Lease Questions - Ask Here

ct_yank · June 2003

Car_man
I just finalized the deal on an Audi A4 3.0 Quattro with all options except navi. Just wanted to thank you for the info. It proved invaluable in my negotiations with the dealer. I began negotiating last month and was able to get the cap cost down to $500 over invoice and convinced the dealer to use the base money factor, which is extremely low. AWWWWWWWESOME Deal. Thanks again !!

CarMan@Edmunds · June 2003

I had a very nice weekend, JB. Thanks for asking. Interesting question. Many banks will indeed waive their security deposits for returning customers, even those who are returning from leases of another brand in their stable. I am not sure if Audi Financial Services does this or not. You should speak with the F&I person who you are dealing with to find out for certain. I don't see why they would have any reason to mislead you about a security deposit waiver, like they might be inclined to about a vehicle's base lease money factor because they can't make any money off of your deposit.

I have not seen Audi' July lease program yet. Please check back with me in a few days and I should be able to provide you with the new numbers. Talk to you soon.

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CarMan@Edmunds · June 2003

To the best of my knowledge, Lexus has not published its July lease program yet, mwertheim. Please check back with me with a quick reminder towards the end of the week and I will try to give you an idea of what its July numbers are like. Thanks.

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CarMan@Edmunds · June 2003

It sounds like you negotiated a heck of a deal, ct_yank. Congrats on your new vehicle! Thanks for taking the time to come back and let us know how everything turned out. Enjoy!

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gene1980 · June 2003

Thanks for the quick turn around Carman. Looks like they are trying to gouge me. Can you give me the 36 and 48 month MF and residuals?

Thanks again.

ks10596 · June 2003

Carman,

When do you think that Nissan will have its July numbers available? Do you think that they might be running any specials for the upcoming weekend?

Thanks!

roxreps · June 2003

Thanks Carman.

I will get back to you later this week. I'm interested to see if lease rates have changed (if at all) on Allroad for July.

JB

JoeSM · June 2003

I appreciate your quick response Carman. Looks like you were a popular guy on this Board over the weekend. We're actually going car shopping this afternoon so I wonder if you have the June 2004 numbers for the 330ic at 36 months, mf and residual available. Thanks again.

roxreps · June 2003

Carman,

I've negotiated a price on an 03' Audi Allroad demo with 4750 miles. (I'm planning to lease, 39 mo. 15K/yr. ) The salesman is telling me they have to adjust the residual for the 4750 miles. Is this legit? Is it up to the descretion of the dealership, or does Audi require this? Am I looking at a possible monkey wrench because I was given (at least on the surface) a good deal?

Your thoughts ,
JB

CarMan@Edmunds · June 2003

No problem, gene1980. According to the most recent information that I have seen, through June 30th, Lexus Financial Services' base lease money factor for the 2003 Lexus GX 470 with Navigation but without the rear entertainment system should be .00220 for both 36 and 48 month terms. The 3 and 4 year, 12,000 miles per residual values for this truck should be 56% and 49%, respectively.

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dc_buyer · June 2003

Carman- I'm looking at leasing an A4 3.0 Quattro with premium package and cold weather package. The lease deals appear very different in MD vs. DC. Apparently DC charges you a 10% user tax on your lease payments? Do I have that correct? In MD its 5%. Can you capitalize the taxes up front? What is the appropriate money factor/residual for this lease (48months, 12K)? Any deals I should know about? Thanks for the help Car Man!

dvdgene1 · June 2003

Carman, I'm being offered a deal to get a loaded certified 2001 MB SLK230 for $31600 (original price was $34000). Monthly comes out to $440 for 42 months or $460 for 39 months with $3000 out of pocket to cover $995 bank fee, $460 1st month payment, $500 sec deposit, $200 other fees (title, etc), the rest is downpayment. Money factor used by dealer is .00327 and residual is 19270. 15k miles a year allowed.

Isn't the money factor too high even for a Mercedes-Benz? Dealer said money factor is higher for used cars. They're using Captus as the leasing company instead of MB, since they said they get a better rate from Captus. Anyone heard anything about them?

Any feedback would be appreciated. I have to decide in a couple of days.

Thanks a lot!

Gene

CarMan@Edmunds · July 2003

Hi ks10596. Nissan's July incentives, including its lease program, are scheduled to run through July 7th. Other than a slight enhancement to its lease money factors for the 2003 Murano in certain regions, I have not seen any enhancements from them yet. I will keep my ear to the ground to see if they do introduce any 4th of July specials though.

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CarMan@Edmunds · July 2003

You're welcome, JB. Talk to you soon.

Car_man
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CarMan@Edmunds · July 2003

No problem, JoeSM. You're right, there certainly has been a lot of traffic in this discussion lately. I feel so loved. Wait, you don't think that community members are coming here for the useful information rather than my charming personality do you? Naaaaaaa

. Just in case you're still interested, BMW FS' base lease money factor and residual value for a 3 year, 15,000 miles per lease of a 2004 330Ci were .00220 and 62%.

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CarMan@Edmunds · July 2003

Interesting situation, JB. Even though I have never heard of this sort of adjustment before, individual dealerships do not have the authority to alter banks' residual values, so I am inclined to believe the person who you are dealing with. I would have been suspicious if they told you that they had to alter your vehicle's money factor, because this would give them an easy excuse to mark it up. Just make sure that you see all of their calculations and the figures that they used to arrive at your monthly payment before signing on the dotted line.

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CarMan@Edmunds · July 2003

Hello dc_buyer. I am not personally familiar with how tax is calculated on leased vehicles in your area. You may be able to find out more informaiton on this subject on the following Web site: DC Department of Motor Vehicles.

As far as this car's lease program goes, Audi's current program is only scheduled to run though tomorrow. If you do not lease this car before then, you will have to use its July program, which I have not seen yet. Please feel free to check back with me with a quick reminder in a few days and I will be more than happy to give you an idea of what this car's July numbers should look like. Talk to you then.

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CarMan@Edmunds · July 2003

Good morning, Gene. There are tons of variables that are associated with manufacturers' Certified Pre-Owned lease programs, including model year, trim level, and mileage to name a few and they aren't nearly as popular as new vehicle leases. As a result, I personally do not keep track of their details. Even without knowing what Mercedes-Benz Credit Corp.'s lease program is like on this particular model, I can tell you that a lease acquisition fee, or bank fee, of $995 is way too high unless you live in the states of New York, Connecticut, or Rhode Island where many banks have made their acquisition fees unreasonably high to cover their exposure from the vicarious liability laws. Also, a lease money factor of .00327 is very high in today's economy. This is equivalent to an interest rate of right around 7.9%. If you really like this car, you would be much better off getting pre-approved to finance it through your own bank or credit union and then giving your dealership an opportunity to match or beat your best rate quote.

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im_brentwood · July 2003

The RX330, GX470 and ES300 are all better off being leased OUTSIDE of Lexus Financial Services at the moment. I'll go and get some numbers later today.

gene1980 · July 2003

Carman,

Went to bat with the MF and residual numbers you provided yesterday. The residual was right on, but the salesman insisted that the MF is way too low (which I don't believe for a minute). They started our quoting me a MF of .0038, which they eventually said they would lower to .0028. I said I would lease immediately if they would use .0022 but things stalled there. I told the salesman I liked the truck, but I'm not going to slit my wrists if I don't get it -- if they want to match the Lexus numbers, I'll lease, if not they can keep it.

The dealer is coming down $3k off MSRP, which I think is a good deal, but I think they are trying to make up the $3k by using an inflated MF.
Thanks again for the help ... I'll keep you posted!

sandy2870 · July 2003

Re. 2003 Nissan Murano SL 4WD No option packages

Edmunds Invoice price is $25,931 plus a $540 destination charge. Total $26,471

Dealer quoted $459 for a 36 MO. 36,000 mile lease. Nothing down but, taxes, first month payment and one month refundable security deposit.

He advised that when I was ready he would do better. However, he didn't say how much better. I have a top credit rating, what should I aim for?

alanek · July 2003

Brentwoodvolvo, do any of these outside lease companies have multiple security deposits?

pfje · July 2003

Car_man,

I am interested in leasing a FX35 or FX45. Will you please give me any information that I will need to negotiate the best possible lease. I live in the Washington, DC area.

Thank you.

mxpro738 · July 2003

Car_man:

Once you receive BMW's July #'s, I'd be interested in the 36mo./15Kmi. lease, any special financing rate (e.g. 1.9%/60mo.) and any customer/dealer rebates for: 330i, 530i, 540i.

Can you help?

Thank you, in advance.

dc_buyer · July 2003

Car Man: I'm deciding between the 325xi and A4 3.0 in MD. What are the money factors and residual values for these cars? Any special deals that I should consider? Thanks again for your help

roxreps · July 2003

Oh summer! The smell of fresh cut grass, kids playing, birds singing, lazy Sundays sleeping on the hammock...while we (the educated car buying public) continue to 'toil in the field of residuals and money factors', and it's because of you; our beacon in a raging sea of financial data, the light at the end of the tunnel, the compass of our leasing desires (you get the drift).

Alas, it's another month of positioning and number crunching. Once again, we come to you with the familiar questions heard a thousand times over;

'Could you please supply me with the residuals/MF for Audi Allroad 15K / 36, 39, 42 mo. for July (NY based)?

As always, you help is greatly appreciated...

JB

dc_buyer · July 2003

Car Man: I'm deciding between the 325xi and A4 3.0 in MD. What are the money factors and residual values for these cars? Any special deals that I should consider? Thanks again for your help

yorab · July 2003

Hey everyone, I'm new here and amazed at the wealth of information on the boards here. A friend of a friend's mother has a lease on a 2001 Lexus ES300 fully loaded with a monthly payment of $399 (in NYC) after a $3k downpayment was made at the inception. She is sick these days and can't really drive anymore so this friend of a friend is offering to transfer the lease to me for the remaining 12 months at $329 a month. It has 6,000 miles on it (out of 36,000 allowed penalty-free by lease) and seems to be in good condition with no major dings or scratches.

I never leased before so i'm not farmiliar with lease prices, so my question is would you guys recommend that I go for this or is it not a particularly good deal?

tgp1810 · July 2003

"Oh summer! The smell of fresh cut grass, kids playing, birds singing, lazy Sundays sleeping on the hammock..." - lol reminds me of those cartoons you watch on a Saturday morning.

roxreps · July 2003

I guess I must be watching my kids watching cartoons...

JB

aja10 · July 2003

Hi Car_man,

I am interested in leasing a 2003 Audi A4 1.8T quattro w/auto. Do you know what the money factor and residual for July s/b with a 36m 12K and 10K lease. I talked to a dealer on 6/30 and he said the money factor was going to increase a lot in July. I'm not sure if he was just trying to get a sale or telling the truth. Also do you know if the MF and Res. on the 2004's will be much different than a 2003 left over and how much over invoice is a fair deal.

Thanks for your help.

normalo · July 2003

Carman I need MF and residual for Lexus ES300 and Infinity G35 4dr with nav, both 36mo/15K miles.

Thanks

radar10 · July 2003

High Car_man;

Reference messages 7085 & 7100...You asked me to remind you to check BMWFS incentives. Could you please check July MF's and residuals for the 325Cic (convertible) and 525I? I was just told by my dealer that BMW has combined the dealer cash back with the lease offer this month on the 325Cic. I did not ask him about the 525I yet. The 325 numbers he gave me were...2500 cash back to dealer with MF @.0026 and 54% residual for 12K/36Month. Are these numbers correct? Also, could you confirm that the dealers actually get charged a Maco fee on every vehicle from BMW. I I heard the direct cost to dealer was $160. Is this correct?

Thanks so much and have a great 4th!

David T

CarMan@Edmunds · July 2003

Hi everyone. Rather than have you all wonder where I have been, I figured that I would drop you a quick note to let you know that I am headed out the door for a long weekend and will not be back on-line until late Sunday or Monday. If you have any questions for me on leasing, please post them then. When I return, I should be able to find out the details of most manufacturers' current programs for anyone who is interested, of course other than the ones that are scheduled to run through July 7th or 9th. Talk to you then. Have a great holiday weekend!

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roxreps · July 2003

Carman,

Also looking for resid/MF for Aero sedan/wagon, 39 mo. 15K/yr, NY.
Hope the weekend was long enough.

JB

solaraman2003 · July 2003

Hello. I am new to leasing. I just leased a loaded 2003 Toyota Solara SLEV6. When I leased, the finanicing guy sold me this extra coverage at a cost of $485. It basically covers me for "excess wear and tear" on the vehicle at lease end.

I have now read thru the fine print (twice !) and am not really sure if this is something worthwhile. I still have time to back out of this additional coverage policy.

It covers me for up to $5,000 in "excess wear", as well as up to 1,000 miles of overage. It looks like I will probably need that extra 1,000 miles, the way I drive !

Has anyone had any experience with such a policy ? It is administered by "Safe Guard Products International" in Atlanta, GA.

I basically take very good care of my vehicles, and was really against this leasing idea...but both my financial advisor AND my accountant said that it was the best thing for me, due to the tax deductions. I really do intend to return the vehicle in 3 years in just about the same condition that it's in now, with additional mileage on it. As I said, I take care of my cars, like tending to things ASAP BEFORE they get bad, oil changes at 3k miles, etc.

There are a few things I noticed in this policy that concerns me:

1) There is a $100 deductible.
2) I have to ..."submit a claim...". Does that mean that I have to FIRST pay the leasing company and THEN file a CLAIM to get my money back ?
3) The clause "Not covered: damage to the vehicle normally covered under an auto policy providing collission and comprehensive unless repair of damages from any single event results in a cost to repair of less than $500".

That last item really scares me. Suppose I get into a little accident and the cost to fix is like $1,000. It might not pay for me to file a claim with my insurer, and so I initially thought that this policy would cover something like that. But it sounds like it doesn't.

So what exactly IS "excess wear and tear", and how could it possibly come anywhere near $5,000 in 3 years in order to make this policy worthwhile ? Or does it ? Thanks !

landru2 · July 2003

Sounds to me like it only has to come to $485 to make it worthwhile.

Price out repairs for a broken windshield (think driving behind gravel truck), a cracked bumper cover (think parking lot damage), and a keyed fender (think punk showing off to his friends) as examples of excess wear and tear. Add in the cost of the 1000 excess miles you think you'll drive. Deduct the $100 deductible. Is it more than $485?

These are typical examples and you may not experience any of them in which case your $485 will be wasted - like with any type of insurance.

footie · July 2003

If 'Excess wear and tear' are not defined in your leasing contract in a reasonable way, then you are setting yourself up whether you have this deal on the side or not.

If it's Toyota Financial Services call them at your first opportunity and ask what constitutes reasonable wear and tear. It's usally spelled out in terms on dent and ding sizes, etc. (Like smaller than a credit card is ok).

Sounds like to me the Finance guy sold you an odd deal. It would take a lot to convince me to buy that. If the insurance contract isn't with the leasing company and its with some third party then the claims issue is tricky.

Good luck!

normalo · July 2003

Unfortunately I could not get Carman's lease info for the ES300 for this month July, but I had to get the car for this weekend so this is how I did (actually for my sister), I hope it helps anybody out there so you should try to get the same of better.
1. I live in Southern California.
2. 36 months/ 15K miles a year
3. MSRP 36,061
4. Financed through Wells Fargo with 730+ credit.
5. Drive off $1000 and $440 including 8.25% tax.
Car has premium package, heated seats, wooden steering wheel and HID.
Do not go Glendale Lexus, they quoted me a price and when I went there they made me wait an hour until they told me they made a mistake? Bad service. Before I left I asked them to shred the documents that I had initialy signed including driver license and other personal information and the salesman refused because he wanted to keep it, for what?! I had to argue for few minutes before he conceded. Very bad experience.

CarMan@Edmunds · July 2003

Hi everyone. Thanks for your patience while I was away. I am back now and ready to attack any lease questions that you may have. Fire away

.

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chile96 · July 2003

Most likely will buy but am curious about possibly leasing 2003 Boxster with say an MSRP of $52K(those options sure do add up!). Anyway, looking at 36 to 48 mos with 10K mi/yr, maybe 12. Looking for MF, residuals, origination fee, security deposit, etc.. Are there any leasing specials from Porsche - yeah I know I'm dreaming! I'm in Atlanta. Also, if I originate the lease in ATL, can I return the car in Houston or do I need to take it back to the original dealer? Sorry for all the ?'s but as I began to write I am starting to think leasing might be a tad better so I can put the cash towards a diamond to make the GF happy! lol.. Thanks a ton!

take care
fo

ps - Does porsche offer any discounts like multiple security deposits similar to BMW or anything else that can reduce the M.F.?

jeffreyb2 · July 2003

Car_Man:

You were kind enough to help me in the past (01 Audi TT) and now the lease is almost up. I'm considering a 2003 MB E500. There appear to be very good deals on this car. Could you please give me residuals and current money factors for a 30 and 36 month lease with 15K per year? As the deals appear to be very good, are there any special programs for this car at this time?

Thanks!!

Jeff

roxreps · July 2003

Oh summer! The smell of fresh cut grass, kids playing, birds singing, lazy Sundays sleeping on the hammock...while the educated car buying public continues to 'toil in the field of residuals and money factors'. It's because of you; our beacon in a raging sea of financial data, the compass of our leasing desires (you get the drift...).

Alas, it's another month of positioning and number crunching. Once again, we come to you with that familiar question...

"Could you please supply me with the residuals/MF for Audi Allroad 15K / 36, 39, 42 mo. for July (NY based)?"

Thank you, (as always),

JB

CarMan@Edmunds · July 2003

Hi chile96. Funny that you should mention lease specials from Porsche. I keep expecting them to do something with the Boxster. Dealers have tons of them on their lots now. A couple of years ago Porsche did actually introduce supported lease money factors on the Boxster. Porsche's German HQ absolutely hates incentives though and usually shoots down any new programs that Porsche Cars North America is planning to introduce. Rumor has it that Porsche Cars N.A. was all set to introduce a special program on this car and that some dealers loaded up on them in anticipation, but the program was axed at the last minute by Germany. It will be interesting to see if any sort of special program is introduced over the next several weeks. I will look around again to see if anything is new with Porsche, lease-wise.

As far as returning your leased vehicle goes, you should be able to return any car (or truck I suppose now that the new Cayenne is out) to any Porsche dealership in the continental U.S.

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CarMan@Edmunds · July 2003

Hi Jeff. Wow, has it been that long already. Mercedes-Benz has not introduced its new July lease program yet. Supposedly, they are going to publish their July incentives on around July 10th. It was not providing any sort of support on the 2003 E-Class in its June program. If you were to lease a 2003 Mercedes-Benz E500 Sedan through Mercedes-Benz Credit Corp. through Mercedes-Benz Credit Corp. for 3 years with 15,000 miles per using the June program, its base lease money factor and residual value should be .00275 and 52%, respectively.

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CarMan@Edmunds · July 2003

Wow, you're so poetic, JB

. I am glad that summer is here as well. I was getting really sick of it raining every day, and I won't even get into all of the snow that we had this winter. Well, back to leasing. Here is the information that you are looking for. If you were to lease a 2003 Audi allroad through Audi Financial Services this month for 3 years with 15,000 miles per, its base lease money factor and residual value should be an attractive .00025 and 54%, respectively. The money factor for an otherwise identical 39 month lease of this car would be the same, but the residual value would fall to 52%. I have not see this model's 42 month numbers so I can't help you out with them though.

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jeffmust2 · July 2003

Carman - saw some posts on this board that the best rates for leasing this 2004 model come from non-factory sources like Chase and Hahn(?)...comment?

I would like Lexus/Toyota residual and money factor numbers on a 2004 RX330, FWD with Nav and Levinson audio, 36 months at 15k miles/year.

Thanks!

rwright · July 2003

Hey Car_Man!

I hope you had a good holiday weekend. When you get a chance I need the updated July money factor and residual values for 3 cars:
2004 BMW 325Ci
2003 Honda Accord coupe EX (4 cylinder - no nav)
2003 Honda Accord EX coupe EX (6 cylinder - no nav)

Thanks for all your help!!

CarMan@Edmunds · July 2003

Hi jeffmust2. I have heard the same thing about the 2003 Lexus RX 330. Apparently one can lease one with a lower monthly payment through certain outside lending institutions than they can through Lexus Financial. If you were to lease a 2004 Lexus RX 330 2WD with Navigation through Lexus Financial Services this month for 3 years with 15,000 miles per, its base lease money factor and residual value should be, an attractive .00190 (LFS significantly reduced its standard money factors for July) and 55%, respectively. You can use LFS' program as a good baseline for what you should pay to lease this truck. If your dealer is able to achieve a lower monthly lease payment than the one that this program would provide, great. If not, then you know something is up.

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hartt · July 2003

Hi Car_man. I am still pursuing the Honda Pilot. Could you please provide me with the residual and money factors for a 3 year lease with 15,000 miles a year for both an EX-L and EX-L with RES for July?
Also, have you heard when the 04 models are due to hit the dealerships and if there have been any changes?
Thank you in advance.

T

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