Lease Questions - Ask Here

CarMan@Edmunds · December 2003

Greetings lsg123. In order for me to give you an idea of what these cars' lease programs are like, I need you to tell me how long you plan on leasing them for and how many miles per year you need to be able to drive them. Let me know and I will let you know

.

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2003

Hi abibi. According to the latest information that I have seen, if you were to lease a 2004 Toyota Land Cruiser through Toyota Financial Services this month for 3 years with 15,000 miles per, its base lease money factor and residual value should be .00220 and 55%, respectively. I would be more than happy to calculate a sample lease payment on this truck for you, but in order for me to do so, I need you to provide me with its full MSRP and selling price.

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lsg123 · December 2003

Lets, do that again :-)

Hi Carman, could you help me with that info:

Lease for 36 month 15000 miles for cars:

1. Altima (2004) 3.5SE in NY, money factor and
residual.
2. Maxima (2004) 3.5SL in NY, money factor and
residual.

Thank you .

djdez · December 2003

Car_man ... thanks again for all the insight you give everyone here. I have somewhat of a DIFFERENT question - I'm hoping you can help me.

When I leased my Infiniti back in September, I registered it in NJ at my house. Well, I may be moving back to Philadelphia. How will this impact my lease ? I saw you mentioning earlier about how NJ is unique in the way that it calculates the tax on a lease. Also, on my lease bill, the tax is NEVER broken out. I only have the entire MONTHLY amount due. I'm sure it could be figured out though. In NJ, I believe the tax on the lease is 6%. In Philadelphia, it is 10% (OUCH!).

In any event, I'm guessing I will have to re-register the car in Philadelphia, get PA tags and a PA license, as well as change the insurance. Now, when I re-register, what will the tax impact be upon my lease? Will the difference get added to the monthly payments, or can I pay it in a lump sum? How does this usually work? I'm currently paying $401 a month. I'm figuring that if this was registered in Philly, it would be around $417 a month. I already made 3 payments, so I'm guessing the $16 a month for the remaining 35 months would be $560. Is the amount I will have to pay or will it be something different (more?) ...

Sorry for so many questions -- THANKS !!!

baritone27513 · December 2003

A very wise friend of mine once said about leasing, "Don't ever fall in love with a particular car. Just get the one that offers the best lease terms."

So after beating my head against the wall with dealers trying to charge full MSRP on cars like the Lexus RX330, Volvo XC90, and Acura TL, then marking up the money rates besides, I saw the lease promo on the Volvo S80.

Bottom line -- we're picking it up at the end of the week. The money rate was .00015. That's right, THREE zeros. It comes out to about 0.36% And the dealer took about $1K off the retail price as well.
(They could have taken off a LOT more if I was purchasing, but you can't have it both ways.)

The promo is only good on a 48 month lease, so the residual is pretty low. But what the heck -- the interest is negligible, so who cares? If the lease were shorter, I'd just be leasing another car when it was over anyway, so my payments wouldn't stop in any event.

Also...this may just be the case for my local dealers, but the Volvo dealer was the only one I talked to who seemd to be straight with me on lease terms/rates from the start. When I was looking at the XC90, he basically said that VFNA's lease rates were awful, and quoted me rates/residuals from Chase instead (which is who my current lease is with).

Anyway...just thought I'd mention that for anyone looking at mid-sized sedans in the $40K neighborhood.

Merry Christmas,
--Steve

ruskus · December 2003

I am in process on a 2004 Dodge lease and see a line item for Assignment Fee - $700.00. This is listed separate from inception fees. Any answer on what this is? Not sure of what kind of bull the dealer is going to tell me it is. Negotiable?
Thanks,
Russ

knockoff · December 2003

Thanks Car_Man for the info... On paper and all logic would agree with you on the Touareg & Cayenne difference but unfortunately I drove the Pepper and it drives better than the T-reg. It doesn't feel quite as "bulky" as the VW but I do like the VW interior. $10,000+ better you ask???? Well, that will depend on being able to swing a good lease :-)

topgun7 · December 2003

Car_man, same here. We aren't crazy about Accord coupe's style. But it is growing on us (I guess it has to now that we get it 8-))Solara was our first choice. However at about the same time we asked about Solara, you gave another poster the information about leasing the Accord coupe. It get me start comparing and calculating the payment.

One thing that seems to stand out is that the car market is really weak now...There is actually 3 different dealers that is willing to sell/lease the coupe (or Sedan) $1000 below invoice in the SF bay area. I am not sure how they can make any money with this deal (but of course I will take it). Thanks, you are providing a really great service for all.

tstarks33 · December 2003

First off, thanks Carman for answering my question about the RX-8 a few weeks ago.

Now I have another question that hopefully you or someone else can answer. I have read that leasing a car and then moving to a different state can cause big problems and shouldn't be done. Any truth to this? I currently live in Washington DC but I plan on moving to Virginia in a few months. Should I wait until I move to VA to lease a car, or can I lease now? Thanks in advance

crashtestdingo · December 2003

On Dec 18, 2003 at 7:30pm, andrewctang wrote:

>2) I assume sales tax is paid with each lease payment, not upfront. Correct?

Are you asking if the entire amount of sales tax is charged up front vs. collected with each payment? Here in New York, it's charged up front. If the lessee wants, it can be amortized, just like the capitalized cost, but then the lessee would be paying interest on it to the bank.

Interestingly, if the leased car is totalled or stolen and not recovered, the lessee is entitled to a refund of the "unused" portion of the sales tax from the state and locality. (I imagine the same is true for anyone who buys a car.) But the salesman my sister dealt with said it was darn near impossible to get this refund and recommended against paying the sales tax up front, because as Car_man writes, insurance will not reimburse the lessee for it. But the salesman has an incentive to say it's darn near impossible to get this refund if he gets a commission on any profit the dealer gets from financing.

crashtestdingo · December 2003

On Dec 21, 2003 at 12:19pm, Car_man (the HOST) wrote:

>5) While it is a good idea to put money down when financing a new vehicle,
>it definitely is not a good idea to put any money down when leasing.
>Consumers are allowed to lease vehicles without making any down payment.
>I always advice anyone who I speak with in these forums not to put any money down
>when leasing for two main reasons. The first is that if the vehicle that you are leasing
>is totaled in an accident or stolen and never recovered during your lease term,
>your insurance company pays off the bank that you were leasing it through
>and your down payment essentially disappears. The second main reason is
>that down payments on leased vehicles do nothing to reduce their lease-end
>purchase prices. So it would cost you exactly the same amount of money
>to buy your leased vehicle at the end of your term if you had made
>a $10,000 down payment, or had put absolutely no money down.

While a down payment doesn't reduce the lease-end purchase price, it does reduce the total amount of money the lessee pays in interest over the term of the lease. Granted, a lessee who puts down money is still faced with the risk of losing that down payment in the event of a total loss of the car, but he or she might find the savings in interest enough compensation for that risk. Sort of like decreasing his or her amount of insurance coverage in order to save money on premiums. Then again, he or she needs to take into account the opportunity cost of the down payment  how much return he or she would get if the money put down were invested instead. I concede it's a complex calculation, so that a good rule of thumb is not to put any money down.

(Oh, and thank you for your reply to my question about my sister's deal.)

cdt1 · December 2003

I am in the process of leasing a 2004 VW Passat. The dealer has quoted me fees totaling about $1300 on the vehicle. Included are $400 security deposit, $299 processing fee, and a $575 acquisition fee. Can anyone relate their experience with theses fees or tell me if they are legitimate? Thanks.

-Chris

bmwmaybe · December 2003

Interesting information on the Volvo S80 lease money factor above (.00015). Carman, can you tell me what the residual is for a 12,000 mile lease at 36 and 48 months?

baritone27513 · December 2003

I'm sure Carman has more complete information, but I believe the special money rate is only available on a 48 month lease. The residual for 12K miles was 44%. By lowering it to 42% I got 15K miles for what turned out to be $.07/mile for the extra miles.

I know those sound like low residuals, but the total deal was still a lower payment that what Acura was offering on their TL -- which had a sales price that was $5K lower than the S80.

--Steve

bmwmaybe · December 2003

Ah, the fun of trying to decide on a car. I was originally pretty set on the 525, but after driving one was a little concerned about the power (184hp) and it ain't cheap at around 43K. Also, for a 43K car, the cup holders are a joke..

Last weekend I stopped into an Acura dealer to look at the new TL . Wow, nice car. All that and a bowl of soup for 35K. I would get the nav system, not sure manual or auto. I am also thinking about an S80, solely due to lease incentives, but am still leaning toward the Acura.

My current lease is up on the 7th of March. I have 2 payments left (Jan and Feb)

My dillema is that the color I like the best is not available at any local dealer with a Nav system. So, do I order one for delivery in 6-8 weeks, and hope the residuals do not drop that much, or choose another color (ouch), get the dealer to pick up my last 2 lease payments (which it seems they are willing to do) and get a car now. I figure if I wait, I can probably get the car at 500 below MSRP. I have more leverage now since its year end and dealers are very eager to move inventory. HHmmmm....... Any thoughts? And any guesses on how much the residual and money factor on a 36 month, 12000 mile per year lease may change between now and February? (I think the current residual is 61% and money factor is .00215)

Thanks!

sarah233 · December 2003

car_man you ROCK! thanks for always giving me good info!

andrewctang · December 2003

For your answers to my leasing questions. Much appreciated!
andrewctang

andrewctang · December 2003

For helping with my leasing questions. I'll get in touch with DMV regarding how sales taxes are handled on leases in Minnesota.

andrewctang · December 2003

Car_man,
Wow! Thanks for all your answers to my questions. Your answers will help me a lot.

Let me get this straight. I should be able to lease a car and drive off paying just first month's lease payment, security deposit (about same amount as one month's payment) and acquisition fee (about $500-600). No downpayment. I know the lease payment depends on the deal I negotiate, but say it's about $400. So I could drive off paying just $1300-1400 (= $400x2 + $500-600).

For a loan, on the other hand, I pay first month's loan payment and a downpayment (you recommended 10-20% of purchase price). No acquisition fee. Suppose loan payment works out to $400 and purchase price is $25K. I pay $2900-5400 (= $400 + $25,000 x 10-20%) before I can drive off.

I just read in this discussion that there might be something called a "processing fee". Is that something charged on both leases and loans?

mobofe · December 2003

this would have been a more difficult decision for you if you had shopped for a 2003 525 2 months back when i had the opportunity to get one for $36,000, fully loaded. The interior with the premium package was very ordinary.
cheapy plastics and bland console - always had this impression that BMWs were the ultimate in luxury until i saw their base models. Like you said, the 184hp does no favors to this car - during my testdrive, the car felt very sluggish at the low rpms; it neverhteless had absolutely precise handling.

I think it should be a federal crime that i wasn't wowed by the 5.

off topic but i thought funny at the time: on my way back from the BMW testdrive and was 'bout to enter the highway on-ramp; a yellow sports coupe is heading perpendicular to my driver side door after crossing double yellow lines from a condo complex across the street. The car was going slow as though waiting for me to go before he cut another lane to reach the on-ramp. Aggressive but at least polite enough. The only problem was: when i looked back at the car as it approached closer, there was no driver.

at the same moment as i realized the phantom driver, a car alarm goes off with all the bells and whistles and i see this dude running across the street from the condo.

funny sh*t especially when i put forth the most likely explanation that this genius put an automatic starter on his manual car and left it in first gear, mistakenly pressed the autostart and the car jerked all the way across 4 lanes, managing to avoid cars and of all thinks a plow right in front of the condo entrance. lucky SOB.

landru2 · December 2003

You'll want to check with Acura, but FWIW, Ford Credit will raincheck the rate and residual in place at the time of order. If rates or residuals happen to improve then you can use the new rates and if they get worse you can use the rates in place when you ordered.

evans98 · December 2003

Congratulations on the new S4 measurer it is a great car! I'm looking to lease an S4 as well, but the dealers in my area are asking MSRP. I'm hoping that I can get a fair deal on an S4 if I lease from an out of state dealer.

Thanks for proving that prices can be negotiated on these vehicles. I would appreciate any advise you can give me in getting the best deal possiable.

footie · December 2003

Hi Car Man,

We are interested in the Honda Element.

They are offering a special lease on the left over 2003 2WD EX Automatic models till 12/31/03.

$229 / month for 48 months. Sounded good. Right?

Then I did the math. Even after a $2260 down payment and cap cost near invoice, looks like a money factor of of .0041 or NEARLY 10% interest.

Is this right???? If so, that would seem like quite a rip off in this day and age of low interest financing.

Everyone ought to check their leases with HFCC if this is true!!!!!

ymnik777 · December 2003

Hi everybody .
Could you give me some advice.
My dealer offered me Toyota 4Runner SR5 4 by 4
6 cyl. with

  JBL sound system.
  Moonroof
  and all standard features.
  36 months lease 360 per month.
  Is it a good deal ??
  Thanks for advice.

topgun7 · December 2003

depending where you are, it may be a very good deal or a very bad deal. The lease payment is affected by the cap cost (the purchase price)/ dealer fee that you negotiate + the money factor + the residual. Dealer can mark up the money factor, the dealer fee and/or the purchase price. Whether you get a good deal or not depending if you can get the best price on each of these 3 things. The best way to know if you get a good deal is to do a competitive shopping (send an email to all the dealer around 100 mi or call them and see what is the best quote. Sending email is much faster). And then take the best quote to the others and see if they can beat it. In general, the first offer is never the best offer from a dealer. We just picked up an Accord EX coupe last weekend. The initial quote from the dealer that eventual have our business is $200 below invoice. And the final price is $1000 below invoice. The suprising things is that actually there are 2 other dealers willing to sell it at the same discount. Competition is stiff for selling any kind of cars (except may be TL)now, so shop until you are happy with the price and don't accept the first quote. Merry Christmas.

kyfdx · December 2003

FWIW.... last year the good lease deals seemed to peak in March. The residuals were still strong, yet the money factors were coming down, and the manufacturer to dealer incentives seemed to really kick in. I would think you'd be able to negotiate a lot better than $500 under MSRP on the TL in March, but that may be hindered by having to order the exact car you want.

regards,
kyfdx

dlubin · December 2003

Hi,

The New Car: We're looking to lease a 2004 MDX (Base Model, $36945 MSRP).

The Old Car: We're upside down about $3,000 on our trade, and the dealer is 'giving us' $1000 towards it (or, in effect, charging us $2,000 over MSRP on the new car).

So, the net cost of the new car is 38,945. We had the car appraised at at a couple of dealerships and the numbers were consistent.

We're looking at either a 42month lease at 60% residual and .0215 MF, or a 48month lease at 55% residual and the same MF.

Questions are:
1. Are the residuals and MF correct for this vehicle?
2. Any reason NOT to go with a 48 month lease since the car will still be under warranty?
3. Does this sound like a good deal??

Thanks for the quick opinions/responses!!

Dan

coby03 · December 2003

Car_Man,

My wife is interested in an RX330. We test drove one and she loved it. The deal offered by the salesman was:

2004 RX330 AWD, Neptune Blue/Gray Leather
Premium Plus Package
MSRP = $40,908
39 month lease
15,000 miles per year
Due at delivery: 1st month payment, $600 bank fee, plates
Monthly payment = $499 (plus tax)

This deal looks pretty good to me, but I told the salesman that we'll talk on Monday to finalize a deal. What do you think? By the way, we're in Northeast Ohio. Thanks for your help.

Ken

droop · December 2003

Car Man:
Would you please provide to me the money factor and residual % for a 2004 Audi A4 1.8T Quattro, 48 month lease and 12,000/year. This information would be much appreciated as the car was ordered and will arrive Monday. Also have Beacon score of 810.

Thank you, Droop

CarMan@Edmunds · December 2003

As Arnold once said, I'm baaaack I know that was bad

). I just wanted to drop a quick note in this discussion to let everyone know that I am back from a short vacation. I would appreciate it if those of you who still have questions about leasing that you need answered would re-post them in this discussion. Thanks and talk to you soon.

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coby03 · December 2003

Welcome back Car_Man,

My wife is interested in an RX330. We test drove one and she loved it. The deal offered by the salesman was:

2004 RX330 AWD, Neptune Blue/Gray Leather
Premium Plus Package
MSRP = $40,908
39 month lease
15,000 miles per year
Due at delivery: 1st month payment, $600 bank fee, plates
Monthly payment = $499 (plus tax)

This deal looks pretty good to me, but I told the salesman that we'll talk on Monday to finalize a deal. What do you think? By the way, we're in Northeast Ohio. Thanks for your help.

Ken

CarMan@Edmunds · December 2003

Thanks Ken. You never mentioned this vehicle's capitalized cost in your post. This is an extremely important number for you to know. The selling prices of leased vehicles can be negotiated, just as if you were paying cash for them. Without knowing this vehicle's cap cost, you have no idea what you are being charged for it. Furthermore, the cap cost is necessary to calculate a sample lease payment on it. Without this number, I can not calculate exactly what your lease payment on this vehicle should be, but rather can only estimate approximately what it might be based upon what others are paying at this time. For now, I will calculate a sample lease payment for you, using a cap cost of $1,000 below full MSRP. According to my calculations, if you were to lease a 2004 Lexus RX 330 AWD (w/o navigation / rear entertainment) with an MSRP of $40,908 and a selling price of $39,908 in your area through Lexus Financial Services this month for 39 months with 15,000 miles per year, its zero down, pre-tax monthly payment should be right around $584. In order to get a payment as low as the $499 that you were quoted, your deal would have to be based upon a selling price of around $4,100 under full MSRP. This is only about $300 above the dealer invoice price of a typical '04 RX 330 and appears to me as though it is a very good deal.

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glebel · December 2003

Car-Man
Could you please provide me with the residual % and money factors for both a 2004 GMC Envoy XL SLE and a 2004 Isuzu Ascender 7 passenger LS. This would be for 36-39 month 15000 mile per lease.
Thanks in advance!

droop · December 2003

Car Man:
Would you please provide to me the money factor and residual % for a 2004 Audi A4 1.8T Quattro, 48 month lease and 12,000/year. This information would be much appreciated as the car was ordered and will arrive Monday. Also have Beacon score of 810.

Thank you, Droop

chriso59 · December 2003

CarMan, I am looking at leasing a 2004 Ford Explorer XLT Sport. MSRP is $34,070 and the capital cost is $28,717. (Thank you CarsDirect and my dealer!) I am looking at leasing for 36 or 39 months with 18k miles per year. If you could provide the money factors and the residual values it would be much appreciated.

TIA,
Chris

tstarks33 · December 2003

First off, thanks Carman for answering my question about the RX-8 a few weeks ago.

Now I have another question that hopefully you or someone else can answer. I have read that leasing a car and then moving to a different state can cause big problems and shouldn't be done. Any truth to this? I currently live in Washington DC but I plan on moving to Virginia in a few months. Should I wait until I move to VA to lease a car, or can I lease now? Thanks in advance

CarMan@Edmunds · December 2003

Hi glebel. General Motors publishes its lease numbers a little differently than most other banks do. Rather than providing its dealers with lease money factors for models, it provides them with lease rates. You can convert these lease rates into approximate money factor equivalents by dividing them by 2400. If you were to lease a 2004 GMC Envoy XL SLE 4WD through General Motors Acceptance Corp. this month for 3 years with 15,000 miles per, its base lease rate will be either 3.5% or 6.5%, depending upon which one of GM's regions you live in. Its 3 year, 15,000 miles per residual value will be either 54% or 52%. If you let me know exactly where you are, I can let you know what the specific program is like for your area.

Unfortunately, I have not seen any lease information for Isuzu recently. I can tell you though that you can finance a 2004 Isuzu Ascender at 0.0% for up to 3 years, 0.9% for 4 years, 1.9% for 5 years, and 2.9% for 6 years.

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2003

Seasons Greetings, Droop. You certainly have an excellent credit score, so you do not have to worry about qualifying for Audi's best lease program. If you were to lease a 2004 Audi A4 1.8T with quattro through Audi Financial Services this month for 4 years with 12,000 miles per, its base lease money factor and residual value should be .00155 and 50%, respectively.

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2003

Good morning, Chris. Ford's lease program often varies by region, so it would be helpful if you would tell me where you live. For now, I will provide you with informaiton on what I believe is Ford's most commonly available program for this model. If you were to lease a 2004 Ford Explorer XLT 4WD through Ford Motor Credit this month for 39 months with 18,000 miles per year, its base lease rate and residual value should be 1.0% and 42%, respectively. Much like General Motors Acceptance Corp., Ford Credit publishes lease rates for its models instead of lease money factors. You can convert the aforementioned lease rate into an approximate money factor equivalent by dividing it by 2400.

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footie · December 2003

Hi Car Man,

We are interested in the Honda Element.

They are offering a special lease on the left over 2003 2WD EX Automatic models till 12/31/03.

$229 / month for 48 months. Sounded good. Right?

Then I did the math. Even after a $2260 down payment and cap cost near invoice, looks like a money factor of of .0041 or NEARLY 10% interest.

Is this right???? If so, that would seem like quite a rip off in this day and age of low interest financing.

CarMan@Edmunds · December 2003

You're welcome, tstarks33. I don't think that you will have any problems with leasing a vehicle in Washington DC and then moving to Virginia. Given the close proximity of those two areas, I am sure that this sort of thing happens all the time. Even though each bank is free to set its own policies, the vast majority of banks do not care if their lessees move to another state, as long as it is in the continental U.S.

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CarMan@Edmunds · December 2003

Hi footie. I am familiar with the advertised lease that you are referring to. It is an unsupported lease, meaning that it was calculated using American Honda Finance Corp.'s standard lease program. However, AHFC's base standard money factors are much better than the number that you calculated. AHFC's current 3 year standard lease money factor is only .00220, which is equivalent to around 5.28%.

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lsg123 · December 2003

Hi Carman, could you help me with that info:

Lease for 39 month 15000 miles for cars:

1. Acura TL 2004( no NAV) in NY, money factor and
residual.
2. Maxima (2004) 3.5SL in NY, money factor and
residual.

And, should I ever enter "balloon note" agreement ?

Thank you .

tstarks33 · December 2003

Thanks Carman! That's exactly what I wanted to hear

djdez · December 2003

Car_man ... thanks again for all the insight you give everyone here. I have somewhat of a DIFFERENT question - I'm hoping you can help me.

When I leased my Infiniti back in September, I registered it in NJ at my house. Well, I may be moving back to Philadelphia. How will this impact my lease ? I saw you mentioning earlier about how NJ is unique in the way that it calculates the tax on a lease. Also, on my lease bill, the tax is NEVER broken out. I only have the entire MONTHLY amount due. I'm sure it could be figured out though. In NJ, I believe the tax on the lease is 6%. In Philadelphia, it is 10% (OUCH!).

In any event, I'm guessing I will have to re-register the car in Philadelphia, get PA tags and a PA license, as well as change the insurance. Now, when I re-register, what will the tax impact be upon my lease? Will the difference get added to the monthly payments, or can I pay it in a lump sum? How does this usually work? I'm currently paying $401 a month. I'm figuring that if this was registered in Philly, it would be around $417 a month. I already made 3 payments, so I'm guessing the $16 a month for the remaining 35 months would be $560. Is the amount I will have to pay or will it be something different (more?) ...

Sorry for so many questions -- THANKS !!!

glebel · December 2003

Car_Man
Thank you for the quick response. I would be leasing in New Hampshire.
Thanks

smd5 · December 2003

CarMan - Welcome Back!

Any advance news on what Jaguar is going to do with their leasing program after January 1? They are currently subventing the 2.5 rate and doing nothing with the 3.0. Just wondering if you knew anything.

Happy New Year!

chriso59 · December 2003

CarMan
Thanks for the speedy reply! Forgot to include that I live in MA, if u could provide the rates for that area it would be great. BTW, when I asked my dealership what the money factor was they told be the rate was 3.25% for 36 months. You gave me a rate of 1.0% for 39 months... Why is there such a large discrepency? Also, do you think I should lease at 39 months instead of 36 months?

Thanks,
Chris

>CarMan, I am looking at leasing a 2004 Ford >Explorer XLT Sport. MSRP is $34,070 and the >capital cost is $28,717. (Thank you CarsDirect >and my dealer!) I am looking at leasing for 36 >or 39 months with 18k miles per year. If you >could provide the money factors and the >residual values it would be much appreciated.

coby03 · December 2003

Car_man,

Too many choices out there! My wife currently has a Pathfinder coming off lease. You helped me out yesterday with the numbers on the RX (a very good deal), but the Nissan dealer won't go down without a fight! Here's what was finally offered for a 2004 Murano SL AWD, with Touring Package and Dynamic Control Package:

MSRP = 35390
Cap Cost = 33148
Lease for 39 months, 15,000 miles per year
MF = 0.00158
RV = 51%
Monthly Payment = $466
Due at signing = 1st & plates

Seems like another very good deal. What do you think? Thanks again.

Ken

jmdaniel · December 2003

I see in message 8841 you are quoting a money factor of .00155 on the 2004 Audi 1.8T Quattro. Here in Austin yesterday, the Audi dealer quoted my girlfriend a money factor .00175, but stated that they were waiving the TT&L, because they were using VW tax credits. Today, they say they don't have the ability to waive the tax credits, (all used up...), but want to write a balloon deal, (Premier Purchase). The fishy smell is starting to increase, so I wanted to run the numbers by you:

Saturday's Lease (A4 1.8T w/auto)
MSRP: $32140
Cap Cost: $32140
MF: .00175
Term: 48 Months
Miles: 12K
Residual: 50%
Down Payment: $1499
Acquisition Fee: $575
First Month: $374
Disposition Fee $350

Today's Balloon Note:

(A4 1.8T w/6 speed manual)
MSRP: $31490
Cap Cost: $31490
MF: Doesn't apply, interest rate not given
Term: 48 Months
Miles: 15K (higher than above)
Residual: 50%
Down Payment: $1499
Acquisition Fee: $575
First Month: $374
Disposition Fee $350

Or, taking into account she needs to turn in a Toyota 4Runner with 2 months left, at $388/month, they said they would simply require the same amount down, but they would take the $776 needed to close the lease out of the $1499 down, which would up her monthly payment to $379.

I know there is a bit of room there, (Cap Cost, to start with), and I am also very interested in their gyrations regarding the tax forgiveness that they had on Saturday, but not today. They said on Saturday they would stick to their ad, which advertises the prices and tax forgiveness through 12/31, then I call today, and they say they can't do that, and want to switch to a balloon note arrangement. The VW dealer we went to later on Saturday told us that VW was only doing the forgiveness through today, which meant everything had to be FedX'd by COB Saturday. They are singing the same tune, at least from a VW standpoint, but I have no problem walkig away from a dealer that doesn't stand by their ad.

Anyways, I have already gone on too long. I join many others on this board in thanking you for your help. I will have a beer waiting for you on 6th Street, if you should ever make it to Austin!

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