Lease Questions - Ask Here

curtnheidi · April 2001

Audi A4 1.8t Quattro
Melange Metallic/Ecru interior
Quattro Celebration Package
Sport Package
Tiptronic
Cold Weather Package
Bose Stereo
17" sport wheels will be thrown in to the deal

The salesman said the car is being sold at invoice.
MSRP: 30890 CAP COST: 28490
Money Factor: .00292 Residual: 55%

Lease for 441 + tax, 39 months/15K miles year
no money down except 1st payment and license

The only problem is that it has 3100 miles on it because it was a service and sales demo. Saleman said that warranty/maintenance would be extended 6000 miles, and lease would be extended 6000 miles as well. Does the Dealer charge the service department for the miles? If they sell the car at invoice, they still make money on the financing, but do they get money from the service dept. for the miles?

Thanks for your input!
Curt

topgun7 · April 2001

I am currently shopping for a 48 month lease on a Lexus SC430. My dealer in the bay area quoted me a lease with 0.0036 money factor. Can anyone give me some recommend as to which bank or leasing company I can go and shop for a better lease? Thanks.

m

vannielj · April 2001

I am in California and wanted to know what the 2001 Z06 and Convertible Corvette lease rates are right now. I would like to figure out what a 36 month lease is on either of these, but have no idea as to what residual and money factors they are using.

Thanks

CarMan@Edmunds · April 2001

Curt, I think that this is an average deal at best. Last month Audi was advertising a lease on the 2001 Audi A4 1.8T Sedan w/quattro, Celebration Pkg., Cold Weather Pkg., & Tiptronic for $319 per month with $2,500 down over 39 months. Even if you were to spread out the down payment over the length of this lease, it still would come out to about $383 per month. Of course the advertised payment was only with 10,000 miles per year and the advertised car is slightly less expensive than the one that you are looking at, but the car that you are interested in already has over 3,000 miles on it. I am personally not a big fan of demos because I don't feel that most dealerships are willing to provide a significant enough discount on them to justify purchasing what is essentially a low mileage used vehicle over a brand new one. That is just my personal opinion, but if I was in your shoes I would want more of a discount to lease a demo.

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busik · April 2001

Car_Man:

A friend of mine leased a 1998 Nissan Pathfinder SE about 3 years ago. His
39 month lease will be up in Aug., 2001. He recently received a call from
the bank holding the lease an offer to buyout for around $400/month
(residual value is $17K, but the true market value is around $16K). The
SUV has less than $30K miles and the Pa. State Inspection is due in April.
But my friend has no interest in the lease end buyout, he simply wants to
return it back to the dealership at the end of his lease term.

This is where I come in ...I am interested in buying his SUV, but not at
$17K. I think it is a good buy for me, only if I can negotiate the price
down to about $15K. Can you tell me how this process works?, and what part
does the dealership/lessor play here, if any? Eventhough I am the 3rd
party here, can I directly negotiate the price with the bank holding the
lease?

Thanks for your help in advance, Mr. Busik.

svman · April 2001

I hear GM has some new lease rates out for these new vehicles, 3% for 2 yrs., and 5.9% for 3 yrs. Is this true? What would be the residual for a 2 yr lease, 12K/yr? I think Car_Man said awhile back it was 57% for 3yrs. Would the lower 2 yr. rates make that a better deal than a 3 yr lease? Thanks.

KCRam · April 2001

GM has announced a significant recall today (April 5) on the new 2002 Envoy/Trailblazer.Bravada, with a warning not to drive the vehicle at all. GM advises the 6000 current owners to park the SUVs immediately, and dealers will come and tow them. Production has also been suspended for several weeks for the problem. The lower control arms of the front suspension have a part that can fail, and has during factory drives and dealer test drives. When the redesigned part is implemented, production will resume, and the existing unsold vehicles will be repaired prior to sale. Dealers will NOT sell these trucks until GM gives the OK.

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CarMan@Edmunds · April 2001

Mr. Busik, in order to find out if the bank that your friend is leasing his truck through is willing to negotiate its lease-end purchase price, he or she has to call the bank directly and speak to a representative. There is no guarantee that they will be willing to work with you on the price, but it certainly doesn't hurt to ask. I don't think that you will be able to buy this truck directly from the bank, but rather your friend would have to buy it and then sign it over to you. If they are willing to lower the price and you like the Pathfinder, then buying it might not be a bad idea. However, if they are not willing to negotiate then I would personally pass.

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CarMan@Edmunds · April 2001

Wow, KC, I just heard the news myself. Many manufacturers have quality problems with brand new models when they initially roll them out, but this certainly sounds dangerous. General Motors didn't do itself any favors or increase consumers' confidence in its products by botching the launch of the one product that I thought that they had actually done a good job on. Oh well.

Svman, in answer to your specific question, yes I have seen General Motors' new residual values for the 2002 GMC Envoy. If you lease this truck through GMAC right now, I believe their 2 year lease rate is 3.0% and their 3 year rate is 6.1%. The corresponding supported residual values for the 2002 Envoy are 58% and 48% respectively.

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nighter50 · April 2001

do you have any new info on 36 and 48 month leases of GMC Yukon and Toyota Sequoia (money factors & residuals)?

thanks

svman · April 2001

Car_Man, Thanks for the residual info but can they really have dropped from the 57%(3yr, 12K/yr) you said on Mar. 21 to 48% now? That's seems like an awful lot in one month for a new vehicle. Is this right? This recall must really be having an effect!

curtnheidi · April 2001

Can you post the money factor and residuals for the Accord EX 4cyl. and the Accord EX 6cyl.? Thanks!

Curt

busik · April 2001

Hello Car_Man:

Can you post the money factor and residuals (36/39 month lease figures) for 2001 Mazda Tribute LX/V6/2WD/Auto? TMV (with ABS & Premium Audio Package options) is around $20K. Thanks!

curtnheidi · April 2001

in regard to post #763, i should add I am considering 39 months, 15K miles a year.

Thanks,
Curt

mlpca · April 2001

I recently have been pricing Acura TL-S w/Navi.
I received the same price from two different dealers, they both gave me a money factor of .00315 and 62% res. for 15K miles. Yet they have come in with two different lease payments, how is this possible?

CarMan@Edmunds · April 2001

Hi nighter50. I have seen the lease programs for the trucks that you asked about and would be happy to provide you with the information that you are looking form. If you lease a 2001 GMC Yukon through GMAC for 36 months right now, the supported lease rate and 15,000 miles per year supported residual value should be 7.75% and 54% respectively. General Motors is not providing any lease support on 48 month Yukon leases at this point, so if you were to lease one for 4 years through GMAC you would have to use their standard lease rates and residual values. I haven't seen their standard lease program yet, but should have more information on it next week if you would like to check back with me then.

As one might expect with such a new model, Toyota is not currently providing any sort of lease support on the 2001 Sequoia right now. So if you decide to lease one through Toyota Motor Credit Corp. you would have to pay their standard lease money factor. The last that I saw, TMCC's standard lease money factor for consumers with good credit was .00360, but it might be slightly lower now that the Fed has lowered interest rates again. The residual values for a 15,000 miles per year lease on this truck are presently 62% for 36 month and 56% for 48 month terms.

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muzhik · April 2001

I believe, the residual on TL-S w/Navi is 60%, as opposed to 62% for your 'plain Jane' TL-S. I just came back from my dealer and those were the numbers. Obviously, Acura financial people are letting us know that the Navi is just a gimmick and they're not willing to residualize it.

Also, wanted to mention that low MF on BMW 330i (0.0021) actually makes a nicely equipped 330i (MSRP $39,485.00) less expensive to lease than TL-S (MRSP $33,710.00). Check it out. I am torn myself.

CarMan@Edmunds · April 2001

Svman, as hard as it is to believe, the actual 15,000 miles per year residual value for the 2002 GMC Envoy has dropped to 48%! The 2002 Bravada has an identical 36 month residual value and the 2002 Chevrolet Trailblazer is only slightly higher at 50%. I think that the drop in these vehicles' residuals has more to do with the industry-wide decline in truck residual values than the recall at this point, although I certainly don't think that their recall will help boost these trucks' future resale value any.

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CarMan@Edmunds · April 2001

Hi Curt. Honda's lease program is the same as it was last month. If you lease any 2001 Non-Value Package Accord through American Honda Finance Corp. prior to the end of April, they are offering a special lease money factor of .00213 for 24 through 39 month terms. Although the residuals for both the EX 4- and 6-cylinder models are the same, they will vary depending upon the length of the lease that you are interested in and the number of miles per year that you plan to drive. If you can provide me with those two pieces of information, I would be happy to let you know what the exact residual values are.

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CarMan@Edmunds · April 2001

Oops, sorry Curt. I just saw your second post. OK the 39 month, 15,000 miles per year residual value for a 2001 Honda Accord EX is currently 57%.

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CarMan@Edmunds · April 2001

Busik, I have not seen Mazda's current lease program yet. However, I should have gotten a chance to take a look at the information that you are looking for by early next week. Please feel free to check back with me then for an answer to your question. Thanks.

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nighter50 · April 2001

Thanks for your help and insight!

jwilson1 · April 2001

Car_Man, the Acura dealer says that there will be a small luxury tax due as part of the first payment. I'm wondering about the need for the charge if a lease is a long-term rental. Any opinions?

Take care.
Joe W.

c240_sj · April 2001

CarMan,

Can you please provide the residual and money factor for MB C240 36 month 12K/yr and 15K/yr leases.

Thanks.

michaellno · April 2001

Car_man, I wanted to run this past you to see what you thought.

I was at my local Ford dealer, getting an oil change, when I poked my head into the sales mgr's office and asked about residual values for a new Expedition. He told me 51% for 24 mo and 45% for 36 months on the XLT model, with Eddie Bauers being 2% lower. I asked about money factors and he said 3.5% for 24 months and around 5-5.5% for 36 months. They also have a $1500 rebate on Expos, plus $1500 renewal cash for Red Carpet leases, which would take care of the almost $3K I owe in payments now.

Bottom line? I could get a new, 2001 Expo XLT for $579/mo with no money out of my pocket other than the first months payment. They didn't have the color I wanted, so I passed.

Good deal? I'm thinking of waiting until Sep/Oct to see if Ford will do any more for end of model year clearence.

CarMan@Edmunds · April 2001

You're welcome, nighter50. I am glad that I was able to help you out.

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CarMan@Edmunds · April 2001

Hi again Joe. Fortunately for all of us, the luxury tax on automobiles is being phased out over the next several years. Unfortunately, the gradual phase out of this tax doesn't do anyone who is in the market for a luxury car right now, like yourself, much good. Here is a link to an article that explains all of the ins and outs of the current luxury tax laws: Calculating Luxury Taxes on Automobiles. Although I am not positive, I believe that consumers who lease expensive enough cars and trucks that are under a certain weight are actually liable for this tax. Even though the consumer who leases a car technically does not own it, someone must purchase the vehicle (the bank that they are leasing through) in order for a lease to take place. As a result, these lending institutions will almost certainly pass this expense onto consumers rather than absorbing it.

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CarMan@Edmunds · April 2001

C240_sj, I have not seen the latest Mercedes-Benz lease program yet. However, I should have the information that you are looking for in a couple of days if you want to check back with me then. Talk to you soon.

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CarMan@Edmunds · April 2001

Michaell, the person who you spoke with was telling you the truth about the 2001 Expedition residual values, lease cash and loyalty promotion. I think that the 24 month lease rate is more like 3.0% and the 36 month rate is 5.5%, but this may vary slightly from area to area. It sounds to me as though they were being pretty straightforward with you, which is a good sign.

It is difficult for me to say exactly how good the deal that you were quoted is without knowing the exact MSRP and equipment that this truck has. If you provide me with that information, I would be more than happy to let you know what I think. It is difficult to say what the future holds for 2001 Expedition incentives. Ford's current program on this truck is scheduled to run through July 2nd. Even though they have the right to revise it prior to that date, I don't foresee any major changes before then. By September or October though it is entirely possible that they will increase their cash support on it.

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oidvoid · April 2001

Car_Man, I've gleaned a lot of good info in the past several weeks from the boards here and I was wondering if I could make a request for a bit more.

I was at a Honda dealer today and got some numbers for a 39 month/12k mi. zero down lease on both an Accord LX and EX V6 Coupe. The selling prices are $21,400 and $23,900 respectively. The lease payments given me were $364/mo. and $389/mo., and they confirmed this was based on the .00213 money factor.

Using Expert Lease Pro, I'm coming up with lower payments, but I'm really not sure the residuals are correct. Do you know what they would be for the coupe? Also, do the dealer's lease terms look like they're in line to you?

Thanks very much,

oidvoid

oidvoid · April 2001

In reference to post #781, I forgot to mention I'm in MD and the 5 percent state tax will be rolled into the lease.

Thanks

emanning7 · April 2001

Does anyone have the current residuals and
money factors for a Volvo s-60 T5 automatic.
Thanks, Ed

c240_sj · April 2001

Car_Man,

Today, the dealer said that for Tier 1 customers, the MF is 0.00354 and the residual for 36 months 12k/yr is 69% and for 15k/yr is 67%.

What is your opinion ?

Thanks.

michaellno · April 2001

car_man, thanks for the confirmation. Talking directly with the sales mgr, I felt pretty good about the truth of his numbers. He quoted me an MSRP of $37,300 and a selling price of $33,000 (or so - he said it was invoice price). This was for an XLT with pretty much all options (rear air, 3rd seat, CD changer, 5.4 V8, running boards).

Also, it's good to know that the incentives and lease rates are good until 7/1.

CarMan@Edmunds · April 2001

Oidvoid, the 39 month 12,000 miles per year residual value for a 2001 Honda Accord EX V6 leased through American Honda Finance Corp. should currently be 58%. The same residual for a 2001 LX would be 55%.

I just ran a few numbers for you and according to my calculations if you were to lease a 2001 Accord EX V6 Coupe (MSRP: $25,540) at $500 over invoice ($22,774 + $500 = $23,274) through AHFC for 39 months and with 12,000 miles per year your approximate pre-tax monthly lease payment should be right around $300 per month. So, it looks to me as though the payments that you were quoted are a little on the high side. If I was in your situation, I would probably get quotes for similar cars at a couple of different Honda dealers in my area to see if I could do any better.

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papadecamille · April 2001

VW's warranty on new cars is 2 years. Based on this fact, would you advise against leasing a VW for 3 years? In general, would you recommend NOT leasing a car for a term longer than the warranty? If so, would an extended warranty be a solution?

Thanks.

svman · April 2001

I think I read in a previous post that you can't really reduce your lease payments by an equivalent amount due to a higher down payment. But in using your lease payment formula, it looks like you can. Am I missing something? Is this why the advice is always to put as little as possible down on a lease? Or does putting, for example, $3600 more down on a lease for 36 mon. really lower your lease payment by at least $100/mo? Thanks.

oidvoid · April 2001

Thanks, Car_Man. I spoke with the dealer again today and they provided the same exact residuals, so even with their 5 percent over invoice on both models, I still should be coming up with a lower monthly payment. Need to make sure we're using the same math before I start haggling on price.

Anyway, you told me what I need to know. I appreciate the info, and thanks again!

oidvoid

ryshan · April 2001

Car Man: I have learned alot about leasing reading through the last 100 or so posts- thanks for your help.
I am looking at leasing a 2001 Chevy Impala LS(fully loaded. sunroof, htd seats, pretty much every option.) Msrp is aprox 26,500. I figure the sale price should be about 24, 000.
I am hoping to go with a 30 month lease (but am flexible on the length) and need 15,000 miles each year. Pls give me the money factor for 30 and 36 mos and the residual.
The initial quote the dealer gave me was 550 a month. Based on what I can calculate, this seems way too high. I appreciate your help.

timchar99 · April 2001

I have a '99 Jeep Grand Cherokee with 33K miles, I'm allowed 36K on the lease that ends in November of this year. I would like to get out of the lease sometime before it ends and before I go over my allowed miles. Are there any options I have that won't cost me more than I'm already paying? I would like to then purchase something less expensive (in the $22-$25K range) once I can get rid of what I have. I've never attemped to end a lease early, but I've heard it's not easy. If you need to know more information about my current lease, just let me know. Thanks.

mmcbride1 · April 2001

OK, I think I've got everything in order now, so hopefully this will be the last time I have to ask. Do you have the current residuals and money factors on a 2001 Audi A4 1.8T Quattro 5 speed for 3 years/36k miles through Audi Financial? The last I heard from you, it was 58% and .0024, but that was about a month ago, and their programs seem to expire right about the 6th of each month.

ddelise · April 2001

Hello -

Can you give me the lease rate and residuals on this car? I am in FLA, and am looking at a high-end version, but no 4X4.

ddelise · April 2001

Car Man -

One more for you - this one for my sister. How about the A6 - 2.7T or 2.8 - residuals and money factor for 36-48 months.

Thanks Again.

KCRam · April 2001

hi timchar99

You may not totally be in the hot seat with mileage, even though you only have 3000 left. Something you can consider is using your security deposit to buy some miles. For example, if your deposit is $400, that would give you an additional 2666 miles at 15 cents per mile, or effectively making your lease 38,666 with no out of pocket expense (assuming you are not hit with wear and tear fees). This would give you about 800 miles per month to finish out your lease without the hassle and paperwork of early termination. Doing so also puts you into "leftover" territory, since the 2002 model year technically begins October 1, and you will be able to land some really good deals on 2001s.

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CarMan@Edmunds · April 2001

Hi c240_sj. The person who you spoke with was telling you the truth. MBCC's base standard lease money factor is exactly what they told you it was. The residual values that they quoted you are also right on the money. It is good to see that this particular dealer is being very straightforward with you when they could have easily tried to mark-up the base money factor to try to bake additional profit into your deal.

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CarMan@Edmunds · April 2001

Papadecamille, I generally advise consumers against leasing vehicles for longer than their bumper-to-bumper warranties. One of the advantages of leasing is never having to shell out money for repairs. However, three year leases are very common and I don't think that you really need to worry about leasing a Volkswagen for that long a term. If something does go wrong with your car, you would have probably had to fix it anyhow if you had purchased instead of leased it. Plus, you will still have VW's 10 year / 100,000 mile powertrain warranty to cover any expensive engine problems that your car experiences while you are leasing it.

On a side note, rumor has it that VW may be increasing the length of their bumper-to-bumper warranty for the 2002 model year. I have not heard any official confirmation of this though, so I don't think that I would wait until then if I was in the market for a new car right now.

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CarMan@Edmunds · April 2001

Hi ryshan. I am glad that you have enjoyed reading all of the posts on leasing in this forum. If you decide to lease a 2001 Chevrolet Impala LS through GMAC for 30 or 36 months right now, the supported lease rate should be 5.6%. The corresponding 15,000 miles per year residual values for this car are 54% for 30 months and 50% for 36 months. I have to agree with you that $550 per month does sound a little on the high side for this car. Try plugging the numbers that I provided you into the lease equation that I posted a while ago. For your reference, you can convert a 5.6% lease rate into an equivalent lease money factor by dividing it by 2400.

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CarMan@Edmunds · April 2001

Hi again mmcbride1. Don't worry about asking too many questions, I am always glad to help out such an active Town Hall community member as much as I can. If you lease a 2001 Audi A4 1.8T Quattro 5 speed for 3 years/36k miles through Audi Financial prior to the end of April, the lease money factor is still .00240. I haven't seen their latest residual values for this car yet, but it probably hasn't changed since last month.

By the way, I was at the North American introduction of the 2002 A4 at the New York Auto Show this afternoon and I must say that they did an outstanding job with the 6th generation of this car. I think that the 2002 will hit showrooms in October.

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CarMan@Edmunds · April 2001

Ddelise, it would be a big help if you could be more specific about how long you want to lease this truck for any how many miles per year you plan on leasing it with. These two pieces of information will have an effect upon the numbers that I post for you. Once I have this additional info, I would be happy to help you out. Talk to you soon.

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CarMan@Edmunds · April 2001

I can help you out with the A6 lease information though since you posted the length of lease that your sister is interested in. If she leases a 2001 A6 A6 2.7T quattro (all 2.7T models have quattro) through Audi Financial for 36 months, the lease money factor should be .00235 and for 48 months it should be .00255. As I mentioned in a previous post, I haven't seen Audi's residual values yet. Please feel free to check back with me in a couple of days and I should have them for you.

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