Lease Questions - Ask Here

CarMan@Edmunds · October 2001

Sorry for the delay in answering your questions, everyone. I was out of town this weekend. I am back now, well rested, and ready to attack this discussion

. Talk to you soon.

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

CarMan@Edmunds · October 2001

Hi again, iamaddman. Thanks for the additional information. Here is the information that you are looking for. If you were to lease a 2002 Nissan Altima S for 3 years with 15,000 miles per through Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp. right now you should be able to use their base lease money factor of .00235 and a residual value of 52%. Next, if you were to lease a 2002 Nissan Altima SE for 3 years with 15,000 miles per through Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp. right now you should be able to use their base lease money factor of .00255 and a residual value of 51%. Finally, if you were to lease a 2002 Nissan Maxima SE for 3 years with 15,000 miles per through Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp. right now you should be able to use their base lease money factor of .00280 and a residual value of 53%. This lease program is only good through October 31st.

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

CarMan@Edmunds · October 2001

Vr88, I would be more than happy to let you know what the lease program is currently like for the Dodge Durango. However, DaimlerChrysler currently has two different lease programs on this truck, their normal program (which isn't very good) and their enhanced regional program (which is slightly better). In order to tell you which program you will be able to use, I need to know where you live. As far as this truck's cash incentives go, DaimlerChrysler currently has $2,000 to $3,000 Lease Cash on the 2002 Durango. Again the exact amount will vary depending upon where you live. Furthermore, they are offering $1,000 Lease Loyalty Cash on the 2002 Durango to current Chrysler Financial lessees. As soon as you let me know where you live, I will be able to tell you exactly what sort of lease cash and money factors you are aligible for. Talk to you soon.

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

CarMan@Edmunds · October 2001

Hi alexi1. I don't know the specific tax laws for New York. You may want to try looking for information on this subject at the Web site for the New York Department of Motor Vehicles by clicking here: New York Department of Motor Vehicles or at the Web site for the New York Department of Taxation by clicking here: New York Department of Taxation.

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

vr88 · October 2001

Car man -

I'm in NY State.

Thanks in advance for your assistance.

CarMan@Edmunds · October 2001

Borsyst, sorry I don't have any refreshments for you, but I do have answers to your automotive questions

. I believe that the 3 and 4 year 15,000 miles per Toyota Financial Services residual values for a 2002 Toyota Sequoia SR5 should currently be around 61% and 55%, respectively. The 12,000 miles per year residual values for this truck should be 63% and 58%, respectively. Keep in mind though that I expect TFS to issue new residual values which may be slightly different than these in the near future. If you were to lease this truck through TFS, you would likely have to use their standard lease money factor, which should currently be .00270.

I really don't know the specifics of Connecticut's tax laws, but you may be able to find out more information on this subject by visiting one of the following Web sites: Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles or State of Connecticut Department of Revenue Services.

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

CarMan@Edmunds · October 2001

Hi again Gregg. If you were to lease a 2002 Lexus LS 430 (non-Custom Luxury) for 39 months with 12,000 miles per year through Lexus Financial Services right now, you should be able to use their top credit tier base lease money factor of .00270 and a residual value of 55%.

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

CarMan@Edmunds · October 2001

No problem, parnola. Thanks for the additional details. If you were to lease a 2002 BMW 330i through BMW Financial Services for 3 years with 15,000 miles per right now, you should be able to use their base lease money factor of .00265 and a residual value of 60%. Interestingly enough, the corresponding factor and residual for a 2002 530i should be identical to the ones that I posted above.

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

CarMan@Edmunds · October 2001

Thanks for the heads up, I will head over there right now and check out your story.

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

CarMan@Edmunds · October 2001

Thanks for the compliment, ubrsf

!

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

CarMan@Edmunds · October 2001

William, a vehicle's money factor is essentially the interest rate that you are being charged to lease it. The lower a vehicle's money factor the better. This is an important number to know for two main reasons. The first reason is that one can convert a vehicle's money factor into an approximate interest rate by multiplying it by 2400. Also, one can use a money factor in conjunction with other variables to calculate an approximate lease payment for their vehicle.

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

CarMan@Edmunds · October 2001

Hello sasquach70. No the lease money factor for a 2002 Passat GLX leased through VW Credit would not be exactly the same as the one that I previously mentioned, but it is close. For a 3 year lease it should be .00188. The corresponding 12,000 miles per year residual value for a 2002 Passat GLX (non-4Motion) should be 57% and with 10,000 miles per year should be 58%.

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

CarMan@Edmunds · October 2001

I am not aware of any sort of independent lease evaluation service, lotus. If you don't believe that the dealership is calculating your lease payment on the car or truck that you want correctly or fairly then don't sign for it and accept delivery. Instead shop around at a couple of other dealerships to see what sort of payments they come up with.

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

wing5nut · October 2001

Aside from my offering price, should I state whether I intend to lease or purchase the vehicle in my offer?

wing5nut

bobatwork · October 2001

I currently drive less than 5,000 miles a year and was thinking of leasing an Infiniti I30. They want 379/month with $2000 down for 39 months. Would they consider an offer of 300/month, or would they laugh me out of the showroom? I am a youngish 70 years old. Thanks, Bob

CarMan@Edmunds · October 2001

Blerner2, when I calculate sample lease payments on these cars using the numbers that you posted, I actually come up with lease payments of right around $299 per month for both of these cars. I think that your calculations may be a little off.

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

CarMan@Edmunds · October 2001

Rapro, for some reason banks still charge interest on advance pay, aka one pay, leases. They will provide lessees who pay for their entire vehicle's lease in advance a break in their normal interest rate though. Just how much a break they provide varies from bank to bank and will determine if this sort of deal makes financial sense.

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

CarMan@Edmunds · October 2001

Wing5nut, given the fact that Acura's current incentive program is only scheduled to run through tomorrow any lease data that I provide you with now will likely be different when you actually take delivery of your new vehicle. If you would like, please feel free to check back with me early next week and I should be able to give you an idea of what American Honda Finance Corp.'s November lease program will be like for the models that you are interested in.

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

CarMan@Edmunds · October 2001

I personally don't think that there is ever a good time to break a lease contract. However, generally speaking the closer one is to their scheduled termination date the less likely they are to be significantly upside down on their leased car or truck and have to pay tons of money to break their contract. I don't know the specifics of your contract, but it is very likely that the longer you wait the better. Volkswagen's lease money factors haven't changed since my last post. As usual, the current VW Credit lease program is only scheduled to run for one month. It is difficult to say for certain what VW's November program will look like, but if I had to guess I would say that it will likely be very similar to their current ones.

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

CarMan@Edmunds · October 2001

Thanks for the additional information, vr88. You're in luck, you do live in an area where you should be able to take advantage of Chrysler Financial's enhanced lease program. As a result the 3 year lease money factor on all 2002 Durango 4WD models should be .00280. The 3 year 15,000 miles per residual values for this truck are as follows: 47% for the 2002 Durango SLT 4WD, 45% for the 2002 Durango SLT Plus 4WD, and 44% for the 2002 Durango R/T. In addition, you should be eligible for the $3,000 Lease Cash and $1,000 Owner Loyalty Cash (assuming that you are a current CFC lessee) that I mentioned earlier.

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

CarMan@Edmunds · October 2001

Bob, rather than negotiating this car's lease payment I suggest that you concentrate on negotiating the price that you are going to pay for it. Once you have negotiated a good price on this car, by comparison shopping if needed, you can then use the information that is available here to figure out if a $300/month lease payment is possible. Unfortunately, I have a feeling that a $0 down, $300 per month payment is not possible on this car at this time even if you were to reduce your mileage allowance to say 10,000 miles per year though.

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

dagmara1 · October 2001

I leased a 1998 Expedition in Jan 98, its a closed-end lease. I'm looking at the paperwork, and NO WHERE does it say what the residual is. I believe it is around $20K or $25K. The vehicle has less than 14K miles (not a typo, we justed didn't drive much these past 4 years). My husband has retired, so we are looking at getting one more vehicle for many years to come. Questions:
1) is it better to pay the residual or purchase a new vehicle (given that this is nearly new)
2) if its best to pay the residual, what is the best method for doing this? Can I finance the residual? If so, is it better to go thru a bank, Ford Motor, other? Thanx in advance!

blerner2 · October 2001

Carman,

Not sure how you come up with $299 for both cars I listed. Below are my calculations for the EXV6:

MSRP: $25,740
Cap Cost: $23,530
Residual Rate: 57%
Money Factor: .00142

Residual Value = ($25740-$440 Dest. chg)x57% = $14,421

Monthly Depreciation: ($23,530-$14,421)/36 = $253.02
Monthly Interest: ($23,530+$14,421)*.00142=$53.09
Sales Tax (NC): ($253.02+$53.09)x3% =$9.21
Total Monthly Payment = $316.12

Where is my calculation off from your sample lease rate?

wing5nut · October 2001

Thanks, Car_man. I'm leaning toward the RL and may not be able to keep from pulling the trigger tomorrow on the current RL deal. The best local offer is $499 a month on a 39-month lease, 12K per year, with $1350 due at inception. Residual value is 48% and money factor is .00050.

AHFC foiled my end-of-the-month acquisition strategy in September by extending their RL support through October. Local dealer RL inventories are double the norm for the last six months. I'm having trouble deciding if I should:

a) Take the above deal;
b) Try to negotiate lower inception costs without changing the monthly lease payment; or,
c) Wait to see what the November program will be and hope for the best.

Any thoughts would be appreciated!

wing5nut

cupholder1 · October 2001

Car Man:

Can you run the numbers for a Jetta Wagon 1.8T, 36 months, 15k per year. Thanks.

icdchess · October 2001

Hello, again, Car-man,
You are my hero. You helped with my Saab convertible lease 5 months ago, and now I am looking at a Jaguar X-Type.

The car I want has a list price of $42,045. So far the dealer has offered a sales price of $1500 off ($40,545) and a monthly payment with nothing down of $627 X 36 months 8 1/2% sales tax included (or $567 tax up front). I am working on getting $2500 off ($39,545).

So a few of quick questions:
1) What is the current money factor and residual for the X at 36 months?
2) is Jaguar planning anything for November money factor-wise?
3) Is his $627 in line with what money factors and residuals are SUPPOSED to be?
4) What kind of monthly payment (with or without 8 1/2% sales tax) can I expect at $2500 off ($39,545)?

I bow to your wisdom once again!!
Steve

sarah233 · October 2001

Hi CarMan-

How far in advance do the car companies decide on what their money factors are going to be? I'm asking because my lease is up in February, and I'm trying to decide on a car. I have the lease wizard software and would like to use as realistic money factors as possible. How variable is it from month to month? I'm looking at VW Jettas/GTI, or Honda Accord.

Thanks!

vr88 · October 2001

Just one more question please:

Would you give me the residuals on the SLT, SLT+ and R/T for 12K miles per year? I assume the money factor remains the same as for 15K yes?

Thank you very much for your help.

aab · October 2001

Car Man,

Thank you so much for the lease info. 3 years ago Lexus had an incredible deal on RX 300 leases (approx. 5.5% interest rate and 70% residual). Mine is expiring soon, so I need a new SUV. It's just too bad I can't find another luxury SUV with a great deal.

Thanks again.

CarMan@Edmunds · October 2001

Dagmara1, in order to decide if you should purchase your current truck at lease-end the first thing that you should do is call the bank that you are leasing it through (likely Ford Motor Credit) and find out exactly how much money it will cost you to buy it when your lease is done. Once you have that figure, do some research to see if it is around or less than what you could realistically expect to pay for this truck if you were to purchase an identical used one on the open market right now. There are tons of used vehicle price guides on the Internet, including out very own Used True Market Value that will help you in making your decision. You also may want to try asking other Town Hall Community members what they think of your purchase option price on the SUVs and Smart Shoppers Message Boards. Of course, the fact that you know this vehicle's history should give keeping it a slight edge in your decision if you really like it. If you decide to keep your truck, you should be able to finance it through your current bank or any other lending institution.

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

borsyst · October 2001

for the info on the Sequoia. I shall use it wisely.

bigshotla · October 2001

My girlfriend has to leave the U.S. due to economic hardship. She is currently 8 months into a 3 year lease on a Toyota. She's moving back to Canada. Is there any way she can take the car with her to Canada? Is it cheaper for her to break the lease, than to buy the car (neither is really financially realistic for her)....
ANY advice is appreciated. We don't know what to do....

icdchess · October 2001

Car_man...
Sorry, but I am looking for either a 12,000 or 15,000 mile lease in my post yesterday for the X-Type.
Thanks, Steve

CarMan@Edmunds · October 2001

Blerner2, I think that the numbers that you posted are slightly different this time because I now come up with a monthly lease payment of exactly $300.31. This breaks out to a monthly depreciation cost of $246.06 and a monthly interest cost of $54.25. Of course, the monthly payment that I came up with does not add in any tax. If your numbers still don't match mine, I suggest that you pay a visit to a discussion that I created some time ago called: Car_man "The Return of "How to Calculate Monthly Lease Payments"" Jun 28, 2001 3:15pm. There you can follow my step by step instructions for calculating lease payments.

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

shipo · October 2001

I posted a question last week (apparently just before you went out of town for the weekend) in post 2292 (2348 if you use the Go To function) regarding an end of lease dilemma. I was hoping that you could suggest a few options for me regarding my situation.

Best Regards,
Shipo

fgaydos · October 2001

I'm in the market for a 'new' car and am considering a purchase of an off lease car. I have nothing firm in hand and just assume deals are out there.
Question: is it a good deal buying an off lease car opposed to buying brand new? I'm looking for 2001 Forrester or Hyundai Elantra.
At what point does it NOT seem to be a good deal?
Any thoughts?
I'm trading in my 2000 ZX3 Focus.
TIA

blerner2 · October 2001

Carman,

I believe the difference in our calculations arises from the treatment of the Delivery/Destination charge in computing the residual value.

My "home grown" lease model subtracts the Dest./Delivery charge out of the MSRP before I multiply it against the residual percentage.

I believe you are including the Dest. charge as part of the total MSRP that you are multiplying against the residual percentage.

What is the correct treatment? Should the Delivery charge be considered part of the MSRP for calculation against the residual percentage? Or should you back this amount out of the MSRP before calculation against the residual percentage.

egiles · October 2001

CarMan-

I noticed an earlier post where you posted the money factor and residual for the BMW 3-series. These matched up perfectly with what one dealer quoted me. I noticed on another message board yesterday that the residual values were to increase for November/December. Can you verify that? Also, are the money factors for this time period going to decrease?

Thanks for your help...

Eric Giles

wing5nut · November 2001

Lease numbers through American Honda Finance Company show a $550 Assignment Fee. Does that fee go to AHFC or to the dealer?

Thanks in advance!

wing5nut

mmcbride1 · November 2001

Can you give me the current 36 month/36k residuals for the following cars (all 2002 modles, no NAV):

BMW 325i/330i
Acura TL/TL-S

I appreciate it.

lebodde · November 2001

Hello CarMan.

First, at the risking of repeating what countless have said, please accept my admiration for your gracious and informed help on this board. It is most impressive.

Now, I am sure you have heard that 2 senators have proposed a "sales tax holiday" for 10 days starting at Thxgiving as a way to energize the economy. Of course no one knows if this is going to pass or not but the obvious question for us is: How is that going to affect those of us who want to lease a new car? Is the sales tax computed on its rate at the time the lease is signed? Therefore would we reap the benefits for the entire duration fo the lease?

If not, is there another way to take advantage of this possible ruling if it ever becomes reality?

Thanks a lot.

rroyce10 · November 2001

.... That's a fee that Honda of America get's ... you don't think they would kick that to the dealer do ya ....l..o..l..

Terry.

wing5nut · November 2001

Thanks! That was one of those things that I was fairly certain about, but one never knows when the rules of the game might change.... ;-)

wing5nut

wing5nut · November 2001

Car_man, et.al.,

Just wanted to extend my sincere thanks to everyone as I learned the rules of the leasing game through this forum. Drove home a 2002 Acura RL last night after negotiating an incredible deal!

This was the easiest acquisition I've ever made...I can't believe I was able to enjoy the experience!!! Strongly recommend Eric Seagle at Lindsey Acura in Columbus, Ohio, for those in the market...very personable and professional.

Best Regards,
wing5nut

CarMan@Edmunds · November 2001

Congratulations on your new car, wing5nut. Enjoy!

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

CarMan@Edmunds · November 2001

Cupholder1, I have heard that Volkswagen made some slight changes to its lease program for the month of November. I should have the exact details of the changes by early next week. Please feel free to check back with me than for an answer to your question.

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

CarMan@Edmunds · November 2001

Thanks for the kind words, Steve. Like most well-designed new models the X-Type is a very hot car right now. The fact that winter is approaching and that this is one of the few cars out there with all-wheel-drive will probably serve to keep prices relatively high. I don't know exactly what sort of prices people have been able to get this car for, but I suspect that $1,500 off of MSRP is actually a fairly decent price and think that you may have a difficult time getting a Jaguar dealer to come down to $2,500 off. Surprisingly, Jaguar Credit has been providing some lease money factor support on this car already. This may be to help put some room between its lease payments and those of the S-Type. Jaguar's most recent lease program was scheduled to expire on October 31st, and I have not seen their replacement program yet. I anticipate that I will have had a chance to take a look at it by mid- to late next week. Please check back with me then for a better idea of what it will cost to lease this car right now. Talk to you then.

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

CarMan@Edmunds · November 2001

Greetings Sarah. Different banks typically have different length lease programs. For instance, Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp.'s and Volkswagen Credit's lease programs almost always expire at the end of every month. On the other hand, the captive finance companies of the Traditional Big 3 typically have lease programs that are scheduled to last for two to three months when they are first introduced. Even though they are scheduled to run for such a long period of time, they often make unscheduled changes to them. The lease programs for the vehicles that you are interested in will likely be very different right now than they will be in February.

Car_Man
Host
Smart Shoppers / FWI Message Boards

im_brentwood · November 2001

If it helps..

The market on 2.5s, particularly those that are not too heavily optioned, is very tight. The few dealers that are dealing on them are mainly dealing on 3.0s. And $2,500 is, at the moment, not a doable deal even on a 3.0 among the 15-20 Jaguar dealers that I know. $1,000 off is very strong on a 2.5 at the moment.
Still, as they say, Your Mileage May Vary...

Bill

shaker58 · November 2001

can you give me the lease pyt on a 36 and 39 mth lease with 12000 miles per yr
with m1 m5 m7 package and bose stereo
I live in ny 8.5%tax

thx
gary

Lease Questions - Ask Here

Comments

Helpful Tools

Most popular vehicles