samir786

This will be the first time I'm leasing a car, so if anyone can help me understand, I would greatly appreciate it. I was wondering why a lease on a G35 Sedan with premium package is cheaper than the TSX w/Navi? TSX w/Navi is about $3k cheaper than the G35 sedan. How is this possible? Am i missing a catch?

CGTSX2004

iTrader: (1)

First, check how much the drive-off amount is. Odds are, the drive-off on the Infiniti will be significantly higher (as in several thousand dollars). The other possibility is that Infiniti is using inflated residual values (much like BMW does) to reduce the costs of the lease.

I would say this is most likely a case of the latter.

GIBSON6594

I'm sure you'll get someone who knows more about this than me, but leasing has to do with paying for the residual value of the car for the time period you have it. There are many factors that are considered when a lease price is determined. Your payment is not only based on the car price, it is based on the value of the car over the time period you will be driving it.

Please correct me if i'm wrong

CJams

For one....There are still a butt load of brand new 2004 G35s on the lot. They simply don't sell as well as the TSX...they should be cheaper.(supply/demand) I just bought an 05 TSeX and as I was shopping I stopped by the Infinity lot to view other options before making a $30k purchase. The lot I stopped by still had (10) brand new 2004 G35's and before we even hit the show room to discuss prices the salesman said he could instantly knock about $4K off of the sticker price. Out of all of the Acura dealerships I visited ther wasn't 1 brand new 2004 TSX on the lot. There was only 6 used 04s out of the 4 dealer ships I visited. The TSX is simply in higher demand...they sell out!

BTW, why lease? After 2-3 years you have to give the car back and get nothing for it. I figure if you lease, you must have money to burn.

samir786

I ran the numbers in detail, you actually save money leasing...calculate taking the residual value of the car against the market value and your interest rate, and making sure you don't end up upside-down. you will save in 3 years if you lease...

CGTSX2004

iTrader: (1)

Actually, for those people who trade their cars in often, leasing makes sense since you make a lower monthly payment and often, dealers over-estimate the initial residual value of the car, resulting in good leases, but later on, the car loses its resale value and the manufacturer gets to absorb the cost while you move into a new car.

Also, businesses can claim the vehicles as a tax deduction.

gfxdave99

Leasing is okay if ALL of the following are true.

1. You are going to want a new car in 3 years anyway
2. You realistically can drive under 15,000 miles a year
3. You dont plan on making any major modifications to your car

I have leased two cars, and after deciding I'd rather have a townhouse then two cars, I'm selling my TSX (leased) and finishing paying off my other car.

If any of 1/2/3 are not true, then buy the car and spend the extra 150-200 a month and buy it.

I'm also not sure where you're leasing numbers are coming from, check out www.leasecompare.com , I ran the numbers really quick and at $29,100 or so (the base price for a navi tsx or a base g35 sedan) the lease quotes were only a few dollars apart.

The MOST important thing to do if you are leasing the car is DONT TELL THE SALESMAN! That is, until you have negotiated your price. When you walk in telling him you want to lease it's pretty much giving him card blanche to charge you sticker for the car. Go in saying you are going to buy, work them down to an agreed sales price and THEN drop the lease bomb, they have allready agreed to the price, how you pay for it is up to you.

CJams

I keep vehicles for 7+ years and put 20kmiles per year on them. They don't sit in the garage. I dislike leases because I have had a few friends get to the end of their leases and have to pay a but load extra for the miles or pay an outrageous amount to keep the car. They all lost in the end! I just can't imagine that much money going out each month and not ever seeing a pink slip.

CGTSX2004

iTrader: (1)

Again, you have a different mentality. And your friends sound like they weren't good candidates for leases in the first place.

Like gfx mentioned, you must qualify your situation before going for a lease.

And remember, just because a lease doesn't make sense for you, doesn't mean it doesn't make sense for anyone else.

osubuckeye98

Samir, I always defer my friends who have questions about leasing to this site:

http://www.leaseguide.com/

They've got great info. I've leased all but two of the cars I've had. I fit the leasing profile really well: I don't drive an exorbant amount of miles and I take very good care of my cars. Another benefit to leasing is that the car is always under factory warranty. I personally wouldn't lease for more than 36 months, after that point you are better off buying the car. The money I save by leasing vs. purchasing I invest in things like CDs and ETFs.

dgracer

I would add the following to the list of 3 pre-requisites; Bottom line, leasing reduces the buyers flexibility. You cannot just get out of it when you want, especially if you need to due to a life event (job loss, etc).

4. You are putting money away (or you already have cash) in addition to making your lease payment so that you could afford to purchase another car at the end of the lease. Otherwise you are "trapped" into leasing which is what the dealers want. Nobody needs a new car every 3 years. Dealers want you to have them.
5. You can afford the additional insurance coverage that may be required for leased vehicles. Some companies (Honda being one) wants 100/300 coverage.

Tunerman

Sorry but you need to look at the #'s...

TSX sell between 2000-3000 a month

The G35 sells near 8000 a month. So how does it not sell well? The dealers can't even keep them on the lots hardly.

psteng19

I question your knowledge on the subject. Maybe you should look at the facts before you post.

Historically, the G35 sedan has sold better than the TSX. If you include the coupe, the TSX doesn't even come close.
Only in the past few months have TSX sales really picked up.

The reason why the lease payments are lower is because the G35 has a higher residual value at the end of the lease term, as mentioned by a few people already.
The higher the residual value, the lower the monthly lease payments.

stillageek

I leased my TSX because I finally realized I have always been leasing without the benefits. My last car was a 2003 Toyota Matrix XRS. It was loaded to the gills and I paid $20K for it back in Novermber 2002. I drove it until last weekend and put just 18K miles on it. I traded it in for $13K. I leased my TSX with Navi for $360 a month, TTL down with the negotiated purchase price of $27,800. I have a 3 year 15K miles a year lease. Why 15K? Well I currently have a company car (hence the low miles on my last car) but will be changing jobs soon and losing the company car. If I were to have purchased the TSX at 4% APR for 60 months with just TTL down I would be paying $530 a month. I am taking the money I am saving and paying off my wifes Prius. For those who care the estimated residual on my TSX is $16,900.