lease?
 

Well, I've decided I'm going to get either the VW or Audi (probably the VW so I can save about $3K). I'd like to save some money though, have a reasonable monthly payment and not put a lot of money down. I'm not very liquid at the moment, but will be probably by the end of the year.

I've never leased before, and always balked at the idea of "renting" a car. I don't have any tax advantages I can leverage wrt the car. In the past I've kept my cars for a long time, but I've only had the Subaru for 1.5 years, and probably won't keep this car out of warranty.

So my options are to put down a couple $K, finance long term through my credit union. I think that would end up with about a $500/mo payment (figuring about $100/$5K). I could put down more like $5-$7K but that would dip a little too deep into my savings for comfort. Then when I get my settlement I'd likely refinance, dropping another $10K into the car to lower the payments.

The other is to lease. I can put about $2K down, and do 36 months, 12K miles/year, $435/mo. I don't have the details yet on the rate, residual, etc but will soon. I have no idea what/where I'll be in 3 years, but having to change cars wouldn't be the end of the world.

The only thing I worry about is if circumstances change and I need/want to get out of the lease in a year or so. If I purchased, I could sell the car, although I'd be upside down and it would cost me a couple $K to get out of it. Are there equivalent lease options? I know I could do leaseswap, etc, but am wondering about other alternatives.

hmm, I ran the numbers. If I do a 72 month loan at my credit union's rate, my monthly payment with $2K down is $444. Seems better to do that than a 36 month lease with $2K down and $435/mo.

I'm not a big fan of leasing, but neither am I of buying brand new cars. Now that I'm older, my adversion to new cars has lessened, warranty coverage somehow gained more value after I turned 40 :)

But I still don't get leasing.

Don't lease it you don't have to. That's all I can say. Sometimes leasing makes sense, but the dealers themselves will tell you almost all leases do not result in a purchase of the car. So, you are correct in calling it renting. Businesses benefit from either purchases or leases, depending. Homeowners benefit on purchases using home equity only, something else I'm not too fond of, having used up equity on one house a few years ago. And not for cars either. That would have been more fun!

Depends on such things as are you going to want to keep the car in three years (much simpler to give it back than have to sell it, tell the lien holder, blah blah) vs how much mileage you drive....

I leased a 2004 Toyota Tacoma on a 3 year lease with 15,000 mile per year limit. Two months ago and aprox. 2 years into the lease Toyota sent me a letter stating they were looking for trucks and would make a deal. Gas prices being what they are/were I went and turned in the Tacoma and leased a Corolla and it cost me nothing other than a signature. I am leasing the Corolla for 3 years and we'll see after that.

Excess mileage and them hitting you for nicks and chips that they say aren't normal wear and tear, can add up on the turn in. I've had my Mazda 626 for 9 years and while its getting a little rattly, I've had no car payments on it for about 6 years. I tend to take car of my cars and drive them until they have a fatal coronary that costs more than the value of the vehicle. Then I look at it say OK, so its $2k on a car to fix the trannie and its only worth $2K when fixed, but there's a good chance it won't need anything else for a while. So maybe I put the $2K in it and take my chances and see if I can get another year out of it.

You want an A-6? Take over my lease I hate my Audi and its the last VW Adui I EVER own.

$600 a month for a 3.2 Quattro with the tranny you like.

Hell, I would be so happy to see it go I'll pay to ship it to you.


Do not lease a car if you cannot afford the payments buy something else. I am stuck with this POS for another 20+ months and HATE it.

Good thing you're not in sales :)

LOL!!

I have bit my tongue as he contemplated a VW and can only say turn and run!! When your knee is better you will be sorry your tied to a lease.

Buy a 2-3 year old econobox and trade it when your tired of it.

the dealer and I are about $1200 apart on price right now. I'm not that willing to budge...and I do have some reservations about getting the VW (or the Audi for that matter). There are positive stories, but they also have plenty of niggling issues. Every marque seems to have that though.

The problem with buying an old econobox is the cash out of pocket and potential out of pocket if it breaks. Like Rodeo said, after 40 I seem to like warranties and roadside assistance :p

Still pondering choices. But the lease looks like a non-starter. The problem is I have some minimum standards for performance and cush in my daily driver. If there is no bike in the picture, I want to get something entertaining and comfortable. And not a zillion dollars. And some style. And no clutch. Tall order I know...GTi/A3 is a good fit on paper.

There's nothing wrong with leasing, whether you buy the car at the end or not. All this being "upside down" is simply a result of not paying down the principal balance as much as you generally do with a purchase. The car's worth the same regardless of how it was financed; the payoff is a result of how much you've put in along the way.

With a lease, you pay the tax monthly with each payment (and on any cap reduction = down payment), so if you get out early, you're ahead of the game. Leasing usually has an acquistion fee which isn't there on purchasing, a disadvantage. Leasing has a guaranteed way out via returning it to the lender; purchasing does not. You can always sell the car yourself and payoff the lease, which can be better than returning the car.

One thing to compare is the rates. For example, I believe US Bank has a lease factor of 0.00202 right now (which is outstanding). That is commonly expressed as "2.02." You can estimate the approximate equivalent interest rate by multiplying by 2.4 (or 2400 if the rate is quoted precisely). So, the US Bank rate is about 4.85%. I don't think you'll see an open-market rate as low as that, but you might see a factory-sponsored rate lower than that. For example, my brother leased an S2000 through American Honda Finance with a rate factor of 0.00059 = 1.4%. So, compare your credit union rate to the lease rate. Check to see if there's a low APR or rebate offered by VW/Audi. Also, dealers typically markup the "buy rate," or their cost on the money. Ask them what the buy rate is, and how much over/under invoice for the car if leased at the buy rate. You'll have lower payments if they charge you a little more for the car without marking up the lease factor.

I have the ability to take advantage of the tax breaks on a leased vehicle and would never consider leasing.

The new VW/Audi products are simply not as well made as they once were. I can not recall a recent happy tale regarding their products. Not that I dislike the cars, I loved my buddy's TT, and looked at them when I got my Integra back in 1997. In retrospect, purchasing the Integra was the smartest thing I have done in a long time. Paid it off early, and have been driving it for "free" ever since.

Brother, you the man drivin' it, if it fits your needs, it does not sound like you will be too put out even if it starts to turn into a a turd in 3 years, so go for it.

The bottom line is they will do $500 over invoice if I lease it from them, otherwise it is $1600 over invoice if I write them a check. For that money ($27K), I'll look at an A3 or other cars. Just too much money for a vdub...

Maybe there are some other entertaining auto cars out there in the sub-30K range...

I think Toyota has a version of this transmission, try check that out.

Common sense - if it was in your interest (and not the dealership's) to lease instead of encourage standard purchases, why would they promote them so much?

Did you ever drive a Mini with the auto-stick Todd or did I miss that thread? I saw your thread on the DSG.

I was just wondering if you did drive it what your thoughts were/why you eliminated it.

They still playing those ads? -- You won't get a lemon, from Toyota of Orange

Short term commitment = in the market for another car sooner

I haven't drive the Mini S w/auto, but from the reviews I've read online, I'm assuming it isn't nearly as fun as the DSG. I might try to drive one, but it is quite difficult for me to get around right now. I'm seeing if another dealer is more interested in my money...I don't think these cars are flying off the lot, and a sold car over invoice is a sold car. But dealerships are funny that way...

I guess I could consider a 3-series or something coming off lease, but when I drove a steptronic before it was lame, and i wouldn't have a hatch unless I found a wagon. Not that many interesting cars without a clutch out there...