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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hey wannaudi. I would be more than happy to calculate a sample lease payment on this car for you. However, since vehicles' residual values are based on a percentage of their full MSRPs, I need you to tell me this number before I can work up any payments for you. Let me know and I will see what sort of payment I come up with. Talk to you soon.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hi fernhill. Thanks for taking the time to come in and let us know about your recent TSX lease experience. I am glad to see that all of the numbers are identical to what I've been quoting. Enjoy your new car!

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hello 1234. Honda currently has a very attractive lease program on the 2003 Civic. In addition to the fact that you can negotiate a selling price that is very close to dealer invoice on Civics right now, Honda's special money factors on this car are equivalent to an interest rate of around 1.2%. As with most manufacturers' advertised leases, I suspect that this one leaves a little meat on the bone, price-wise. If you go into your dealer and haggle a little with them, you may actually be able to negotiate a lower selling price for this car, leading to a slightly lower monthly lease payment. This is definitely one of the best lease deals out there right now. I don't think that you are going to be able to find a better car for less money than this.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hi fladriver. Your friend must be a current Audi owner or lessee because the $250 "cash from manufacturer" that is on his/her contract is the owner loyalty cash that Audi is currently providing on 2003 A4 models.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Welcome aboard, jmcwhorter. Thanks for taking the time to look around for the information that you are searching for rather than just automatically firing off a question :). Nissan's lease and incentive programs almost always only run for a month at a time. It's current lease program is scheduled to run through July 7th. The end date is a little odd because many manufacturers have expiration dates that allow their June incentives to run through the 4th of July holiday weekend. Nissan has cash incentives on a many of its models already, but only lease cash on a select few. Its incentives on '03 models will likely grow as '04 models begin to hit showrooms, though the '04 Maxima and Sentra are already out. However, it is tough to say if Nissan will offer any sort of cash support on a brand new model like the Murano. I wouldn't be surprised if they don't offer any cash on '03 Muranos for a long while, if at all.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Greetings ljg4554. If you were to lease a 2003 BMW X5 3.0L through BMW Financial Services right now for 3 years with 15,000 miles per, its base lease money factor and residual value should be an attractive .00100 and 59%, respectively. The 12,000 miles per year residual value would be 2% higher and the 10,000 miles per year residual would be 3% higher. Just in case you aren't completely sold on leasing this truck, BMW is also offering 2.9% special financing for up to 60 months on it as well.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hey dave_h2. Lease security deposits are actually required by banks and individual dealerships do not have the authority to waive them for you. Many banks will waive their security deposit requirement in exchange for a slight increase in a vehicle's lease money factor. This may be what is happening in your situation. The good news is that the money factor that you were quoted is right on the money, so from that standpoint it looks as though the dealership that you are working with is being very straightforward with you.

    Remember that the selling prices of leased vehicles can be negotiated, just as if you are paying cash for them. I know that discounts have not been easy to negotiate since the Odyeesy's redesign, but you never mention this van's actual selling price in your post. This is an important number to know because it tells you just how much of a discount, if any, you are receiving on this vehicle. You should definitely make sure to find out this number before finalizing your deal.

    I have noticed that most manufacturers have switched from advertising leases to advertising balloon notes in the New York area. This includes manufacturers like Honda which has always advertised leases in the past. This leads me to believe that they, like many other banks in the area, are slowly making the transition to balloon notes. I don't know what its exact cut-off date for leases is in New York and Connecticut, or if they are even going to stop writing them. Many banks have completely stopped leasing in these states, while others have just increased their lease acquisition fees significantly.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hey bama60. BMW is indeed offering dealer cash on certain 2003 3-Series and 5-Series models right now. However, this cash is not compatible with these vehicles' special lease and financing programs. So in order to take advantage of this dealer cash, if the dealer that you are working with will even let you dip into it, you need to either pay cash or finance / lease through a bank other than BMW Financial Services.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hello audia4wanted. Thanks for the detailed post. Let's play with some numbers and work up a sample lease payment for you. According to my calculations, if you were to lease a 2003 A4 1.8T Sedan with quattro (MSRP: $31,800 / cap cost: $30,500) through Audi Financial Services this month for 39 months with 15,000 miles per year, your pre-tax monthly lease payment with $1,800 down should be right around $373 or so. When one adds the additional mileage to this payment, 5000 additional miles per year x 3 years = 15,000 total miles x .15 = $2,250 / 39 months = $58/month we get a total payment of right around $431 or so.

    I just looked up the 2003 Audi A4 1.8T sedan with quattro in the new vehicle pricing section of Edmunds.com and the spread between this model's full MSRP and the Edmunds.com True Market Value for your area is around $1,600. This means that according to Edmunds.com's research most people should be able to negotiate at least this much of a discount. If your post you mention a full MSRP of $31,800 and a capitalized cost of $30,500 for this car. If this cap cost is your deal's gross cap cost, before your down payment has been deducted then your car's selling price is reasonable, though there still may be a little room left to negotiate. However, if this is your vehicle's net capitalized cost, after your $1,800 down payment has been deducted then you are not getting a very good price on this car. Either way, you may want to comparison shop if there are any other Audi dealers in your area. By doing so you will find out exactly what the market is like for this car and may be able to play a couple of dealers against each other in an effort to negotiate a lower price.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hey clone2. I promise not to repeat the silly cloning joke again :). The lease money factor that you were quoted for this car looks as though it is a little on the high side. According to the most recent information that I have seen, if you were to lease a 2004 Nissan Maxima through Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp. this month for 39 months with 12,000 miles per, its base lease money factor and residual value should be .00168 and 55%, respectively. Even if you are having your vehicle's security deposit waived in exchange for some sort of increase in this model's lease money factor, the rate that you were quoted still looks a little high to me. I highly doubt that NMAC would provide you with any sort of information on its current lease program. When consumers contact captive finance companies directly in an effort to find out a vehicle's current money factors they are usually told to contact their local dealer. It looks as though your dealer may be marking-up this model's base money factor an an attempt to add additional hidden profit to your deal. You may want to try comparison shopping with another Nissan dealership or two to see if any of them are willing to lease you this model using NMAC's base factor.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hi Ken. The good news is that the lease money factor and residual value that you were quoted for this van look to be right on the money. This means that the dealer that you are working with has been fairly straightforward with you thus far. I would be more than happy to calculate a sample lease payment on this model for you. However, first I need to know its full MSRP. Once you provide me with this last piece of information I should be able to help you out. Talk to you soon.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hi again Ken. I see that you are looking at a few models :). I am not familiar with the "Special Edition" trim level that you mentioned in your post. For the 2004 model year, Jeep has Freedom, Laredo, Limited, and Overland variants of the Grand Cherokee. Having said this, the lease money factor of .00160 that you were quoted looks to be in line with the base factors Chrysler Financial is offering on model Grand Cherokee models right now. When negotiating a deal on the '04 Grand Cherokee, keep in mind that DaimlerChrysler is currently providing $3,000 lease cash on it. This cash may be used to negotiate a very low capitalized cost. I would be more than happy to calculate a sample lease payment for you in this model as well, but again I need you to provide me with its full MSRP.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hey Dave. Many banks lease money factors do indeed vary depending upon the length of the lease. This sort of thing is very common in the industry.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Thanks jbowman3. Saab is currently only providing $1,000 lease cash on the 2003 9-5 Arc Wagon and $2,000 on the 2003 9-3 Linear Wagon. These are the only 9-5 wagon models that have lease cash support available on them right now. BMW is not providing any sort of lease cash on the 2003 5-Series, but they do have dealer cash that is not compatible with it special lease and financing rates, or 1.9% special financing for up to 60 months, or special low money factors on most 2003 5-Series models right now.

    If you were to lease a 2003 Saab 9-5 Arc Wagon through Saab Financial services Corp. this month for 3 years with 15,000 miles per, its base lease money factor and residual value should be .00028 and 48%, respectively. Unfortunately, from what I hear, New York residents are no longer allowed to lease vehicles through Saab Financial services. So if you want to lease one, you actually will likely be put into a balloon note. Saab's balloon note program is a little different than its lease program, but I don't know the particulars of it at this time in terms of interest rates. I can tell you that New York residents are eligible for $1,275 balloon note cash for 36 month terms that may be used to negotiate a lower selling price. Saab is providing dealer cash of up to $5,500 on 2003 9-5 models, but its normal dealer cash can not be used in conjunction with its special lease, financing, or balloon note offers. I haven't heard that BMW's lease program on the 5-Series got worse, but BMW did introduce new dealer cash about a week or so into the month. This dealer cash is not compatible with its special lease or financing rates. The salesperson who you spoke with may be trying to steer you away from the lease program so that they can use the pocket the majority of the new dealer cash that is out there.

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  • dave_h2dave_h2 Member Posts: 100
    #6894 of 6912 At least with Ford, by landru2 Jun 15, 2003 (12:53 am)
    Different lease terms all have different rates (money factors) - the longer the tern the higher the rate. Nothing too surprising there - you wouldn't expect the same rate on a 1 year loan as on a 10 year loan.

    #6911 of 6912 Re: Does money factor change with lease length? by Car_man HOST Jun 15, 2003 (10:24 am)
    Hey Dave. Many banks lease money factors do indeed vary depending upon the length of the lease. This sort of thing is very common in the industry.

    **Thanks for the confirmation, guys. I just wanted to verify the dealer was being honest with me.

    So here is this deal. Tell me if you think if it’s a relatively good one or not. Keep in mind that I live on Long Island in the often-expensive state of New York.

    The van that I am considering leasing is an MPV ES with RES, four seasons package, 6 CD audio system and power doors.

    Here are the numbers he gave me:

    There are two financial institutions that are leasing now - Hann Auto Trust (which is who I have my current lease through - coming to an end this month), and Mazda American Credit.

    For a 48 month lease, pre-tax monthly payment through Hann is $380.00. MAC is $392.00

    With Hann's bank fee ($895. - ouch!) and tax (8.5% in Nassau County - double ouch!!) rolled into the monthly payment, meaning I would only need a first month payment, plus DMV fees - the monthly payment for the 48 month lease would be $443.00.

    The money factor he gave me was .00230 -- this is initially what sent my radar up as I know, Car Man, that you had quoted me a MF of .00165 - but that was for Mazda American Credit, and also for 36 months. The reason we are looking at Hann again is I will have my $450.00 disposition fee waived from my previous lease, if I go back with them. .00230 = roughly 5.5%.

    The purchase price he told me he was basing this vehicle on was $27,642.00.

    Does this sound like a good deal to you?

    Can you confirm that the Hann bank fee is now $895.00? Three years ago it was $595.00.

    Also, can anyone confirm that the Mazda warranty is for 48 months (which the dealer told me), rather than the standard 36 month?

    Thanks in advance for any and all info.
  • wannaudiwannaudi Member Posts: 4
    Hey Car_Man-sorry for not including the MSRP in my previous post-it is 32,285. Selling price of 30,700. I actually finalized the deal this weekend, 1200 down (first month, etc), 12K miles/36 month lease, $400/month,all taxes included. I hope this is OK, it sounded pretty good when I spoke to other people in the area and I really like the dealer (plus its the only dealer in my immediate area of central mass.)and I do need a car relatively quickly and there aren't a ton of black/loaded 2003s left at all. Plus I'm comparing it to my previous lease which was about $50 less/month for a car that cannot even be compared to this car. If I did in fact get hosed perhaps I could ask you to be easy on me :)
  • jbowman3jbowman3 Member Posts: 15
    Car Man,

    Just to get my facts straight;

    There's no lease money/rebates available for BMW 5 series. No lease money/rebates available for Saab Arc Wagon (only balloon money offered), Is there any lease money/rebates available for Audi A6 Avant wagon? I'm looking strictly at leases at this time.

    In your opinion, do you think MF and residual number will get better as we move into/through the summer? I can opt out through an 'early release' program (Saab)., or I can ride it out till September and take my chances then.

    All My Best,
    jbowman3
  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    No problem, Dave. In answer to your warranty question, the Mazda MPV now comes standard with 4 yr. / 50,000 mile bumper-to-bumper coverage. I am not familiar with what Hahn's lease acquisition fee currently is, but I would not be surprised if they did increase it over the past three years. Most banks have increased their acquisition fees during that time period. In fact, many of the banks that still lease vehicles in New York have significantly increased their acquisition fees over the past year or so to compensate for the additional risk that they assume from vicarious liability lawsuits in that state. Some banks charge fees of $1,000 in NY.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Don't worry about it, wannaudi. Congratulations on your new car! I'm getting the bug for a new car myself, but my current lease still runs through early '04. That's not too long I suppose. It sounds like you did fine. Enjoy your new ride :).

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    You're welcome, jbowman3. You are correst, BMW is not currently offering any sort of cash that is compatible with its special lease program on the 2003 5-Series. Saab does have lease cash on a number of 2003 9-5 models, but not the '03 9-5 Aero Wagon. They do however have balloon note cash support on it. In an earlier post, I believe that you mentioned that you are in New York. Well, Saab Financial Services no longer provides leases to NY residents, so you would have to go for a balloon note on this model anyhow if that is the direction that you want to go.

    It is difficult to predict what manufacturers will do with their future incentives with 100% accuracy. However, generally speaking automakers' incentives do indeed get larger on vehicles as we get later into the model year. I suspect that Saab will have to provide a least the same level of support, if not more on the '03 9-5's for the next several months.

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  • dave_h2dave_h2 Member Posts: 100
    First off - thanks again for this forum and all of your invaluable information, Car Man.

    Here is what I learned from the three Honda dealers I visited this week.

    1. Yes, they are going over to the Balloon note format - but not until after the 4th of July sales period.

    2. So you can cut a "traditional" lease deal now, until the end of the month (which is what I am going to do).

    3. One dealer who seemed very knowledgeable about it said that Connecticut has already passed legislation preventing the kind of liability that is forcing the changeover, and that New York may soon follow.

    So this may only be a temporary thing.

    However, I will have already completed my deal anyway, so for me it is a moot point.

    As for the Purchase Price, Car Man - the dealers are reluctant to move off of MSRP. So all of my numbers have been based on that.

    Hope my additional info helps.
  • drew37drew37 Member Posts: 62
    Car Man can you please tell me the residuals and money factors I can use to determine a lease of an '03 E320 for both 36 and 48 months. Also, do you or anyone else here know what a good price relative to invoice or MSRP would be for this car in the southern Florida area (West Palm Beach, etc.)? Thanks for the valuable service you provide.
  • jpinti528jpinti528 Member Posts: 3
    I know you gave someone the mf and residual on the 9-3 earlier, but it was for 12000 miles. Could I get you to give me the mf and residual on the 9-3 Arc for 3 years/15000 miles? And Saab is offering the 2000 lease cash for this model? Thanks a lot.

    --One more thing...when do these numbers expire. The end of this month of the first week in July? Thanks again.
  • drew37drew37 Member Posts: 62
    Forget to mention that the mileage fo the E320 lease above in #6920 would be 10,000 miles/yr. Thanks again
  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    You're welcome again, Dave. I agree that it is probably only a matter of time before all states pass laws that limit or completely eliminate these silly vicarious liability issues. I believe that you were interested in a 2003 Mazda MPV. I personally find it very hard to believe that the dealer that you have spoken with is not willing to budge off of MSRP. The MPV is selling very close to invoice in most areas. Given the fact that you live in the New York area, there should be plenty of competition for your business. You may want to shop around a little bit at a couple of other Mazda dealers in your area. Mazda wouldn't have $2,000 consumer cash, though it is technically dealer cash in the region that you reside in, on the '03 MPV if it was selling at full MSRP.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hello drew37. If you were to lease a 2003 Mercedes-Benz E320 Sedan through Mercedes-Benz Credit Corp. this month for 3 years with 10,000 miles per, its base lease money factor and residual value should be .00275 and 67%, respectively. The numbers for an otherwise identical 48 month lease of this car should be .00275 and 59%.

    I am not personally all that familiar with what the market is like for this car in your area. You may have better luck getting feedback on pricing over on the Sedans Message Board or the Smart Shopper Message Board.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hi jpinti528. If you were to lease a 2003 Saab 9-3 Arc Sedan though Saab Financial Services Corp. this month for 3 years with 15,000 miles per, its base lease money factor and residual value should be .00146 and 53%, respectively. Saab is indeed offering $2,000 lease cash on this model right now. When they were originally announced, Saab's June incentives were only scheduled to run through June 30th. It would not surprise me if they continued this program through July 7th, like many other manufacturers have, but I have not heard anything about them doing so yet.

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  • jbowman3jbowman3 Member Posts: 15
    Car Man,

    OK, you've done your homework, negotiated a sweet purchase price through all available rebates, got the residual, MF, so forth and so on. Now you're ready to march back into the dealer and get the deal you want, right? What about the bank that will finance your lease? Where is information available that will show what bank/s give you the best deal, and what control do you have to guide your lease towards a best-case situation? You must be familiar with the Lease Star program, ALG? Is is possible for a layman (such as myself) to subscribe to these services, and ultimately, would that help make a difference in the monthly lease price?

    As usual, your help, and the speed in which you answer our questions is always appreciated.

    All My Best
    jbowman3
  • dave_h2dave_h2 Member Posts: 100
    I am happy to pass on what I’ve learned about Balloon Notes this weekend. Every little bit of info helps.

    As for dealers and MSRP – I’ve been dual shopping the Odyssey and the MPV. It is the Ody dealers who are reluctant to move off MSRP *for the purpose of leasing*. At the very least, they appear to want to play “cat and mouse” and I haven’t the time or inclination to do that.

    I actually have what appears to be a pretty good offer for an MPV, but would just like to confirm that.

    It is for a top-of-the-line ES model. Loaded with options – RES, Power sliding doors, In-Dash 6-Disc CD Changer, and 4 seasons package. The purchase price listed on my just received faxed “worksheet” (doing everything “by the book” here ;-) is $25,742.00

    So that does appear to be considerably under MSRP (when you consider the optional add ons)

    Here are the down and dirty numbers:

    48 month lease
    10,000 per year mile allotment (for a total of 40,000)
    Money Factor of .002300 from Hann Auto Trust
    Residual: 39%
    Hann will waive my prior $450.00 disposition fee for taking new deal with them, but the new Bank Fee is $895.00
    8.5% Long Island sales taxes are $1,841.51
    Total Cap Cost (rolling the bank fee and taxes in) is $28,478.51
    for a monthly payment of $442.68
    Only the first month due at signing (no security deposit needed).

    Does this sound like a good deal?

    As I am very ready to do this, any timely advice or comments would be most apprecaited.
  • rmlinnrmlinn Member Posts: 22
    I have a 2001 MDX on a 36 mo lease that is up next March. Acura has contacted us about getting into a new lease now. What are current lease deals for 36/39/48 months, and how do we evaluate if it pays for us to "trade leases"? We will not be over our mileage but we will need tires. We are in South Florida. Thanks
  • jpinti528jpinti528 Member Posts: 3
    Car_man thanks for the information. Now let’s compare numbers. Building a 9-3 Arc through Saab's website to match one that I have found at a dealer is $34230. The dealer has it listed for $34660 - I assume they added destination. I get $3348 off the MSRP using the employee discount. This brings the cost down to $31312. Before the $2000 incentive, have you heard of anyone getting the cap cost down below that? I get a total cap cost of $29312 including the incentive. I’ve figured out monthly payments to be ~ $334, with 6% tax ~ $354. What do you get?
    Thanks one more time.

    PS - The way employee pricing is figured out is:
    Dealer Invoice amount less Dealer Reserve, Expense Reserve & less Supplemental Advertising (if applicable). Amount is equal to "dealer net"
  • 12341234 Member Posts: 28
    Hi Carman,
    Thanks for your insight. FYI, a dealer quoted me by email $14,388 (incl. $460 destination charge) for a new Honda Civic LX sedan. Invoice is $14,634. I requested a lease quote; these guys are poor at following directions.
    Anyway, where on this site is there an explanation of the money factor? Also, how do you figure out how much interest you're paying on your lease after knowing the selling price and payments? As I have no intention of purchasing this car at the end of the lease, I'm shooting for a subvented lease. Can I negotiate the residual value upwards? Is there a site that lists the residual values of all cars?

    Thank you in advance for your help!
  • brokawbrokaw Member Posts: 2
    In today's market, can you "negotiate" the buyback price by giving them an offer vs. the contracted price?

    Thanks

    cr
  • djdezdjdez Member Posts: 119
    brokaw .. you most certainly CAN !! As a matter of fact, my lease has 6 months left on it, and the 'payoff' right now is around 19k and some change. The 'buyout' price at the end of the lease is 17k or so, and the market value right now of my car is around 20k. However, I called the bank I'm leasing the car through recently and asked about some options and the lady actually ENCOURAGED me to make them an offer BELOW the buyout, since they will do it .. She also mentioned someone will be calling me to offer me a lower price when the lease is close to ending. So, it CAN be done -- just check with the bank you're leasing with -- it can't hurt to offer a LOW amount, and see if they take it, or negotiate from there !

    To everyone else (Car_man??) -- in my situation, I'm looking to lease either a TSX or a TL-S soon, and my lease still has 6 months on it, but it looks like I actually have some POSITIVE equity in a lease for a change -- I have an Acura CL. Now, I KNOW the dealer can probably negotiate an even CHEAPER buyout of the vehicle than I could get if I were to buy it and try to sell it on my own. Do you think I could possibly do this near the end of the Summer/September and the dealer would TRULY pay off the car, and not roll the difference into a new lease, KNOWING they'd be able to make some good money re-selling my car ??? Reason is, I wanna keep my payments around where they are now, and I know if I just negotiate with my car NOT involved, I'll get a better deal, or will I do just as good, letting THEM take my car instead of waiting till the end of the lease and just turning it in ???

    Thanks !
  • thenumberwiz1thenumberwiz1 Member Posts: 11
    I am looking at a 2004 Volvo S60 2.4 and 2004 Volvo S60 2.5T. I really want the S60 2.5T. The MSRPs are very close, $33,535 for the 2.5T and $32,585 for the 2.4. Same options on both cars except one is a turbo. However, the dealer is telling me the lease price is $50 dollars more for the 2.5T on a 42 month lease. This makes no sense unless the residual or money factor were better on the 2.4. I don't know about the money factor but I would suspect the residual would be better on the 2.5T.

    Would you be able to supply me with the money factors and the residual % for the 2004 S60 2.4 and 2004 S60 2.5T for 36 and 42 month terms? I would be very appreciative. I am perplexed at this point unless they are just trying to scam me.
  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Well, jbowman3, on vehicles that have lease support available on them one is often able to get the lowest lease payment by financing through manufacturers' captive finance companies. However, on vehicles that do not have a lot of lease support available on them or that have large cash incentives that could be used to reduce their selling prices it is indeed often less expensive to lease through outside lending institutions. Dealers have computer systems that allow them to search the country for the best available deals on a particular model, given the length of the lease and the mileage that one is interested in. However, it is difficult for me, let alone the average consumer, to keep tabs on these various banks' latest programs. What you should do is calculate how much money it will cost you to lease the model that you are interested in through its captive finance company and use this as a baseline in your negotiations. If your dealer can get you a lower payment that the captive is providing, great, if not then you know they are trying to pad your deal. There really isn't any good way to know how much money they are making on financing you through a non-captive bank. You as a consumer may be able to subscribe to ALG's services, but I personally don't think that doing so would benefit you. It's expensive and as long as you know what the manufacturers' lease program is like you will have a good idea of what your vehicle's residual values should be like in general.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hi rmlinn. I would be more than happy to give you an idea of what Acura's current lease program on the 2003 MDX should be like. However, first, I need you to tell me how many miles per year you need to be able to drive it and what trim level you are interested in, i.e. the 2003 Acura MDX Touring, 2003 Acura MDX with Navigation, 2003 Acura MDX with the Rear Entertainment System, etc... Once I have this info I should be able to help you out.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Jpinti528, Saab's employee purchase program is a pretty good deal. It provides you with an attractive price and entitles you to all available incentives without the hassle of negotiation. As far as this specific deal goes, according to my calculations, if you were to lease a 2003 Saab 9-3 Arc Sedan with an MSRP of $34,230 and a capitalized cost of $29,312 through Saab Financial Services Corp. this month for 3 years with 15,000 miles per, your zero down, pre-tax monthly lease payment should be right around $380.

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  • mparker8mparker8 Member Posts: 6
    Car_man, can you please prvide me with the MF and Residual for a 2003 Impala LS w/ Sport (36/15000). And could you let me know if there are any lease incentives for this car. Thank you in advance.

    -Parker
  • 93fsu193fsu1 Member Posts: 97
    Can I get the numbers for a Infiniti FX35 RWD for 48 months and 39 months. Thank you.

    Local dealer has the Premium for $399 a month with $2500 down but would not provide money factor and residual numbers.
  • rmlinnrmlinn Member Posts: 22
    Forgot those little details! I am looking at a base 2003 MDX, 12K miles/yr, 36/39/48 month leases. Thanks very much!
  • roxrepsroxreps Member Posts: 35
    Could you please give me the June residuals / money factors for the following cars for 36 and 39 months respectively (all based on 15K mi./year). I live in the Northeast

    BMW 525iT
    BMW 525iA
    Audi A6 Avant

    Thanks so much. What a great service you provide.
  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    You're welcome, 1234. If you are looking for an explanation of how leasing works, there are several must read articles over on the leasing page of this site's advice section. You may click on the following link to check that area out: Edmunds.com Leasing Articles. You should be able to answer all of the questions that you have on this subject there. Let me know if you have any other questions. Thanks.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hi cr. You don't happen to be Tom Brokaw do you :). Many banks will indeed negotiate the lease-end purchase prices of vehicles. Other however will never do so. If you are considering buying your current leased vehicle at the end of your term you should place a call to the bank that you are leasing it through and see if they would be willing to work with you on its price. It's worth a shot. The worst they can do is say no. If your initial contact is not willing to negotiate, you may get better results by working your way up the ladder a few rings to a manager. Good luck and let us know how everything turns out.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hey djdez. In order for you to know whether it will cost you any money to get out of your Acura CL lease six months early, you need to find out exactly how much money the bank that you are leasing it through, probably American Honda Finance Corp., is willing to sell it to you for at this time and what it is realistically worth on the open market. Even though many banks will indeed lower their lease-end purchase prices for lessees, consumer who are trying to get out of their deals early have much less leverage in negotiating an attractive purchase price because if the bank does allow them to buy their vehicle early at a reduced price, they are missing out on the money that they would have made from its regularly scheduled payments. It is possible that you would be able to get out of your CL lease a few months early at no cost, but you need to analyze the numbers to know whether you can for certain. Generally speaking, consumers weaken their bargaining position on the vehicle that they are interested in purchasing or leasing when they try to get out of leased vehicles early. However, if your car is actually worth more than it would cost to purchase it then this may not be the case.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hello thenumberwiz1. The 2004 Volvo S60 2.4 has a much lower lease money factor than the 2004 Volvo S60 2.5T. So, even though the 2.5T's residual values are slightly higher, it is entirely possible that the 2.4 would have a lower lease payment if you were to lease both of these cars with identical MSRPs and selling prices. Here are the lease programs for both of these models. If you were to lease a 2004 Volvo S60 2.4 through Volvo Finance this month for 3 years with 15,000 miles per, its base lease money factor and residual value should be .00041 and 54%, respectively. The numbers for an otherwise identical 42 month lease of this car should be .00034 and 49%. If you were to lease a 2004 Volvo 2.5T (non-AWD) through Volvo Finance this month for 3 years with 15,000 miles per, its base lease money factor and residual value should be .00087 and 55%, respectively. The numbers for an otherwise identical 42 month lease of this car should be .00097 and 51%.

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  • remy725remy725 Member Posts: 13
    Hi Carman
    Can you please furnish me with the money factor and residuals for both of these cars 36 months/ 12k p/y

    Thank You
    Remy
  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hello Parker. I would be happy to help you out. If you were to lease a 2003 Chevrolet Impala through General Motors Acceptance Corp. this month for 3 years with 15,000 miles per, its base lease money factor and residual value should be 3.5% and 46%, respectively. The exact amount of lease cash that is available on this model depends upon what part of the country you are in. If you let me know what state you live in, I should be able to give you an idea of that this car's lease cash should be like at this time.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hey 93fsu1. Here is the information that you are looking for. If you were to lease a 2003 Infiniti FX35 2WD through Infiniti Financial Services this month for 39 months with 15,000 miles per year, its base lease money factor and residual value should be .00138 and 51%, respectively. The numbers for an otherwise identical 48 month lease of this model should be .00159 and 44%.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    No problem, rmlinn. If you were a base 2003 Acura MDX through American Honda Finance Corp. this month for 3 years with 12,000 miles per, its base lease money factor and residual value should be around .00220 and 61%, respectively. I haven't seen this truck's 39 month numbers, but if you were to lease an identical MDX through AHFC for 4 years with 12,000 miles per, its base factor and residual should be around .00190 and 54%.

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