ac2001cls

So the possibility of leasing has came up in regards to me getting either a new TL or new RL within the next year or so, maybe sooner if something drastically happens. But i was wondering how a lease works.

So i know that you have to pay a certain amount of money down, what like $1k to 2k dollars and based on how long you want your lease term to be, they set it up according to fit your needs. And the main reason why people would lease is to save money and to have a cheaper monthly bill (if i'm assuming correctly). So i pretty much understand all that. My concerns/questions come into play after the lease is up and you have the option of leasing another new vehicle or purchasing the one you've been paying on. So if i were to keep the vehicle after my lease is up how does that work? So basically the monthly payments that i have paid per month towards the lease of the car are those monies being put towards the vehicle at the end of the lease if i were to purchase it??? So i say if i lease a car for 42 mos. and after the 42 months lets say i still have like 10k left to pay, wouldn't i just be able to finance the remaining $10K if i were planning on keeping it? So in other words all the payments that have been made during the lease should go towards the actual purchase of the car. If someone could explain this aspect of this for me i'd appreciate it. Thanks

03silvertypeS

It all completely depends on the dealership and the lease agreement. Most of the time, the money that you put towards the lease is just that, think of it as renting a car for a longer term. You are paying for the convenience of having a car whenever you want it, having the exact car you want, and it is pretty much a service. If you are seriously thinking about keeping it afterwards, i would recommend just buying one. If you do not drive too many miles in a given year and do not anticipate any minor damage to the vehicle, and want to drive a new car every 3-4 years, than the lease may be for you. HOWEVER, be aware that when the lease is up, you will be seriously overcharged for any damage to the vehicle and any mileage over the original amount in the lease agreement. Personally, I have been goin along pretty well with my one finance professor's advice on getting the most out of a car:
1. Never buy a new car; as soon as you buy it and take it off the lot it loses at least 15% of its value. If you absolutely MUST have a new car, buy it and drive it til it dies.
2. Find the car that you want and buy a model that is 2 yrs old; by doing this, you have a car that is fairly new, selling for a fraction of it's new car price, and will last just as long. Again, drive it until it dies or sell it after a few years when you want something else. Either way, you wouldn't have lost nearly as much as on a new car.
3. Regular maintenence is one of the most important things you can do for a car, check fluids, tire pressure, etc regularly.
Ok, i think i'm gonna quit with my car advice column and give you your thread back. Overall, leasing is not worth it unless you have the money to spare(and have no problem spending it). For the average person, leasing just isn't practical.

ac2001cls

Hey 03silvertypeS,

Thanks a lot for the in depth explanation of that. I really appreciate it because you have opened my eyes to the overall picture of leasing. I was just thinking about it as being a way to save money initially i guess and not thinking about the long haul. So if you're not the type of person to keep leasing when your term is up, then it wouldn't make any sense at all to purchase it after the lease.

So what about if you were to actually purchase it, what things come into play then as far as what price you would have to pay/finance for?

03silvertypeS

You're welcome, i hope i wasn't rambling too much. As far as your other question, I think this should answer what you're asking: First thing in buying a car is trade in, if you have one that's the first thing they look for. They will appraise the car(make sure it's clean overall, not professionally detailed, but try to hide major scratches, dents, etc(mequier's scratch x works pretty well) and make sure the car doesn't have too much crap in it. Overall the prices dealerships give on trades are fairly low, but if you're in a hurry it's pretty much the way to go since you can apply the trade in value however you want and you're in a new car quickly. The trade value they will give you can be either applied as a down payment for the car you're purchasing(this will help lower the payments), they can put some down on the car and give you the rest(this helps lower payments, plus gives you cash to help out w/ the first few payments), or they can just give you a check for the trade in value(this can be used any way you want, if you are financing with anyone other than the dealership this is the way to go). If there is no trade in, they will ask how much you can put down on the car, usually most people at least try to put $1k-2K down on the car. All the money you put down, (or the trade in amount applied) lowers the overall price of the car by the same amount. NOTE: Mostly all prices and costs from dealerships are negotiable, however, make sure you do the math, because some will discount and make it back with fees, "undercoating", etc. Overall, you just have to find a car you're interested in, make sure you're flexible and make sure you trust the sales person(keep in mind they make more commission if they can get you to pay more). As far as extended warranties go, it completely depends on the car and personal preference. I had a 97 ford contour that i bought in 99 and bought the extra warranty for like $1000. During the course of the warranty, i had my engine replaced, catalytic converter, and a few other items which definitely made the warranty worth it. However, i didn't buy a warranty on my acura because it's much more reliable(reputation, etc) than ford. I think that pretty much covers it, if you have any more questions, i'll try to help.

ac2001cls

Again thanks sooo much for the explanation. And trust me when i'm trying to find out something and learn about a particular topic, i don't consider it to be rambling. Now if i had a total clear understanding about it and you had wrote that much, then i would say "yea you're kind of rambling a lil" :-) But it's all good. So yea i don't know what i would want to do. I definitely wouldn't want to keep leasing b/c that would just be giving money away. So when you think about it like that, it's best to just go ahead and buy. My CL (which i just got back when i went to lunch... the transmission was replaced.) But anyway that'll be paid for around this time next year, then i was planning on waiting another year in order to save. Hopefully by then a new model will be coming out, so if i like that then i'll get it, and if i don't like it then i can always find an 05 or 06 TL.