for 3 years with 12,000 miles per, its base lease money factor and residual value should be .00125 and 60%.

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

Hi westtx. I believe that the 2005 Camry is the one model that Toyota seems to actually use a national lease money factor for (other than perhaps in its Southeast region). This makes keeping tabs on this model's lease program a breeze compared to Toyota's other models. Let's work up a sample lease payment on the car 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 Toyota Camry LE with an MSRP of $20,515 and a selling price of $17,248 through Toyota Financial Services right now for 3 years with 15,000 miles per, its zero down, pre-tax monthly payment should be an amazingly low $187. Something definitely does not seem right here. I think that the selling price that you are assuming is way too low. If I am not mistaken, the customer cash that is available on the 2005 Camry in your area can not be used in conjunction with TFS' special lease program. The actual selling price of your car may end up being higher than the $17,000 and change that you are assuming.

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

Here is the information that you are looking for, upndwn. If you were to lease a 2005 Acura TSX without navigation through American Honda Finance Corp. right now for 36 months with 15,000 miles per year, its base lease money factor and residual value should be .00235 and 60%, respectively. The numbers for an otherwise identical 42 month lease should be .00210 and 57%. The numbers for an otherwise identical 48 month lease should be .00210 and 51%. If you were to add navigation to this car it would drop its residual values for all of the above terms by 2%.

It is difficult to predict what manufacturers will do with their future incentives programs, but if I was to make an educated guess I would say that I do not expect Acura to add any sort of lease support on the TL or TSX in the next several months.

As far as the Audis go, Audi Financial Services 15,000 miles per year residual values are 2% lower than its 12,000 miles per year residual values. I am not positive of the exact date that the redesigned A4 will be introduced, but I believe that I heard recently that it was scheduled to go on sale early next year, March perhaps.

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lwhite · December 2004

Thank for all your help Car_Man. Will let you know the results soon.

Thanks again.

westtx · December 2004

Thanks Car_Man, I will double check with the dealer to see if it is really that low. He mentioned that their internet dept sells camry's for invoice minus 100.00 and then incentives, which is how I got to that selling price. I will actually ask them now and see what they offer. Can you tell me the money factor and residual so I can make sure they aren't padding those figures? Thanks again for all your help.

lills · December 2004

I've been very pleased with my Chase leases in the past, especially when they INCLUDE gap insurance. Getting ready to lease from Toyota Motor Credit and they do not INCLUDE gap insurance, yet offer it. What should I expect it to cost? Current deal on '05 4Runner SR5 at $29639, 20K miles, 36 months.

halebop · December 2004

thanks for the help Car_Man.

i want to be sure i understand a few basic things. i'm way over my lease mileage limits so returning the car at lease end is not an option. that leaves me with buying the car. i know my buy out is $6K (for a toyota corolla)

you told me when i try to talk to the bank (toyota motor credit in this case) not to let on that i'm way over my mileage. that makes sense.

what i want to know is - is calling toyota motor credit and dealing with them (the finance company i leased with) the only way to handle it. can a dealer (toyota or another manufacturer) be of any real use to me or is it really all about what i can work out with the bank?

if i do end up having to pay the $6K buy out to keep the car will at least allow me to finance it through them so i don't need $6k in hand at lease end?

thanks again

frommx5tomz3 · December 2004

Car_man - thanks for the info on the Volvo lease for the V50. You are truly a resource to us all. I think my wife is leaning more towards a sedan now and likes the Lexus ES 330. Can you dig up the details on what it should cost to lease an ES 330 for 36 months/36K miles?

Assume the following:

1) Would do this now to take advantage of December to Remember if applicable

2) MSRP: $33795 including $650 destination, Purchase Price of $30K

3) TX tax rate of 6.25% (I believe has to be paid on entire purchase price)

4) Zero down payment (would be willing to pay some costs, but no cap reduction)

Thanks (again) in advance...

hpowders · December 2004

Thanks again Car_Man!

erectsteel · December 2004

Hey all,



Lease-idiot here with a few questions.



Does it really matter how much the Murano is if you lease? seems to me the important number here is the residual after the lease ends. And if you wish to buy the car then, you want a low residual. If you want to give it back you want a high residual?...or am I back wards?

Also, does paying extra every month help anything when going the lease route? sales guy says no...but they have agendas sometimes:)~

Looking at maybe a Marano, 3k down, 42 months, 448 month with all the toys besides the chrome wheels. Believe its 38k sticker and a residual of 21,000.

Any thoughts?

Thanks and Happy Holidays to you all!

darknight1 · December 2004

I don't know much yet, but I do know one thing I've seen repeated here time and time again: NEVER put money down on a lease!

CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

You're welcome, gogiants. It definitely will be interesting to see Barry's stats at the end of next year. They took an informal poll of several journalists on ESPN this morning and the overwhelming consensus had him hitting fewer than 45 HRs next year. It certainly would be something if he went on to have a huge year despite all of the recent criticism. OK, enough baseball, back to cars. I'm glad to hear that you found a dealer who is willing to lease you this car using BMW's base lease money factor for it. The selling price that you were quoted for this car looks good to me and the lease money factor that is being used to calculate its payment looks good as well. I estimate that this car has a pre-tax payment of around $380. As long as the tax accounts for the difference in these payments, I don't see any reason not to pull the trigger on this deal.

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

No problem, lanks.

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rroyce10 · December 2004

....... Always deal with the lease company - not the dealer ... the dealer doesn't own it, the dealer doesn't hold title, the last time the dealer had anything to do with it was when you leased it new .. the leasing company owns it -- do you call a plumber when the lights go out.?

The best time to check is "around" 5/6 weeks just before the lease is up .. make sure you speak with a Regional/District manager, not the cute little blonde that answers the phone and is going blind from lookin' at a screen all day, she has no horsepower, Zippo, she reads the notes off the screen ... the managers will be lookin' at current auction reports, thats when they will make a decision .... got it.?

Terry.

CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

Welcome to the wonderful world of leasing, ridenow. Since you are not very familiar with how leasing works, if definitely would be in your best interest to check out the following informative articles that are available here at Edmunds.com prior to visiting any dealers: 10 Steps to Leasing a New Car and Calculate Your Own Lease Payment.

I am familiar with the advertised Z4 lease that you are referring to. This specific lease is based upon a car with a full MSRP of $36,270 and a capitalized cost of $33,320. This means that there isn't much of a dealer discount being used to arrive at this lease payment. Remember that the selling prices of leased vehicles can and should always be negotiated. If you comparison shop you should be able to beat this deal. For the sake of comparison, according to my calculations changing the mileage allowance for this car to 15,000 miles per year and eliminating the down payment would raise its lease payment to around $463. Your payment would be less than that if you were to negotiate a lower selling price though.

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

Hi bernard2o6. While Infiniti does have some attractive financing rates on the 2004 G35 Coupe this month, it still is not providing any sort of lease support on this car. If I was in the market for one and could afford to finance it, I personally would take advantage of the 1.9% to 2.9% financing rates that Infiniti is offering.

As far as your trades go, if you do end up leasing this car, have the dealer that you are working with cut you a check for the vehicle or vehicles that you end up trading in rather than using the proceeds from them as a down payment for your lease. I always advise consumers against making any sort of down payment when leasing. I do so for two main reasons. The first is if your vehicle is totaled in an accident or stolen during your lease, your insurance company pays off the bank that you were leasing it through and your down payment essentially disappears. The second main reason is that down payments on leased vehicles do nothing to reduce their lease-end purchase prices. So your lease-end purchase option price for This G35 Coupe would be exactly the same, regardless of whether you had used the entire proceeds from your trades as a down payment, or had made absolutely no down payment at all.

If you give me an idea of what the MSRP and approximate selling price of the car that you are interested in are, how long you want to lease it for, and how many miles per year you want to be able to drive it, I can give you an idea of what its lease payment should be like.

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

Lanks, at lease signing most banks require you to make your vehicle's first month's payment, a security deposit that is equivalent to that payment rounded up to the nearest $25 or $50 increment, their lease acquisition fee which in AHFC's case is $595, and whatever down payment you choose to make. Some banks will waive their security deposit and acquisition fee requirements in exchange for an increase in the money factor that is used to calculate your vehicle's monthly lease payment.

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

Hello afreeman. It is difficult for me to evaluate a lease without knowing the vehicle's full MSRP and selling price. If you let me know what these two numbers are for this car, I would be more than happy to give you my opinion of this deal.

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

Here you go, westtx. According to my calculations, if you were to lease a 2005 Nissan Altima 2.5S with an MSRP of $22,880 and a selling price of $19,633 + $1,500 (this cash can not be used in conjunction with Nissan's special lease program) = $21,133 through Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp. right now for 36 months with 15,000 miles per year, its zero down, pre-tax monthly payment should be right around $246. As strange as it sounds,, the payment for an otherwise identical 48 month lease should be around $280. Normally lease payments on longer length leases are lower, but Nissan's lease program for 3 year leases of this car is so much better than its program for 4 year leases of it in this instance the 3 year lease is the way to go.

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

Here is the information that you are looking for, tom_c. If you were to lease a 2005 Volkswagen Touareg V6 through VW Credit right now for 3 years with 15,000 miles per year, its base lease money factor and residual value should be .00151 and 54%, respectively. Using these numbers, an MSRP of $40,100 and a selling price of $37,700, I estimate that this truck would have a zero down, pre-tax monthly payment of around $536.

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

You're welcome, darknight1. General Motors is providing a similar level of lease support on 2, 3, and 4 year leases of the 2005 Cadillac SRX right now. How long are you interested in leasing this vehicle for? I need to know in order to tell you the exact parameters of its program.

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tom_c · December 2004

Thank you.

gogiants · December 2004

Car man thanks for your help. I predict less than 30 home runs for Barry minus the "juice.".. Wanted to let you know thanks to your help and others I actually was able to lease new BMW 325 for a purchase price of only $300 over invoice with the base Money Factor. Great experience at Concord BMW in Nor. Cal. MSRP 34,665 Sales price 32,130 36 mo/12k $700 drive off payment w/tax $405.67. thanks again for all your help! Also note for others interested in leasing similar car dealer says till end of year will sell any 3 series for $300 over invoice. Highly recommend dealership

CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

Hello terl. I personally would not use the proceeds from trading in your Boxster as a down payment on a lease of a new vehicle. If you really feel the need to trade your Boxster in, have the dealer that you trade it into cut you a check for it instead. I always advise consumers against making any sort of down payment when leasing. I do so for two main reasons. The first is if your vehicle is totaled in an accident or stolen during your lease, your insurance company pays off the bank that you were leasing it through and your down payment essentially disappears. The second main reason is that down payments on leased vehicles do nothing to reduce their lease-end purchase prices. So your lease-end purchase option price for your leased BMW would be exactly the same, regardless of whether you had used the entire proceeds from your Boxster trade as a down payment, or had made absolutely no down payment at all.

I am not personally all that familiar with what the market is like for 545's in your neck of the woods, but I have a strong feeling that you should easily be able to get a better price than $500 under MSRP if you shop around a little bit.

As far as this car's lease program goes, if you were to lease a 2005 BMW 545i through BMW Financial Services right now for 3 years with 15,000 miles per, its base lease money factor and residual value should be .00125 and 58%, respectively.

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2004

No problem, st7. LFS' residual values for vehicles leased with only 12,000 miles per year are 2% higher than its 15,000 miles per year residual values.

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